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| - I have been here twice since they opened, and they would have gotten 5 stars, which I never give, however, there is one aspect that they need some major improvement on.
Lets start with the good stuff:
-the building itself is very attractive from the outside, and only gets better when you go in. It is warm and inviting, rustic and modern, all at the same time. Mostly all booths, which is awesome, because everyone always wants a booth. They have a large room up front with a fireplace and some couches and chairs, but not sure exactly what the purpose of that room is, and they also have a private dining room as well, and a great bar area.
-the servers are awesome! Knowledgeable, friendly, professional, nicely dressed, and very attentive.
-the food is incredible! American basics done extremely well. The flatbreads, cornbread, burgers, chicken pasta....all five stars! Huge variety of beer and wine, and the desserts make your mouth water just looking at them!
-prices are very reasonable for the freshness and quality you get.
Now, for the bad news, and an issue that could bring the entire place down if they don't correct it soon......the hostesses and greeting.
Last Saturday night I called at 11am to make a reservation for restaurant week. The girl told me that they had filled all those, but could come and eat off the regular menu. I tried to make a reservation and she said they don't take them but do accept call-ahead. I called at 5:45pm for a 6:30 arrival. The rude girl on the phone said they were not on a wait, so they couldn't accept a call-ahead, so call before we come. I called again 10 minutes later, and the rude lady said they were on a 45 minute wait (in just 10 minutes time??), and reluctantly took my call ahead. We arrived at 6:30pm, couldn't find a place to park, and when we entered the waiting area was packed full. We approached the rude lady at the hostess stand (don't know her name) and told her we had a call-ahead. She didn't even react, handed us a buzzer, and sighed. After 45 minutes, I went back up and asked what was going on, and she just said they were very busy and shrugged her shoulders, and immediately turned to the other hostess next to her and started talking as if we didn't exist. After 1 hour and 15 minutes, I went back up to her and asked if we were going to be seated ever, and she said it shouldn't be much longer. When I expressed my discouragement and told her that we had called ahead as instructed, she said "call ahead is just a courtesy". Wow. I didn't know that as customers we were inconveniencing the restaurant by going there and spending money. Then, after 1 hour and 40 minutes, we were finally sat. Whew!
Clearly, they have many aspects down nicely, but possibly the most important thing is the greeting both over the phone and in person by the hostesses, and in this respect, they are terrible. The hostesses (or at least the one we were dealing with) was rude, short, seemed confused and over-whelmed, and generally could not have cared one way or the other if anyone that came in was waited on and greeted properly, and she obviously could have cared less if anyone actually stayed. i wonder if she realizes that her bad attitude and obvious lack of training could keep people from coming back?
I know that I will have to think about coming back again, even though the servers and food are excellent, I am not sure I want to deal with chaos and rudeness again just to get it, when there are MANY other places in Ballantyne that can provide good food AND good service. After spending almost $200 on dinner, I feel as if I was taken advantage of, just because of the confusion and attitude at the front.
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