Trading Bay Dining Company — Restaurant in District Municipality of Muskoka

My partner and I showed up at 5pm on a Wednesday and asked for a table. There was a short waiting list (one party in front of us) and the person running the waiting list, named Martin, said it would be a 10-15 minute wait and he would call us when a table freed up. No problem. He then waved a couple behind us to a table, and then told us "those people are staying at my parents' bed and breakfast up the road." We gave him the benefit of the doubt that they had had reservations.

At 5:30pm, it was well beyond 15 minutes so returned to see where we were on the list. The party in front of us on the list had been seated, and Martin told us "just a few minutes longer." So we waited, and then continued to see people come by and ask him by name for a table (without reservations) and Martin found a table for them. Whether they were people who were staying at his parents' B&B or simply friends, he was definitely doing favours for all of them. After pointing this out, Martin told us that "it wouldn't be much longer" and to go have a take-out drink around the other side of the restaurant. We did, and in the 1.5 additional hours that we waited to be sat, we inquired again with him how much longer and were told "just a few more minutes" and we were "next on the list." It was the most appalling customer treatment that I have ever experienced. By 7pm, we were fed up and left and went to nearby Pizza on Earth for a fantastic meal with excellent service. Now, that place I will give 5 stars to -- as for Trading Bay Dining, unless you enjoy politics, bribery, and being treated very poorly, I would steer clear. I appreciate the response from the restaurant, but since there is no place to reply to that comment, I will reply here. The issue is not that reservations were full, the issue is that the person you have running the front of house has no concept of how to manage customers' expectations. Don't tell customers "just a few more minutes" and "you're next" when you can see that the wait will actually be considerably longer. And certainly, don't let other folks in who clearly don't have reservations ahead of waitlist people. Customers should be given realistic estimations so that they can make their own decisions. Someone who is told "just a few more minutes" will certainly wait for a table, someone who is told "it will likely be 45 minutes or more" can then decide if that's workable for them. Managing a customer's expectations should be the first skill that any good front of house employee should have, and in this case, that skill is...

I really enjoy the patio at this restaurant overlooking the water and boats. We had a great table but upon entry (around 1230) were forewarned that they were out of French fries, sweet potato fries, and wraps. We decided that would be acceptable and were seated. Our order was taken relatively quickly (ordered drinks and food all at once). The drinks came quickly enough but the food took about an hour. At no time did the server check on us to ask if we needed more drinks or to update us on the food. I went to the washroom while waiting for the food and noted a lot of orders just sitting unattended under the heat lamp.

When the food was delivered, my husband got a side of beans instead of the salad he ordered without the server addressing this as a mix up. The server did not check back on us while we ate and I went inside to the bar to pay as I could tell I’d be waiting forever for the bill at the table. I raised the fact that my husband was given beans instead of salad and it seemed to have been a mixup. I asked for a discount if some sort and the server complied but did not apologize. Other patrons were also inside in line to pay as I believe most recognized that getting a bill could be a very long wait.

The restaurant seemed very short staffed without any management stepping in to help the two servers. I feel like they were not well supported and therefore were unable to tend to their tables.

The food was good but the restaurant/management must really consider operational improvements as service was abysmal due to insufficient staff. Also I’m not sure how a restaurant could be out of two kinds of fries at the beginning of their day in...

I really want to like this place, but everytime we've gone or attempted to eat here it disappoints. The location is beautiful but the inside needs a complete overhaul (dull, dingy, and dark) but a beautiful patio on the water. In the 11 yrs we've cottaged up here we've eaten here a handful of times and every time the service is slow and inattentive, and the food is OK but overpriced. Yesterday it was beautiful outside so we thought let's give this place another try and once again disappointed, to the point where we left before getting seated. Walked inside to an almost empty restaurant inside but the patio appeared fairly full. Stood there for several mins without being acknowledged. The man behind the bar came around toward us so we thought, great he's coming to greet us, but literally walked right past completely ignoring us and disappeared. Waited another several mins (a couple servers came by ignoring us). Eventually a server did see us and said she'd be right with us. After several more mins we decided to leave figuring this was not a good start. It's a shame because there are so few options in town and this restaurant could be so great. I'm not sure what it is about the town but there are 3 options and 2 of the 3 have terrible service, miserable staff and food is meh and overpriced. Pizza on Earth seems to have mastered the market....amazing but simple food, lovely staff and reasonable prices. We will continue to give them our business...