We don’t blame anyone for entering a restaurant blindly. Especially during a vacation, the spontaneous aspect of it all is what travelers love the most. However, after reading this article it might be best for a traveler to reconsider such a strategy. These 20 reviews are perfect examples of that. So perhaps next time, pull out that phone and check out the reviews given to the establishment. At the very least, a customer will know if the place is worthwhile or not. After all, we work hard for earnings, so why just waste them away at some overpriced letdown of a restaurant?
In this article, we take a look at particular restaurants that are popular with tourists. Clearly, just because they’re located nearby a particular setting doesn’t ensure the quality. In one particular example, the cafe is located next to Eiffel Tower. That appears to be the only thing right with the restaurant! We’ll also include some harsh reviews from areas like Venice, Miami, Toronto, Quebec City, Las Vegas and many, many more. In many cases, both the food and service were equally as bad. However, in certain instances, the quality of the service reached new levels of low. The food might be equally as bad in some of the reviews. It isn’t a good sign when a knife can’t cut a steak!
Enjoy the article folks and like always be sure to share it with a friend. Without further ado, here are 20 times Trip Advisor got real about bad restaurant review replies. Let’s get started.
20 Ellados Eikones - Alimos, Greece: “Bad restaurant, Bad experience”
“The service was absolutely disappointing. The waiters had extremely good mood…so good that they were dancing, they were yelling each other and they generally made fuss annoying us. In addition, they could hardly notice us when we wanted something (water, more wine, the bill etc.). “ (User Sunofthecorn)
Ah yes. The classic case of the dancing waiters... Isn’t that what we all anticipate when heading out to a restaurant? Not only was the staff subpar and pretty much in their own world but the restaurant itself was very expensive as well. According to the review, the food didn’t come close to the price paid. We hope the dancing waiters made up for it.
19 Pablo's Restaurant - Eastbourne, United Kingdom: “A very good example of a very bad restaurant!”
At times, a bad experience can start once you step foot in a restaurant without even eating a single piece of food. That’s exactly what went down with this particular restaurant goer. For what it’s worth, she also admits to never leaving poor reviews at restaurants, however, this one was that bad from start to finish.
“Having entered the restaurant, we had to wait for several minutes to be greeted and seated, when finally a blonde waitress said hi to us, or should I say to my husband only, in a very unprofessional flirty manner. “ (Source Martag124)
The food followed the same theme. According to the reviewer, the best part was the candies served at the end with the bill.... ouch.
18 Barcelona Tapas And Bar - Las Vegas, Nevada: “Worst Restaurant Experience in Vegas EVER”
The entire point of visiting a restaurant with a friend is to enjoy a fine dining experience, TOGETHER! This was not the case at the Barcelona Tapas and Bar restaurant out in Vegas. Not only was the service slow but according to the reviewer, his friend’s food had come five minutes after he was done eating!
“About 5 minutes after I finished eating, my friend's food arrived (have you EVER had everyone at the same table get their meals served so far apart?). The ham was NOT a ham steak - it was 3 small pieces of low-quality-looking ham. The hash browns looked so dry as to be inedible. At this point, he was so disgusted by the entire experience, he said he had lost his appetite and didn't even take one bite (when we got there, he was "starved).” (User correna2)
17 Ellam's Open Kitchen - Stratford, Ontario: “Perhaps the worst restaurant in the world”
“Placing the order was somewhat difficult as there was a language barrier but we eventually got our point across. After a long wait, we got our "food". It was just plain not good. The coffee was undrinkable. I was sure I was going to get food poisoning from tainted meat but I survived to tell my tale and warn others.” (User ianvision)
Rough service and food that might have been worse – this is a theme you’re going to see a lot in this article. The reviewer calls the restaurant a tourist trap. He also claims he should have known when he walked in the restaurant and only one person was seated.
16 Club Isabella - Cleveland, Ohio: “THE WORST RESTAURANT IN THE STATE OF OHIO”
Fake it till you make it right? That might have been the mindset for this restaurant in Ohio. According to this review, the restaurant tried to something else and of the upscale nature. However, when your pizza is compared to a boxed one from a low-end grocery store, that isn’t a good sign;
“They desperately tried to be a higher end restaurant, but epically failing giving plastic menus and an [awful] spin on food that is usually good. The pizza crusty seemed to be the same pre-made crust at a low-grade grocery store.” (User Samir V)
15 Bella Luna – Boston, Massachusetts: “Worst Restaurant Ever!”
“A short while later the manger was at our table arguing with two of my friends because they wanted to go outside and smoke a cigarette but they were told that if they left they would have to pay the $10 cover charge to come back into the restaurant. WHAT? They’ve been sitting in the restaurant for two hours eating and drinking!”(User Marie M)
The downward spiral basically continued from then on. The waitress refused to serve the table telling the restaurant goers that the service had ended and they needed to go to the bar for drinks. Once the bill came, the group simply asked for split bills only for the waitress to claim they don’t do that.... with an angry tone.
