I went in on a Friday night with my family, and unfortunately, the experience was frustrating from the moment we walked through the door.
From the very beginning, it felt like the staff was completely ignoring us. We waited approximately 15 minutes before the manager, Reese, finally came to the front. We were then told it would be another 30 minutes before we could be seated, which was extremely confusing considering the restaurant did not appear to be busy. When I asked why the wait was so long, Reese explained that he had sent some of his staff home. As a customer, that is not something we should have to suffer the consequences of.
Once we were finally seated, things initially seemed to be going smoothly. We understood that they were out of several drink options and were willing to overlook that and continue enjoying our evening.
Unfortunately, things went downhill quickly.
Our food began coming out, and by the time half of our party was nearly finished eating, both my son and daughter still had not received their meals. We made several attempts to bring this to our server's attention, but nothing was being done. After waiting close to an hour, I finally asked to speak with the manager.
When Reese came over, I explained that my children had been waiting an unreasonable amount of time for their food. He then informed me that our server had forgotten to put the order in. At that point, I was already extremely frustrated, but I remained calm and simply asked if he could at least get some mozzarella sticks started for my 4-year-old son, who was crying because he was so hungry. I specifically asked how long they would take because we had already been waiting close to an hour.
Instead of showing any concern or urgency, Reese laughed and smirked at me and told me that they were already working on the order, but he couldn't tell me how much longer it would take. Watching my child cry from hunger while the manager stood there laughing and smirking was honestly one of the most unprofessional customer service experiences I have ever encountered.
I became understandably upset and asked Reese to do something to rectify the situation. At that point, I decided to cancel the food order because I was no longer willing to make my children wait any longer.
Reese then told me he would provide a discount for the inconvenience. However, when the check arrived, the "discount" was only $1. After everything that had happened--the long wait to be seated, being ignored, multiple missing drink options, our children's food being forgotten, nearly an hour of waiting, and the manager's completely dismissive attitude--I found the $1 discount almost insulting.
I have personally worked in the restaurant industry for over 10 years, so I understand that mistakes happen. Orders get forgotten, restaurants get busy, and employees can have difficult nights. What separates a good restaurant from a bad experience is how management handles those mistakes. Unfortunately, Reese handled this situation about as poorly as I could imagine.
The biggest issue was not even that our order was forgotten. It was the complete lack of urgency, empathy, and professionalism afterward--especially when dealing with a hungry 4-year-old who was visibly upset.
Reese seriously needs to be sent back to management training, particularly in customer service, conflict resolution, and basic hospitality. A manager should be the person who steps in, takes ownership of a mistake, apologizes, and does everything possible to make the situation right--not someone who laughs and smirks while a customer's child is crying from hunger.
This was an incredibly disappointing experience, and after working in the restaurant industry myself for so many years, I can honestly say I have never witnessed a manager handle a customer situation this poorly. read more