UPDATE -- A Completely Different Experience
Following my original review, Greer Southern Table personally reached out, apologized, and invited us back. We accepted--and I'm very happy to say our second visit completely changed our impression.
We enjoyed a wonderful meal and received a genuinely warm welcome from the owners, Greer and her husband, Alexander, and the entire staff. They went above and beyond to make things right, and we are truly thankful.
Jessica was once again in charge of our table and was exceptional. Her warmth, humor, and attentiveness made us feel completely at home. She was the bright spot during our first visit and once again proved what a wonderful representative she is for the restaurant.
The food was very good, and this time we sat indoors. The restaurant is warm, cozy, and thoughtfully decorated, with natural and organic elements that give it real charm and a welcoming, at-home feeling.
Looking back, our first experience appears to have been a one-off late-night mishap. What matters is that Greer and her team listened, apologized, and genuinely cared enough to make things right.
They completely reversed our initial impression. We will return and are now happy to recommend Greer Southern Table.
Original Review
We arrived at Greer Southern Table at approximately 7:45 p.m., with the restaurant scheduled to close at 9:00 p.m. Our waitress, Jessica, was excellent from the moment we arrived. She was warm, welcoming, professional, and knowledgeable about the menu. She made us feel genuinely appreciated as customers.
We ordered several appetizers and the catfish entrée as our main course.
About 20 minutes after we had already ordered, another family arrived and was seated inside. Roughly 10 minutes later, Jessica returned to our table looking uncomfortable and told us she had some bad news. She even joked that we were about to meet someone "not as nice as me." Unfortunately, she wasn't wrong.
A few moments later, the owner approached our table. She was curt, dismissive, and visibly irritated, making no effort to show empathy or concern for the situation. Instead of apologizing, she bluntly informed us that they would not be serving our catfish, collard greens, or the Greer salad we had ordered.
When we asked why, we were told there was only one catfish left, and it had been given to the family who arrived after us.
That was astonishing. We had placed our order first and had already been waiting for our meal. Yet the restaurant chose to fulfill the order of customers who arrived 20 minutes later instead of honoring ours. Whether this was due to poor inventory management or another business decision, it left us feeling that our business simply didn't matter.
What disappointed us even more was the complete lack of a sincere apology or any meaningful attempt by the owner to make the situation right. Running out of an item is understandable. Failing to honor the first order placed and treating customers as though that's perfectly acceptable is not.
Jessica, however, handled the situation with genuine professionalism. She came back to our table, pulled up a chair, sincerely apologized, and even offered us dessert on the house. She did everything she could to salvage what had become a very disappointing evening. She deserves recognition because she was the only person who showed genuine concern for our experience.
As for the food, it was good, but not exceptional. I don't particularly enjoy heavy Southern cuisine, but even so, several dishes arrived lukewarm and somewhat bland. I've had far better Southern food throughout the South, as well as in Harlem and the Bronx.
My biggest complaint isn't the food--it's the way management treated us. We came in well before closing, ordered first, waited patiently, and then were told our meal had been given to customers who arrived later. That is simply unacceptable customer service.
Unfortunately, because of how we were treated, we won't be returning, and I cannot recommend Greer Southern Table to others based on this experience. read more