Bar Patrón Circular Quay — Restaurant in Sydney

Hmm, well our Saturday lunch at Bar Patron was certainly interesting! We were a table of 4 celebrating my bday with a 1pm table booking. There was quite a few large groups, so it was noisy but we weren't too fussed about that. We started with some cocktails but were informed that there were a few cocktails on the menu that weren't available. Ok, that's fine we thought. Then when it came to deciding on food, we were going to do the set menu, but decided against it as the empanada's weren't on it and a few other things we wanted to try. Waiter came over to take our order and pointed out multiple items on the menu (around 5) that were not available (empanada's included). I mean its not a huge menu, we were actually quite surprised that they had run out of empanadas and other items. It just seemed odd. So we ordered starters, tacos and said to the waiter we would wait to order a larger dish. He said to us, oh we have some more large groups coming in, its best you order it now. So we ordered the grouper and some sides as the main part. We had all the food and were waiting for our fish and sides. During this time, firstly we noticed that tables of groups around us were all getting empanadas, weird, as we were told they weren't available. So we called the waiter over and he said, they are on the set menu. We said, no they aren't on the set menu. He said oh yes its a set menu, once again we said nope they weren't on the set menu, we would have got it...he said 'oh its a special set menu'....right ok....interesting! Why weren't we informed of this special set menu??? It was really odd! Then whilst waiting for our fish still, the Maître d' comes over and she says to us, did the waiter tell you we have another reservation on this table at 3. It was 2.40 and we were still waiting for our fish. Oh right ok we said, well we are still waiting for our mains and we won't be rushing them. She disappeared then the fish and sides came out. The fish was dry and chewy, not pleasant at all. Then at 3.40 when we were finishing up our mains we were told by the waiter, we need the table for another booking at 4pm so we will need you to leave the table. I said 'oh right, that's odd we were told there was another booking on the table at 3, but its 4 now? Anyway, we were ready to go by then. This weird smoke and mirrors act was just so odd and we have never experienced anything like it in a restaurant before, just be honest! Honest about the menu, honest about the table bookings. Its not like we weren't spending money on drinks. So no tip left. So disappointing and I was scoping the venue out for a large function, which now will NOT be happening there. Please educate your staff on how to treat guests, we aren't stupid and in the end your staff just made themselves look stupid. Don't waste your money here. There are far better...

Oh, Bar Patrón Circular Quay, where do I begin? Our booking for 14 people at 12pm had all the makings of a fiesta, but what unfolded was more like a comedy of errors.

First off, despite not everyone arriving on time, the clock for our 2-hour bottomless lunch started ticking at 12pm sharp. Now, I get it, rules are rules, but could we maybe have a little flexibility? No? Okay, moving on.

The waitstaff, bless their hearts, were attentive but strict. One drink per person, a limited number of rounds, and a partridge in a pear tree. They were informed that one of our party would not be attending. This fell on def ears. Read on to see how that part panned out.

Then, the pièce de résistance: About an hour in, one of the waiters decided to spice things up by spilling an entire tray of cocktails on two of our guests. Yes, you read that right—six full cocktails. It was like a boozy baptism. Cleanup? That took a solid 20-30 minutes, and even then, they couldn’t mop up all of it. So, we spent part of our lunch wading through a cocktail puddle.

As if that wasn’t enough, by 1:45pm, they started pushing us for last drinks and rounds. Now, call me crazy, but I don’t think all the dishes had even been served yet. I personally managed to get through maybe 3-4 of the 6-7 dishes that were supposed to come out, but hey, who’s counting?

When it came time to pay the bill, they charged us for 14 people instead of 13 and added a lovely $300 Saturday booking surcharge. Surprise! The host, who organized this lunch, was not informed about this surcharge. And no, they didn’t offer to give us more time or a discount despite the cocktail fiasco and wasted time.

What followed was a 30-minute Mexican standoff with the restaurant manager. Our demand? Deduct the $300 surcharge and the 14th person’s charge. Compensation for the cocktail mess? Nope, not on the table. After much back and forth, they finally conceded, and we paid for 13 people, sans the surcharge.

Overall, the experience was awful. If you’re planning a date or a small gathering, you might have a better time. But if you’re a big group looking for fun, avoid this place like the plague.

Adiós, Bar Patrón Circular Quay. You won’t be...

We came to Bar Patron on an interstate trip as it had been recommended. I would not recommend this place. I'll add the manager handled everything exceptionally well, however I wouldn't attend or reccomend. Firstly our booking was at 8.15pm. For a group of 7 we were told we couldn't order the banquet. They were out of lots of options on their menu. They also were ouy of two of their cheaper bottles of champagne. Thankfully the manager allowed us to have more expensive bottles at the same price as the cheaper ones. The air-conditioner wasn't working and it was so hot. Our food took nearly two hours to arrive, but we were told we had to order food before drinks due to RSA. We had a vegan and vegetarian in our group, there was only 3 options on the menu. Now let me tell you, one option was 1/4 of a jap pumpkin, roasted with some cashews! $45! Absolutely ridiculous. I've attached a photo for reference. Surely they can be a little more creative than this. Even something as simple as some bean mix and salsa verde quesidilla, maybe something like a Chipotle vegan pattie burger, or what about refried bean nacho, or crispy cauliflower tacos, or maybe some Mexican rice, really there are so many options. As for the rest of us, the food wasn't anything special and definitely not worth the two hour wait or price tag. The chefs really need to look at their menu! Rubbish! Just because you're in Circular Quay in Sydney does not give you a free ticket to charge $45 for a 1/4 of a whole roasted pumpkin or serve a few corn chips with a scoop of tasteless guacamole and charge...