Paupers Pub — Restaurant in Toronto

I've been to this restaurant many times in the past and had good service, but this last one was somehow the worst pub/restaurant experience I've had in my life and that really bothered me, as I normally have good experiences here:

Went in on a quiet Thursday night with a friend, the restaurant was about half empty--in the middle section of the restaurant, declined food, ordered a drink each and received them quickly, service was pretty good at this point...

And then she completely forgot about our table. Even though the pub was half empty. I understand a table slipping your mind when it's very busy, but when it's slow, I don't really see any possible excuse for it.

My friend finished her drink up quickly and wanted another, and I changed my mind and wanted some food to go with mine. For us, it was going to be one of those sit down and talk and order throughout the night kinds of nights, or so we thought! As she never came back to check in on us once after our initial order, we tried to get her attention every time she passed, trying to make eye contact with the waitress but somehow she didn't look over once at our table and never noticed us.

In addition, somehow her path never brought her next to our table, but we figured she'd check in on us eventually and notice us trying to catch her attention, especially since it wasn't a busy night. Apparently, our table was invisible--that group in the back eventually got the bill and left and a new one came in, sitting in a spot within line of sight of our table. They got prompt service, after which she just stepped out of the restaurant and disappeared.

So at that point, we gave up on the evening and decided to walk up to the cash and try to check out. At this point we'd been waiting over 45 minutes for service and it was getting ridiculous.

No such luck.

She was the only waitress on the floor, so we couldn't get cashed out. So we had to wait. Eventually, the bartender (who was busy mixing drinks) noticed something was up and tried to find her, but she was nowhere to be found so we had to wait again. Eventually, he finds her on another attempt and we pay and leave just as that new group got their food served.

Spoiled the evening as instead of talking, our conversation eventually drifted to wondering why our waitress wasn't coming back to our table for the last half hour of our one hour stay.

The only thing different this time than other times I've been is that I was at a table of 2 rather than in a busy group, or happened to be sitting near to the bar. So maybe don't expect to get served if you're anything less than a small group and aren't sitting right...

Unfortunately I wish I had read the reviews before I went, but my friend and I were coming from up north nearly 2 hours to see a show and we were hungry from the drive. First, I would like to say that even though the server was pleasant the poor girl was overworked and her performance showed it. She forgot to bring us cutlery (without it I guess we had to go caveman style and eat with our hands), and by the time we got our starters we scarfed them down and my friend and I said "sorry we've got to go may we get the bill" which then took around 15 minutes to get, but eventually we got what we needed, but it took openly complaining about it and expressing that we didn't enjoy being ignored by those that clearly saw and heard we needed help to finally get help, however it wasnt from those that could clearly see the server struggling with amount of people in her section, but from the poor girl who clearly needed help herself. Why can they not work as a team? Many other restaurants do and sometimes there has been times where the manager/owner has even pitched in.

Secondly, it was a quaint little pub, but truthfully out dated (which is fine, but restore it so it doesn't look run down, especially if you've been open in Toronto for 30 plus years). The light fixtures were dirty and should be cleaned considering they are hanging over people's food and drinks. I think overall, as my friend and I frequesnt the city every month, I would not be visiting Pauper's Pub again. I just felt bad for the servers with them being overworked and with no help from the many people who were clearly not doing the job that was required of them and who stood pretty.

Lastly, I also found it unprofessional that workers talk poorly of customers/coworkers so openly out on the floor for others to hear. We, as customers, are the reason you have a pay cheque and your coworkers are the reason you are able to eat your meal at a table while on break, so remember if you have nothing nice to say at least take it away from the ear shot of your customers because that sets the mood for the customer and lets them determine if they will be returning...

My party and I recently went to Paupers and although the drinks were super delicious (the cocktails) as well as the food, the service wasn't the greatest. We made a reservation for a holiday party for 15 people and the space that we were given barely had enough space for 15 people to eat! Most of us ate standing up. On top of this, it took our server FOREVER to clear our dishes (we had to prompt her to do so) which made it tough for us to fit all of the food on the table. It also took her ages to bring us drinks (took me 20 minutes to get a cocktail that I had ordered) and when I did receive one of the drinks that I ordered (chocolate orange) it was delicious but the cup looked nearly empty and not as full as the picture shown on the menu. I pointed this out to the server and she said that the one on the picture had ice in it which made it look full...so then I asked her why mine did not have ice in it and her reply was, "oh you wanted ice?" (obviously I wanted ice....why wouldn't I?). Anyway, at the end of the night I tried claiming the Yelp offer on here which gives guests who check in on Yelp 50% off their bill...when I pointed this out to our server she said that they don't accept it and never did (which is NOT true since I have used it before last year with no issues). I told her that I had used it in the past with no issues and asked to speak to the manager. When the manager did arrive, she also said that Yelp had put this offer up without the restaurants consent....which also makes sense since Yelp doesn't normally do this and if this was a reoccurring issue it would have been removed by now (I clearly saw it last year and had no issues). Anyway, the manager did say she would honour it and take 50% off the food on my bill. When my bill arrived I got 50% off the LOWEST priced appetizer. I didn't bother arguing with anyone since it wasn't worth it...we have come to Paupers on many occasions and normally our experiences have been very good 4-5 star but this one (and the one before) weren't the greatest so I am updating my review to reflect my two recent...