Alquimico — Restaurant in Cartagena

This place has a racist staff. They discriminated and singled me - only me - out for “not drinking enough” despite the fact I showed them I had just bought drinks 20 minutes prior. I explained I was pacing myself and trying to drink responsibly but the hostess (who came out of nowhere to deny me entrance to the rooftop terrace while allowing every other white person to proceed without ANY problem despite them also not having any drinks in their hands) said that she expected her clients to drink and purchase drinks “more often” if they wanted to stay.

I was BLOWN AWAY. I have NEVER seen or heard anything like this at any place I’ve been to. I also didn’t think I was just freeloading around because I had been steadily purchasing drinks. But, apparently, it wasn’t enough for this young lady?

What also floored me was how I was singled out. I was waiting in line to go to the terrace and had been seeing multiple white patrons come and go without any problem. I had seen a group of white girls just go up before me and they hadn’t drank they entire time we waited as well. But then as soon as I - a black man - was about to go up, here comes this employee to inform me that I can’t go up because “reasons” and that apparently the pace of my drinking wasn’t enough to deserve to go up on the terrace.

There was absolutely no reason to single me out like that. No one else was singled out and no one else had that problem. I showed her my receipt showing I had just purchased and drank literally 20 minutes prior. I explained I was trying to drink responsibly. It didn’t matter to her.

The only difference between me and others around me was obvious. She discriminated against me. Plain and simple.

I wouldn’t patronize this place ever again. I hope others don’t either. Out of all places, I didn’t expect to be treated this way...

We ultimately had a good time visiting all three levels of Alquimico but it did start off a little rough when they told my friend he could not come in with a sleeveless shirt. The shirt was expensive and looked really stylish so it seemed a bit silly to us but, nonetheless, we went to a souvenir shop next door and bought a cheap t-shirt to meet their dress requirements. (This and the poor service on the third floor were the main reason to lower to 4). One other item of note, women were allowed in with a really random of assortment of tops with no problem so the dress code only apparently applies to men.

We went in and on the first floor we had the table of cheese along with a couple of drinks. The cheese assortment was delicious and the drinks were tasty as well. There was great reggaeton music playing. We asked to be transferred up to the second floor and were served by Esteban who was professional as well as friendly with us. We had a couple more apps here with drinks and asked the hostess to be transferred up to the third floor rooftop. The hostess on the second floor either didn’t know how to transfer our ticket or decided not to do it so we had to pay our bill and start over when we moved to the third floor.

The third floor was super active with louder music and was much warmer given it is outside. More of a dance vibe but the service was lacking. The waitress seemed indifferent to her job up there which was unfortunate given everyone else had done a great job up to that point. We had one drink and she never asked if we wanted another one so we decided to take off as it was starting to look like a thunderstorm was approaching.

Definitely a cool place to check out but be prepared for...

This bar was one of the biggest disappointments I have ever experienced in the service industry. The building itself is beautiful and they really had an opportunity to make something special with this place. We were absolutely extremely uncomfortable from the moment we arrived throughout our experience with the Secret Service agents that passed for the staff. I felt like the staff members were correctional officers. The place is beautiful, but you can never relax even well in line for the bathroom. The security made me very uncomfortable. They hover around our table so closely they were physically bumping into us. They all had earbuds in and they were all whispering to each other. There was way too much security, and it was very, very bizarrely unpleasant I would definitely never go back to this bar. The vibes are horrible. I have no understanding as to why this bar is so highly rated. Yes it is a beautiful building, but the atmosphere and the vibes are terrible to say the least. We have never been made to feel so uncomfortable. We arrived prepared to spend money and enjoy ourselves and if you look at my review history, I am not one who ever leaves negative review reviews. This experience was extremely negative and uncomfortable. After one round and constant scrutiny we left. Also, we were for well, dressed, attractive women there is no reason for them to have made us feel this...