14 Restaurant Pizza Da Celio - Venice, Italy: “WORST RESTAURANT EVER...TOURISTS TRAP”
Unfortunately, tourist traps also exist in places like Venice. It might be hard to imagine a restaurant not living up in Italy but this was the unfortunate case for these travelers. The bill didn’t exactly match the food. A couple of appetizers and two drinks resulted in $55 US! The restaurant goers complained but it fell on deaf ears;
“We paid US$55 for a pathetic plate of horrible prosciutto, 2 pieces of so called "bruschette", a glass of "sugared" red wine and a coke. Despite complaining in Italian, to the waiter and the man behind the cashier, they could not care less and just wanted to see the back of us. Standing outside.” (User So fiasia)
13 Ristorante La Romanella - Rome, Italy: “Worst Restaurant in Rome!”
This one might be a shock especially for those that visited Rome in the past. The city in Italy is among the elite from around the world in terms of cuisine quality. However, La Romanella might be one of the duds to look out for. Not only was the food nowhere near Rome quality but the service was just as bad.
“The waitress, who ignored us, and gave attitude when asked for the free Wi-Fi password, then had the nerve to tell us what we needed to tip her. The surprise was she expected the 20% we tip here in America.” (User Cindydil)
12 Cafe Le Dome - Paris, France: “Worst restaurant ever.”
Similar to Rome, it is hard to believe that this Paris cafe turned into a letdown. That’s especially true when you consider that the establishment is located nearby the Eiffel Tower. You can actually see it from the cafe. That turned out to be the best part for this particular tourist...
“The burger came with a dry, not toasted bread and was raw, actually cold, like a raw beef (I wanted it medium-well done), Croque Madame was a Croque Monsieur and it was cold, like they had taken the bread out from a plastic bag, placed it on a plate with one piece of ham inside and melted some cheese over it for a few seconds. We don't know how the lasagne was - we didn't get it!” (User ClaraG83)
11 Restaurant Asia - Quebec City, Quebec: “The worst restaurant ever”
“The service was awful. The food of bad quality and cold. All was bad in this "restaurant" from the waitress to the food. Never more.” (User Nuno P)
This user seems to be quick and concise when diagnosing the Restaurant Asia out of Quebec City. Quebec isn’t really known for its Asian cuisine, however, it does have many edible Asian choices. This one, however, was not. Better off sticking with the classic Quebec poutine option at the Belle Province fast food restaurant. At least the poutine comes steaming hot and not cold like this user’s restaurant experience.
10 Green Republic - Bangkok, Thailand: “WORST RESTAURANT WITH TERRIBLE SERVICE”
Throwing plates on a table isn’t the best way to get tourists to revisit your restaurant. According to this review, the food didn’t live up but the service was that much worse. The staff seemed uninterested and rather passive hardly asking the travelers if they needed anything. Making matters that much worse, the change from the bill took an hour (probably an exaggeration) to get back according to the reviewer.
This is yet another example that the type of service on restaurant goer gets can be crucial for the overall experience feel. Even restaurants with fine food get lower ratings because of the lackluster service.
9 New Moon Cafe - Kuta, Indonesia: “Bad, Bad, Bad!!! Worst restaurant in Bali (and the world probably)”
“If the driver hadn't disappeared I would have asked to leave as it felt very uncomfortable negotiating the menu. We didn't get sick but probably only because we had taken precautions beforehand.” (User Vicki H)
Yup, New Moon Cafe was truly that bad for this tourist. At the very least, the location of the cafe made the atmosphere a little better. According to the review, this was the only upside to the restaurant. Unlike most Bali restos, this place was deemed as very expensive and a massive letdown in terms of food quality.
8 Winzerkeller-Restaurant: Meissen, Saxony, Germany - “the worst restaurant in Germany”
Steak tends to be a hit or miss when visiting a restaurant. Some nail the cookery and taste while others, well, not so much. That was the case at this restaurant out of Germany. The travelers were none too pleased with their lamb steaks. As a matter of fact, the cookery came out so raw that the knife couldn’t even cut through it!
