St. James Live! — Local services in Union City

We visited this black owned establishment on Sunday, July 3, 2022. I made a reservation with seat selection prior to online. Upon arrival there is free parking right outside. A lot of reviews state to get here early to get a parking spot, but this wasn’t the case this day. It was more than likely because it was 4th of July weekend and people were preparing for Monday. The doors did promptly open at 2 pm, and the show started at 3 pm. Upon entry the business was clean, spacious, and had a jazz club aesthetic. All of the staff was professional and efficient. We chose to be seated at a lovely table with a nice view of the stage in the VIP area. The waitress promptly came over and we ordered the following items: white peach sangria, chicken and waffles, eggs, bacon, breakfast potatoes, grits with cheese, collard greens, and Mac and cheese. All of the food and drinks came out quite promptly. We noticed we didn’t receive any Mac and cheese. The waitress informed us that they didn’t have any. Also the bacon we received was turkey bacon, which it says on the menu is available by request. We assumed with that listed on the menu we would receive pork bacon automatically. The turkey bacon was terrible. We complained to a server who then brought us beef sausage links. The beef sausage was savory and cooked well. We asked for regular bacon, but the manager stated they didn’t have any. He also stated he would take one of the drinks off the bill for the inconvenience. We received all of the other menu items with no issue. The white peach sangria had a kick to it, but it was refreshing and sweet. The eggs looked more like an omelette with cheese rather than actual scrambled well eggs. They were not seasoned that well so I did have to request salt and pepper. Also they didn’t give us the cheese for our grits so we had to ask for that also. The grits weren’t bad although slightly on the runny side. The breakfast potatoes were just decent. They also needed some seasoning. The chicken and waffles was just alright. We expected chicken breasts, but got chicken croquettes instead. They were almost too crispy, but seasoned well. The waffles were decent, but we had to ask for more syrup to pour over them. The collard greens with turkey bacon were pretty good. They were seasoned well and reminded me of kale due to them being in strips. Overall the food was just ok, definitely nothing to write home about. The show started a little after 3 pm. We had the pleasure of listening to Ron James an amazing saxophonist! The host was Robin Latimore who was very welcoming to the audience. Ron James and the band did an excellent set! They played some soul and r&b jam renditions and every song was amazing! They didn’t take any breaks and played for almost 2 hours. They captivated the audience with the band including a bass guitar player, drums, keyboard and a steel guitar player. All of the musicians were excellent and each had their turn to have a nice solo on certain songs. I greatly enjoyed the performance and it was nice that we got to sing along with the performer and he was open with us about the loss of his nephew recently. It was a nice crowd, but wasn’t a packed out house. They also have an upstairs where patrons can sit and enjoy the show with a television for viewing. I did use the restroom with no issue while I was there which was nice and clean. Once we received our bill, I noticed they had charged us for the peach sangria and the bacon. We informed the waitress that one of the managers stated we would get a comped drink and we didn’t eat the bacon since we didn’t like it. She fixed the bill and it made a huge difference. They do also add an 18% gratuity to the checks. I do feel this is a hidden gem since it’s right off Butner Rd in a plaza with an unassuming door and area from the outside. I wouldn’t not recommend the food, but we felt it was just decent and nothing special at all. There’s better brunch food in Atlanta. I would however recommend this business for what you really pay for which is the live music featuring very...

A place has to really be terrible in order for me to write a review and this one is it. First, we were told that we could not bring in flowers to present to our friend that was singing that day. The security guard told us to put the flowers in the car until after the show in 90+ degree heat. Finally, he relented and asked the manager to hold the flowers in the office and the person agreed. However, no one could remotely explain the logic of not allowing us to bring flowers in the building.

Next, we ordered brunch, my meal came to $33 for 'chicken and waffles' and a cranberry juice (without liquor). It was a tiny half waffle and chicken medallions that were barely bigger than the container of cheap fake syrup sitting on that plate. To add insult to injury, one of the women in our party is a chef. She pointed out just how inexpensive waffles (and breakfast foods in general) are to make. She works at massive venues and told us that the typical rule is to pile on breakfast foods because of the low cost.

This was my first visit and I was excited because I had been waiting for years to visit this place. However, I will not be returning. Charging that much money and including an automatic tip as if African Americans do not know how to compensate wait staff is an insult on multiple levels. This venue does not deserve our hard earned dollars, it felt like a theft of mine.

Addendum Given the Reply - Sadly the point is missed. The fact that the food pictured was served for $19 and $8 for cranberry juice is the problem in the first place. No one in good conscious would have been able to serve that to someone. The final point was missed also, tips should NOT be automatically added to any bill. Everyone knows to tip in a restaurant. The fact that you are doing this in an establishment in a predominantly Black neighborhood with a predominantly Black audience is a direct hit to us. Your failure to grasp that concept speaks volumes and reinforces my decision not to return...

Last night was our first time here and we were so excited to have the opportunity to attend an event at St. James Live. We actually won tickets on Smooth Jazz 101.1 for the show we attended. We drove from Gwinnett, which was over an hour away, and had no trouble finding parking when we arrived.

The venue and show were the best part of the experience. Marquel Robinson, a renowned saxophonist, and his band put on an amazing performance. We were also thoroughly impressed with the lighting, sound and decor of the venue.

Now, as for the food and drinks..... I ordered the Jazzy Punch. It was very good and I would have loved a second one; but at $16, I felt that it was a bit overpriced. I also ordered two sides, mac and cheese and collard greens. Both were flavorful and tasty; however, the turkey meat in the greens was very chewy and hard to swallow. I also felt that the portion size was extremely small for the sides to be $8 a piece. In addition, the jerk chicken I ordered was the absolute worst! While the sauce was delicious and flavorful, I was literally served two large pieces of bone that were smothered in sauce and only had a few bites of chicken on them. I was truly shocked. I've never been served jerk chicken in this sort of fashion in my entire life. And the fact that they charged $11 for it was even more comical. I should have complained and sent it back but I didn't even want to deal with the hassle as the service was already very slow.

Although my food experience was disappointing, my husband seemed to enjoy his double shot of cognac, teriyaki wings, fries and mac and cheese. There was an 18% gratuity added to the bill as well.

While there was some disappointment with the food and service, we were impressed enough by the venue and the performance that we would definitely give this establishment a chance again; most likely just for drinks and no...