The Bell Bar and Bistro — Restaurant in Northern Territory

I dined here tonight and had a disappointing experience. While the food wait time was above average, it wasn't excessively long. However, the service and food quality were well below expectations.

I ordered from the menu app but received something completely different. When I pointed this out to the waitress, she insisted that it was what I had ordered according to the app. & advised they don’t make a Surf & Turf. I asked to speak with the manager and was met with an abrupt "what's the problem?" response. I explained the situation, but there was no offer to replace the incorrect dish. Apologies were given due to not having this item on the menu however no one bothered to come & notify me of this issue, & advise they weren’t able to do it - I was offered a refund if I did not wish to eat it, but if I ate it I wouldn’t get this refund. To which I understood. I decided to just eat the food since I had already waited long enough.

The food looked nice, but it wasn't what I wanted. To make matters worse, the sausages on my "Surf & Turf" meat platter were raw inside. This left me with a bad taste in my mouth, both literally and figuratively. When the waitress returned, instead of apologising, they asked what I would have liked; it cooked again or….I handed back the plate & said I won’t eat this now & asked for the manager again, when she returned she instead of offering to replace or offer any sort of apologies asked “if I had my card for a refund.” After I had been given the refund I was then gifted with their apologies. Not worth the services that was given. To which I accepted & left hungry instead.

This overall experience was quite disappointing and has deterred me from returning. I hope the restaurant takes these issues seriously and makes the necessary improvements. As I have previously have had plenty of nice meals here I didn’t expect this...

Unfortunately the service from one particular staff member was severely lacking. No communication at all and a very unwelcome attitude. An absolute let down as the rest of the staff were quite friendly. I personally work in the hospitality industry and know that people can have an off night particularly when it is busy, however this was a very quiet Monday night and there really is no excuse. We were initially sat at a table right by the door that would have been very difficult for our party to manoeuvre as my family member is in a wheel chair - we were not offered an alternative. The waitress literally walked to the nearest table and dragged a chair away with no explanation and then walked off. We decided to sit further down as it would be more comfortable. There was no explanation about the menu situation - I understand that there is signage on the table explaining that it is a QR code menu and self order however a simple ‘hey guys this is how we do the ordering at our restaurant, let me know if you need any help or have any questions’ would have gone a long way. Furthermore, the food itself was overall underwhelming - particularly the bell salad. The rice was undercooked and honestly tasted like a microwave quinoa and rice pack. The rest of our meals were just okay. We were not given cutlery and had to ask the second waitress bringing the dishes if we could have some - again, simple communication would have solved this issue.

I did speak briefly with who I assume was the bar manager about the service from one staff member - though they were understanding there was no real accountability or proper apology. This used to be a really great place to relax and have a decent meal - it is a real shame that this was the experience we...

listen, it's a bar with pub food. it is by no means a bistro, that's too sophisticated for what's provided. the staff are lovely the service on point orderly and quick. the food was something you get at a canteen. the steak sandwich was like leather, tough, and overloaded with BBQ sauce and one tiny slice of old tomato. the spicy chicken burger was basically fully of spicy mayo, and that's all you could taste. the bun was very good, though. kids pizza was so dry and lacked any flavor profile. it was like an overcooked woolies brand frozen pizza. they usually love pizza, but they didn't touch but one slice of this one. the place looked clean, but upon sitting down the table was sticky flies everywhere, and the floors hadn't seen a proper mop in a decade. at one time, we had 5 flies piled up on my toddlers plate. At least he thought it was funny. the indoor family area is very compact, almost squashed into a corner, while the bar area is spacious. the outdoor area is nicely spaced out, but not everyone would want to be out there during the wet season. in saying all this, it's a great setup for a PUB that provides food for host responsibility. advertising it as a bistro makes it seem family-friendly (clean, great food, etc). on and up is there is a playgroup there. great place for afterwork drinks or pokies. not at all for families or any sort of meal at that unless you're wasted and need something. parking is small and compact for a ute or bigger cars so be prepared to...