I have left wonderful reviews in the past for this place but I have to share my experience…read morerecently.
My boyfriend and I have been to Standard Pub several times during the day, and every visit has been fantastic. We've enjoyed the food, drinks, and even had the pleasure of speaking with the owner on multiple occasions. The service was always welcoming, and the food was consistently phenomenal.
Because of those great experiences, we decided to bring some friends on a Saturday night. We arrived around 7:30 PM, and the atmosphere looked promising. There appeared to be a DJ setting up, and the crowd seemed excited for a night of music, food, and drinks.
Unfortunately, our experience that evening was completely different from what we had come to expect.
We ordered food and drinks, and while our server wasn't outright rude, he seemed uninterested in providing the level of service we had previously received. As the night went on, things became increasingly odd. Shortly after ordering another round of drinks, while our drinks were still full and we had just received them, the server approached our table and asked if we were finished. My boyfriend jokingly responded, "No, let me talk to your manager," and laughed, assuming the server was joking as well.
The server responded, "Yeah, it's my brother," but with an attitude that left everyone at our table looking at each other wondering what had just happened. He then informed us that we needed to put a credit card on file. At that point, we had already been there for over an hour, and it seemed strange that this requirement was only being brought up then. We also noticed that no other tables around us were being asked for a card.
The most disappointing part came when we received the bill. There was an additional $60 service charge added--$35 on my friends' bill and $25 on ours. Confused, we asked for an explanation. The explanations we received kept changing. First, we were told it was because my boyfriend was sitting with another group, which was completely false. Then we were told it was because the bill exceeded $100. After that, we were told it was because there were more than six people in our party, despite there only being four of us.
The inconsistent explanations were frustrating and made it feel as though the staff were simply making up reasons to justify the charge. Our issue wasn't necessarily with a service fee itself--it was the lack of disclosure and the conflicting stories we were given when we asked about it. To make matters worse, the receipt also included a separate line for an additional tip.
After discussing it with them and explaining that additional charges should be clearly communicated to customers, the service charge was ultimately removed.
This review is not a reflection of the food, which remains excellent, nor of our previous experiences at Standard Pub. It is solely based on the service and handling of the situation during our Saturday night visit. We left feeling disappointed and confused, especially because this establishment had earned our trust through many positive visits in the past. I sincerely hope this was an isolated incident and that management addresses these issues so other customers don't have a similar experience