radius® on Hess — Restaurant in Hamilton

A group of 10 of us visited the new radius location this past weekend for a bar night. We had high hopes as we loved the previous location. We had our own “booth” which included 2 bottles of our choosing. I have so much to say about our experience, none of it being positive. To start, when we arrived at 11pm our booth was not ready, we weren’t seated until 1130. What we received was barely a “booth” but more so tables pushed together against a wall. The girl that was handling our table told us we had unlimited juice/ pop for the night and that she would check in frequently throughout the night. She did not check in until about 115am, when we went to the bar and said, we have been out of juice/ pop for quite some time and no one has been by. The dance floor was extremely small, and the place was way overpacked. Not just busy, but there wasn’t any room to even walk to the bathroom. There was no security stood by our booth. I asked why this was to one of the security guards there that night, he told me “we hold a good reputation, security posted at booths isn’t necessary”. Quite frankly I don’t care about the restaurants reputation, it could’ve been the best place I’d ever been to, but the matter of the fact is the location of the restaurant is what deems it necessary for security at booths. When you pay a service, you expect it to be upheld. Every single bar on Hess St has security posted at booths because of where it is located in Hamilton. There needs to be someone watching our coats, purses, alcohol etc. this is what we are paying for. The entire night I spent watching the booth to make sure that no one was stealing anything. People were constantly putting their empty drinks on our table. Leaving their jackets on the chairs. Sitting at our table. Why is it MY job to kick people out and call people out for using my booth? This is why we have security to make sure this doesn’t happen so everyone can enjoy the night and not be hyper focused on what everyone else is doing around them. This is not the same area that this restaurant used to be located, much different. To top it all off, it cost us $800 to have a booth that night. In my almost 10yrs of visiting bars and having bottle services, I have NEVER heard of somewhere charging that much money for 2 bottles. Not even in TORONTO!!!!!! I am quite frankly disgusted, appalled and disappointed in every service we received and did not receive. None of us will be returning to this place. If you’re looking for bottle service and a booth for your friends on Hess St, I recommend literally any other bar on Hess. Don’t...

Disappointing Experience – Overpriced and Underwhelming! ❌🍽️

We had high expectations for our date night at Radius, especially after booking a reservation in advance via OpenTable and making special requests. Unfortunately, the experience fell far short of satisfactory.

Upon arrival, we were seated at a tiny corner table in front of the bar, despite making it clear that this was a special evening. 💔 The seating arrangement felt thoughtless, but voicing our concerns seemed futile as our server was barely attentive. He juggled bar duties 🍹 and other tasks while neglecting us, leading to long waits just to be greeted and even longer for our drinks and appetizers to arrive.

We ordered two mocktails—the Pomegranate Basil Spritz and the Wild Card—and starters of wonton chips and calamari. 🥤🍴 The drinks were disappointing at best—bland, uninspired, and certainly not worth the $12 price tag. 💸 Paying that much for mediocre beverages only added to the growing list of frustrations. The wonton chips were good, but the calamari was downright insulting. At $24, we received a measly six pieces of nothing-special calamari. 🤦‍♀️ The portion size and quality were appalling, making it clear that this restaurant prioritizes profit over value.

Adding to the frustration was the obnoxiously loud birthday party seated nearby. The noise level was unbearable, and it wasn’t just us who were bothered—other diners around us were visibly frustrated. 😤 Conversations were drowned out, and several patrons exchanged glances, clearly annoyed by the lack of intervention from the staff. It felt like the restaurant prioritized the party’s spending 💵 over creating a comfortable environment for everyone else.

For our mains, we ordered the Lobster Linguine and the Miso Honey Glazed Salmon. 🦞 While the lobster dish was the sole highlight of the evening, the salmon was bland and forgettable—certainly not worth the premium price. The lack of consistency in quality was glaring.

The lack of hospitality, inattentive service, subpar food, and overpriced drinks left us thoroughly disappointed. 💔 The experience was so underwhelming that we stopped for tacos 🌮 on the way home to salvage our evening. A $200 bill for an evening like this felt like a waste.

Radius seems more focused on catering to large, boisterous parties 🎈 than delivering quality food or a welcoming dining experience. Consistency, hospitality, and value are key to a great restaurant, and Radius failed on all fronts. 🚫 I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone. Take your money elsewhere—you’ll thank...

I am not usually a person to leave reviews of any sort, but considering I have come to Radius a handful of times in the past year and every experience has been equally negative, I felt that this was necessary.

The first experience that stood out to me is when I decided to come for lunch with a friend I had not seen in a while. I did not make a reservation as it was 1:00pm on a weekday but I made sure to check that the restaurant was open online. To my suprise when I arrived and entered through the door I was met immediately by a man shouting “What are you doing here?” Great way to greet customers! I proceeded to tell him that I came for lunch when he interrupted to say they were closed for a private event and practically nudged me out the door. He appeared very hostile and annoyed with me until I told him that it said they were open to the public on google, to which he responded “Oh really? I have to go fix that then” and turned around and left, locking the door behind him.

While this experience was unsettling itself, I figured it was just a misunderstanding and chose to come again two nights ago. My time was just as bad. I came with another friend and made a reservation for two on the patio at around 7:15 pm. Our server was super sweet and helpful but there was a lot of confusion specifically around ordering our drinks; to where it had to be taken back because ingredients were forgotten and drinks we had gotten many times before came out looking and tasting completely different. Not to mention that constantly picking up the cups and placing them back down had caused so much of the drinks to spill onto the top of our table. It is clear this was not purposeful, but I feel like especially coming to a place where it is a bit on the pricier side you expect a different kind of service. Our main problem arose when we paid and left for the night and I saw the man I had encountered last time standing by the patio stairs, as my friend and I left we looked at him and said “Thankyou! Have a good night.” to which he proceeded to stare at us blankly, almost looking astonished that we were speaking to him. I’m not sure if it is because we are young or not but I have come to Radius so much and recieve this treatment every time without fail. I don’t know if this guy is the manager/owner or what but he really needs to work on his customer service, attitude, and the way he presents himself to customers because after all of my attempts I will most definitely not be trying again. There are better places to spend your money and time...