Friends Prague — Restaurant in Prague

I hope this review reaches a manager or owner. It turns out that this place was not so friendly to me. Last night, I went to your bar with a good friend of mine. We don't recall anyone being at the door or if there was someone at the door, we were not asked to pay anything as we entered. My friend and I went straight to the bar and ordered drinks. We realized it was karaoke night and really enjoyed the vibe, so my friend invited other friends to join us via Facebook. His invite was posted at 10:53PM, so we probably arrived between 10-10:30PM. Again we don't recall anyone being at the door when we arrived or if there was anyone at the door, we were not asked to pay anything. Our other friends (a mixed group of girls and guys) arrived shortly and we started picking songs to sing for karaoke. My friend is a huge Nicki Minaj fan and we were able to find his favorite song "Super Bass" to sing. While waiting for his turn, we danced, had drinks, and enjoyed the night. When his song came up, we both went up to sing the song-killed it! After the song, I decided to go outside to get fresh air. No one at the door said anything to me as I walked outside. I was outside maybe 3 minutes and walked back in. When I walked back in, I was met very aggressively first by a woman at the door about paying. She said all women have to pay and get a card. I told her I didn't understand what she meant because I was just in the bar and didn't have to pay when I arrived. She started rudely accusing me of not wanting to pay, and again I told her I didn't understand what she meant. Next, the security guy came and was very rude to me. I told both of them I would be right back, that I wanted to speak with my friend who I came in with and my other friends who arrived later about paying. I went back downstairs to ask my friends about paying and the security guy ran after me as if I was trying to sneak into the bar!? I had managed to ask one of my friends if the girls paid before getting in and right after he told me they had to pay, the security guy got into my face and was really rude. Once I saw how aggressive he was being as well as the woman at the door yelling at me, I started recording the situation on my phone because I became very uncomfortable and scared. Your security guy put on what appeared to be gloves as if he was about to fight me. He actually knocked my phone out of my hands. He even shoved one of my friends really hard!! Is this how you treat your customers? I wasn't picking a fight with anyone, I was just trying to get an understanding of the payment situation as I was not asked to pay anything when I first arrived. As one of my friends was trying to help resolve the situation by asking questions, your security guy started yelling at me and so did the woman from the door saying I must "go away." They wouldn't even let me get my coat! I'm very surprised that a gay bar where everyone should be accepted, let alone a bar called Friends would have staff who are not so friendly. Staff that are very rude...dare I say racist! I've never been treated this way in my life! I would have been happy to pay had I not been met with such friction...and kicked out of a bar that is supposed to be a "friendly" place. When in Prague, I cannot recommend Friends as a safe, fun, or friendly place for anyone to go to, gay...

Editted on 11/4/2024: An update - After posting this review, the manager of the shift at that night, that promised me that all will be taken care of, contacted me and invited me for another meeting. In this meeting, I have presented them the receipts for my Jacket, my Headphones and the key replacement. They argued that since I didn't mentioned the key lost in my original statement they can not take responsibility for is. Despite so, after we talked about it some more, they agreed to pay me back in cash for my Jacket and Headphones. As regarding the key replacement costs, I agreed to get it back in a form of free drinks credit.

They also asked that I will delete the original review, which I didn't agree. I did agree to edit the review and therefore I added this update. I also changed the original review a bit, but it still tells the story, as I see it.

I gotta say that up until that evening I had a few good times here, I will consider giving them another chance but it depends on them to learn and improve if they want me back after the credit run out.

The Editted review :

THINK BEFORE USING THE COAT CHECK AT THIS PLACE. THE STAFF DIDN'T TAKE RESPONSIBILITY, AT FIRST, FOR MY BELONGINGS. ALSO, THE STAFF NEED AN URGET TRAINING ON HOW TO HANDLE CUSTOMER COMPLAINTS

On 15/3, I left my brand new jacket that contained my apartment keys and brand new headphones at the coat check and went in to enjoy with my friends. When we wanted to leave, I went to pick up my belongings. But... "They didn't find my jacket".

The manager promised me that they will take care of it and claimed that they will check what happened and if needed they will pay me back for the damages.

Now, days later... they called me in and said that according to their cameras the staff gave my jacket away.

AND YET, THEY ARE NOT WILLING TO PAY ME BACK FOR THE STOLEN ITEMS. AND ONLY FOR THE JACKET.

They don't provide any evidence of their version, refuse to pay for my belongings and kicked me out.

I went there to have some fun with my friends. I've paid money to keep my belongings safe but they lost or stole them and don't take responsibility.

This evening was a disaster, hopefully next time...

My husband and I recently visited Friends Club in Prague and had a very disappointing experience.

Upon entry, we were told that the cloakroom was mandatory and had to be paid for. I immediately offered to pay in cash, but when I asked why we couldn’t pay by card, the staff member seemed visibly annoyed and had to look for the card machine. Then a security guard instructed us to leave even our small bag with our wallets, which didn’t make sense, as we later saw other guests keeping their bags.

At the bar, I ordered a gin and tonic and was again asked to pay cash. I insisted on paying by card — why such an obsessive request for cash? The most frustrating part was discovering via a screenshot that there was a “buy one, get one free” promotion on gin and tonics on Tuesdays, which nobody offered us. When I pointed it out later, the bartender mumbled something and walked away. Out of principle, I returned to the bar, showed the screenshot, and only then — a bit begrudgingly — did he give me the second gin and tonic.

I found all of this behavior inappropriate and unpleasant, especially for tourists who come to these venues thinking they’ll have a welcoming experience. Instead, it feels like you are being taken advantage of. They fail to realize that this approach damages their reputation, and gradually people will stop supporting them.

This behavior is especially disappointing for a venue catering to the LGBT community, which should be about solidarity and respect, not treating guests as “easy targets.”

P.S.: Smiling is free and doesn’t cost the person doing it anything — a little courtesy...