“It was just impossible to eat them. We called the waitress and explained the problem to her. She took them back, but returned again after about 25 mins. With the same lamb steaks. Once again we tried to cut them, but the knife would not go through them. As we were ravenous by then, we just ate the accompaniment of potatoes and asked for the bill.” (User Phiroza 304554)
7 San Giovanni – Amsterdam: “Worst restaurant EVER. AVOID”
“All the portions were abysmal, kind of like a child's portion, and really overpriced. Ketchup is €0.50 per bag, which is ridiculous, feels like you’re in McDonalds. The service was [awful] and it just feels like they don't care about the costumers.” (Source Joao R)
Somehow, things would only get worse for this restaurant goer. The waiter completely lost it when asked to divide the bill instead of making one big cheque. It just seemed to be one of those restaurants that just wanted to take your money. This is a reason not to try a cuisine out of Italy in Amsterdam.
6 Pelican Cafe - Miami, Florida: “ABSOLUTELY THE WORST RESTAURANT IN MIAMI”
“The bill included $35 for frozen mango drink and $16 for two coronas. When disputed bill, the waitress lied and said she had told us the Coronas were included separately. Thieved of $16 and $12 gratuity for absolutely [awful] service.” (User virginiaphipps)
This is one of those rare incidents in which a restaurant representative actually responded to the review. According to the manager, the person that left the review was refunded $20. Also, the server that made the blunder was let go by the restaurant. The travelers from Australia likely won’t revisit but at the very least, the manager had the decency to respond.
5 Tortugas- Colorado: “Strong Contender for Worst Restaurant”
According to this review, the restaurant was a mix of poor service, lackluster decor on the inside and overly priced food that was nowhere near the expected quality. The reviewer also admits that nobody acknowledged their presence upon arriving or when they left – that’s a big no-no. The user sums up the review with this final statement;
“Bottom line: a combination of absurd atmosphere, unacceptable service, and pretentious yet poor eatery might make this the worst restaurant within 100 miles.” (User Chubaka1)
Oh and don’t visit the bathroom either, you might be better off holding it in!
4 Fran's Restaurant and Bar - Toronto, Ontario: “Awful! Toronto's worst restaurant.”
Chicken really isn’t the hardest meal to mess up. However, at this particular Toronto restaurant, it was quite the task. The result, an outdated chicken that had this user some serious pain the next couple of days;
“Got food provisioning from here. The half roast chicken I ordered was so old and almost GRAY looking. It looked like it had been scraped off the floor. It tasted so old and like putrid chicken. I sent it back. It was the worst meal I have ever orders from the restaurant. Spent the next days with terrible stomach aches and vomiting. I only ate one bite!” (User Shiraz R)
The service followed the theme of the food as according to the review the manager appeared to be in La La Land.
3 Miyagi's, Charlotte - North Carolina: “Possibly the worst restaurant in Charlotte”
“The pictures and menu online are nothing like what you actually get. In fact, the menu is so tiny that a table of 7 was forced to repeat dishes because options were so limited. One person ordered the Korean short ribs and he was given kitchen shears to cut the meat. I wish I had taken a photo of that but I was so mortified I couldn't move.” (User 9463chick)
It doesn’t get any worse than having expectations for a restaurant and then, it gets totally shot down once you’re dining at the establishment. That was the case for this North Carolina restaurant. As if the experience wasn’t bad enough, the manager was very rude following the lackluster experience.
2 Grizzly's – Vermont: “The worst restaurant in Vermont.”
This particular user wasn’t pulling any punches from their Grizzly’s experience. The user left a review of over 500 words detailing the experience. As you can tell, it wasn’t the greatest experience.
Among one of the baffling parts of the review was the fact that the restaurant didn’t have several of the essentials you typically find at any restaurant establishment;
“My husband asked another wait person for some oil and vinegar. We have no vinegar, he was told. NO VINEGAR? At that point, I did not get involved. No, no vinegar. How about lemon.... you would assume a lemon dressing, wouldn't you? You'd be wrong. He was brought ... I told you it gets better ... a plate of lemon wedges. The oil, where's the oil? WE HAVE NO OIL. YOU HAVE NO OIL? HOW DOES THE CHEF COOK WITHOUT OIL?” (User ignatz713)
1 Joe's Crab Shack - Daytona, Florida: “Worst Restaurant Experience Ever, NO Exaggeration”
“The server took forever with our drinks and immediately started talking about how she can't wait for the party adjacent to us to leave. How they were so "needy" etc. After that she shared with us the bad tip she received from them. We wanted crab legs but they were very overpriced so we just settled on a couple different combinations which the server replied with "booo that's boring." (User Taylor B)
The bizarre service would only continue as the waitress secretly slid an appetizer coupon to the couple since it was one of their birthdays. Making matters that much more baffling, the waitress would include the appetizer on the bill claiming she was scared that she would get caught and they could have used it the next time instead..... Wow.
Reference: TripAdvisor.com