LOCALE AURORA Restaurant & Bar — Restaurant in Aurora

We attended in March 2022 for dinner for a friend's birthday dinner. Like all the review, we were greeted by the upscale and classy atmosphere that the physical restaurant, unfortunately, that is where the positives end.

I was served the wrong drink, I order a Diet Coke and was served a sprite. Not even the same colour. No big deal, mistakes happen. I didn't make a fuss about it and said just do Diet Coke for the refill.

We tried to order some apps right off the start as we some of us very hungry, and then we would order more apps and the mains later on. The server informed us that this is not allowed, so we asked her to come back and ordered everything at once. Why this is a thing here is beyond me as all the apps came out staggered anyways, so why did we need to oder them all together? The apps were all average, not worth their price and really nothing to write home about.

When out mains came, 4 of the 5 of us were disgusted by them. Four of the pasta dishes were very salty, saltier than I am about their entire experience - which should say something. The meat ball was dry and bland. SO, the person who ordered the meat ball (singular) could eat their meal as long as there was pasta and meat ball as the over abundance of salt in the pasta and the lack of flavour in the meatball balanced each other out. One person could fight through the salt and eat their meal, two of us sent our meal back when the server finally came back around, and though we were kidding when we told her the food was terrible. The manager (who I later found out was the general manager) came over and apologized and explained that the pasta water was "too thick" and they would fix the water for our remakes. We requested the sauce be on the side in an effort to prevent another round of entrees being sent back and this was quickly and rudely shot down by the manager promising us that it was not the sauce and that it was the pasta water - which is strange as one of five pastas with a different was perfect. Anyways, when the remakes came out they were somehow saltier than the first dishes after the water was [allegedly] "fixed". We sent these back as they were inedible they were so salty. In addition to being salty, the guest who had the good pasta tired mine and described the sauce as being, "Absolutely terrible. Why is that even on the menu?" - which I do not disagree with. The manager came back and apologized and offered an additional entree. Being vegetarian, I was eating the one vegetarian dish on the menu, which I explained to him. In addition, everyone else was long done eating as the service and remakes were slow so we were no longer interested in a third [likely saltier] main. He left and returned, suddenly willing to break the rules (remember the no ordering out of turn and no sauce on the side?)

The manager ruining the experience for us then pushed the server away from our table, slowing service down even further.

A different manager then said they was going to comp all the mains for the inconvenience, and they comped most of the mains, forgetting the birthday girl's pizza she took home as she was hungry after her ruined birthday dinner.

When we got the bill, there was obviously a large portion of the bill comped, but it was not visible on the bill. I approached the server to ask her what the bill total was before all the comps. She told me and I tipped her very generously on the total bill pre-comped, despite us splitting the bill (I tipped nearly $100 on my $30 bill). When my debit receipt printed, the server very obviously watched it print, looked at the tip, and did not acknowledge it or me, or extend thanks.

TL/DR: Terrible food. Moderate Service. Terrible management. Zero...

Extremely Disappointed – A Ruined 16th Birthday Celebration I rarely write reviews, but this experience was too disappointing to stay silent about. We chose Locale to celebrate my daughter’s 16th birthday, expecting a special and smooth evening after planning everything carefully in advance. Unfortunately, it turned into a frustrating experience due to poor communication, lack of flexibility, and careless service. Table Reservation Mishandled: I personally visited the restaurant on Tuesday to request a specific seating arrangement for our party. I was told everything would be taken care of. I followed up again on Wednesday by phone to confirm, and even offered to come an hour early to ensure we’d get the promised tables. I was reassured that it was all on file and there was no need to worry. Despite all that, we arrived to find our seating request ignored, as another party had been placed there instead. The manager offered only a vague “sorry” and claimed they couldn’t do much. When you've made every effort to plan in advance, that kind of apology just doesn't cut it. No Cake Policy – With No Real Alternative: To make matters worse, the restaurant doesn’t allow outside cakes due to “cross-contamination” concerns. Fine – if that's the policy, I respect that. But they had nothing to offer instead except a single chocolate cake option – which our family doesn’t eat. So, our birthday girl ended up having no birthday cake at all on her special day. That’s just unacceptable for a restaurant hosting celebrations. Careless Drink Service: We ordered one bottle of Prosecco for the five adults. Shockingly, the waitress poured the entire bottle into just four glasses, filling them to the top and leaving one person without a drink. Instead of correcting the mistake, they simply brought out a second bottle, which of course they charged us for – even though no one asked for it. Who serves Prosecco this way? Basic service knowledge would tell you to pour modestly and top up as needed – especially if you're trying to serve five people. Unhelpful Management: The manager was unresponsive and offered no solutions. When a long-planned celebration is compromised, a casual “sorry” just doesn't do it. No accountability, no effort to fix the situation – just indifference. The Only Positive – Food: The food was actually quite good, and that’s the only reason I’m giving even a single star. Unfortunately, everything else about the experience overshadowed the meal. This was supposed to be a memorable and joyful evening, and instead, it left us all disappointed and frustrated. It’s incredibly disheartening that such a special milestone for our daughter was handled with so little care. We will absolutely not be returning, and I will be sharing this experience with friends and family to caution...

This restaurant does not represent the community of Aurora and should be moved elsewhere! I only recommend for take-out. If not and you need to dine-in, try to avoid the manager "Myks/Meeks". The manager at the Aurora location named "Myks/Meeks" needs to be sincerely re-trained on how to work with others. This man is rude and disrespectful to his staff and customers. Inflation will not be the reason this place closes..instead Myks will be the main reason this place shuts down! When the restaurant causes any delays/issues, the manager never takes ownership and pins it on his staff behind their back. The truth is, this man is incapable of handling pressure. Food/Drinks comes extremely late, table is not ready upon reservation or in fact..table sometimes does not come available entirely because some staff member forgot to finalize the reservation at the restaurant.

Imagine booking a table of 6 for New Years Eve and the manager himself takes your reservation over the phone and tailors your reservation to accommodate the restaurant and customer. He then suggests to come in at 5:45pm instead of 6pm and ensured us he will have an highchair for a toddler. Imagine ALL THOSE those modifications the manager made over the phone and then says see you then! Upon arriving New Years Eve, our reservation is non-existent and claims customer never called to book anything. Claiming staff should have asked customer for a credit card. How would we know you would ask us for a credit card if you've never asked us for a credit card. I've been here 3 times in 2022 and I am finally done due to the manager. It's sad to see the staff suffer because of an untrained manager! I actually believe due to labor shortages, this restaurant needed anybody to fill the role and chose Myks! This man did not do anything to accommodate us on New Years Eve except call Locale's other location in King to see if anything was available. He then said we're fully booked and we had to leave. Of course your booked, that's why we called to reserve earlier in the week and showed him our iphone 5minute call log which he says, that doesn't mean anything..."you could have called us and spoke about something else." Very disappointed!

If the Aurora location restaurant wants to get into this, I encourage you to email me anytime and I'd love to have a discussion with the owners and NOT the manager.

Happy New Year from Cocomelon...