The Charles Brasserie & Bar — Restaurant in Sydney

Lasted night, we were celebrating a friend's birthday at Charles Grand Brasserie restaurant, and the food was delicious. However, the service experience was really terrible because we were treated unfairly. I believe that a restaurant should treat every customer equally. Without a heart that values equality and fair treatment, it is difficult to run a restaurant successfully.

Initially, we had booked a table for five people online in July. However, when we arrived at the restaurant, they seated us at a U-shaped table, we felt quite cramped in the seats. So, we asked the restaurant staff if we could move to a slightly larger table on our right hand side. Unfortunately they refused our request and explained that the table was reserved for large groups, specifically for five or more people.

Then we asked the staff why there were only five sets of tableware on that table, clearly indicating that there were only five people.

At that point, the staff changed their explanation the table was reserved for 5 people including one guest with mobility issues.

It turned out that four gentlemen sat at the table, and none of them had any mobility issues.

Later, when the lettuces were served, they were not washed properly, and several leaves carried a lot of dirt. We brought this to the attention of the staff and she immediately replaced it. We understand that the kitchen might have been busy, leading to the oversight, so we didn't make a big fuss about it.

But what happened next made us feel truly treated unfairly.

Earlier during the day at 10:27 am, I had called the restaurant to inquire if we could bring our own birthday cake. The person who answered the call said they did not allow customers to bring their own cakes, but they would arrange a small complimentary cake for us, like a cupcake, with a little candle on it.

However, after we finished our meal and even paid the bill, no one brought a complimentary cake for our friend.

We saw a staff bringing a birthday cake for the customers seated next to us and kindly lighting the candle for them.

We asked the staff whether the cake at the next table was brought in by the customers themselves or provided by the restaurant. The staff said that birthday cake was brought in by the customers themselves.

So, we asked the staff why those customers were allowed to bring their own cake into the restaurant. The staff explained that those customers had booked their table last month and were still following the restaurant's old policy.

But we told the staff that we had also booked our table last month, which we could prove with the email confirmation, and we were promised a complimentary cake over the phone in the morning which was never delivered.

The staff said she wasn’t sure about the exact time the customers at the next table made their booking, but they were allowed to bring their own birthday cake. Also the restaurant does not provide a complimentary cakes with candle as a service.

This response made us feeling extremely disappointed. We had come to the restaurant with high expectations and excitement to celebrate our friend's birthday, then we ended up sitting in a crowded space, dealing with food was not properly washed, and no birthday candle moment for our friend. Moreover, we ended up spending over $700.

The Charles Grand Brasserie should not have such terrible service.

I hope in the future, The Charles Grand can treat every customer with equality and sincerity, providing appropriate training for their staff and updating their policies on the website promptly. I hope that no other customers will have an experience like ours in the future.

Review updates:

I'd like to mention that I sent an email to your team on the same day, but I haven't received...

The Charles grand brassiere is a fancy restaurant in Sydney’s CBD. We’ve dined at their bar next door and had an excellent experience with their pasta and wine deal.

We were keen to visit for every post we see it looks super swanky and sophisticated. Being “Charles’” family it was appealing to be in a place with our name too haha.

We booked for 5 people via EatClub with a 35% off experience. We are glad for this because the experience was not worth the price tag on this particular occasion.

From the small bites, we got one piece each: including the Blue swimmer crab croquette, the Bay lobster & melon gilda Espelette and mint, the Scallop crudo with Fennel, lemon & frozen horseradish and lastly, the Prosciutto di San Daniele with Chickpea panisse and smoked tomato. Each of these were beautifully presented and nice little small bites.

From the entrees, we shared Pink snapper, well cured and the Fig leaf, confit tomato & basil paired well.

We were especially wanting their house specialty, the whole aged duck and at $180, we only ordered it because it looked incredible and we had the discount. The duck looked stunning and the end bits, being quite crispy, were very nice. But the middle bits were just not cooked properly, very sinewy and chewy and for the most part quite inedible. Also too much aniseed and the sauce left not a nice taste to the palette. My dining party were in agreeance. The waiter would have noticed this on our plates, we don’t like to make a fuss. We don’t think this is necessarily all the time, but perhaps some flaws on the night in the method of the cook.

We did enjoy the Jacks Creek wagyu flat iron MBS4+ 280g, cooked medium and flavoured nicely with Grilled onions & black garlic. A decent serving size .

For the sides, we shared the tomato salad (quite a simple dish, of no particular standout features ; cherry tomato) and the broccolini with anchovy.

The brassiere is quite well known for its dessert trolley which certainly looks nice, each house baked cake or petit fours looks very appealing. The honey cake is a good one. Their desserts you order, aren’t made to order like most fancy places, so there’s less quality in that sense but it means the restaurant has less to cook on the night. However it meant the xxx wasn’t as good as we’re accustomed to. Our dining companion had pre-ordered one of their dessert candles for a birthday and this is a good concept. Again, pre made, chilled, and you cut into it and it’s a rich bitter type chocolate with cake inside. We like the idea of this.

Our waiter was lovely, he certainly tried hard, though probably needs a bit more experience with the waiting process. Ie he took one drink order without waiting for the rest, plates were left quite a long time and we weren’t updated much on the wait of the food. So it wasn’t particularly seamless.

Overall, we had a nice time, the aesthetic is pleasing and some of the smaller dishes were nice, however for the prices there, we would definately...

After the awful experience my partner and I had at The Charles Brasserie & Bar, I feel like I need to warn others. From the moment we walked in, everything went wrong, and it was a complete letdown from start to finish, I wish there was a no star button.

The food was appalling. The portions were ridiculously small, almost laughable for the price we paid. But what was worse than the size of the dishes was the taste – or rather, the lack of it. The flavors were so bland and unappetizing that it felt like they had forgotten to season anything. The chicken liver was revolting. It tasted off, and we couldn’t bring ourselves to eat more than a bite. To make matters worse, when we left it untouched, the waiter came over and demanded to know why we hadn’t eaten it, asking three times. His attitude was so condescending and rude, it felt like we were being interrogated for not enjoying a dish we couldn’t even stomach.

The head chef in the kitchen was constantly on his phone throughout the meal preparation. It was off-putting to see him checking his phone, scratching his head, and then immediately handling and plating the food. This lack of attention to hygiene and professionalism was alarming, especially when it comes to food preparation. I expected better standards in terms of both food safety and overall presentation.

The service was absolutely terrible. I had to wait over 15 minutes just to get a simple Coke, and it wasn’t like the place was packed. We ordered a dessert cake through the website upon booking our reservation, as we were celebrating something special, we were told it would be brought to the table promptly. We waited so long, and gave up on it, we then asked for the bill, the waiter responded in the most appalling way. Instead of politely processing our request, he had the audacity to ask, "Why would you leave? Where would you go? Nothing is better than our restaurant."

I couldn’t believe the words coming out of his mouth. It was dismissive, rude, and utterly inappropriate, especially for a first-time customer. His behavior made us feel belittled and unwelcome, and the entire experience left us with a bad taste, not just from the food, but from the service as well.

To make it clear: this was supposed to be a celebratory occasion, and it was completely ruined by poor food, terrible service, and a staff that seemed more interested in making us feel uncomfortable than actually delivering a pleasant dining experience.

We will never return to The Charles Brasserie & Bar, and I strongly advise others to look elsewhere for a restaurant that values both quality and customer service.

EDIT: After emailing the restaurant as per their below reply from my review, they have not acknowledged or responded to my email and...