Racines Food — Restaurant in Toulouse

Terribly disappointed by the lack of empathy and respect from Leatitia, the waitress who spent 15 minutes arguing with us just to prove her point rather than adhering to basic customer service principles.

I used to be a regular at Bar Racin in Toulouse and had generally good experiences, but this recent visit was shockingly disappointing. What happened:

● We were initially asked to sit at a table with three strangers — which was already unusual - but we complied.

● While passing by the other side of the bar, when I was on the phone while walking, I noticed two empty places for three that were free. I asked a waiter who was walking by if we could sit there. He clearly said yes.

● I briefly stepped away to show my parents the river. When I returned, two other people were about to take the same table. I explained that we were already seated there.

● They kindly cross-checked with another staff member, who confirmed it and directed them to the other empty place.

● Some time later, a Black waitress named Leatitia approached us and aggressively questioned who gave us permission to sit there.

● When I mentioned it was her colleague, she began interrogating me about his appearance. I couldn’t recall clearly, so I asked her to show me the team so I could identify him.

● She refused and said, “I have 15 colleagues. I can’t bring them all!” I replied that he looked blond to me — to which she rudely responded that she has no blond colleagues and sarcastically telling me she knew what blond is while I was trying to respectfully explain my interpretation of blond! Even the girl at the entrance looked blond to me !

● When she finally heard me, she finally said, “Ah now you’re telling me he was light brown,” using an unprofessional tone like we were classmates or friends.

● She insisted that the table was meant for six people and that we wouldn’t be served unless we moved.

● I pointed out that her colleague had just tried to sit two people there — she blatantly lied, saying they were “waiting for four more people.”

● Even an hour and a half later, as you can see in the picture, those two were still alone — proof that her claim was false.

● A couple sitting behind us even confirmed that we were shown to that table by another staff member — but she completely ignored them.

● Instead of showing basic respect, especially to my elderly parents, she kept on arguing and created a long, uncomfortable scene that ruined the atmosphere.

● It honestly felt like some of the staff — especially Leatitia — have been emboldened by the bar’s good reviews and are now more concerned with playing power games than treating guests with courtesy and care.

I will indeed contact the owner directly to share how unprofessional behavior like this is tarnishing the bar’s image. Rude staff with no sense of customer service should not be allowed to ruin the experience for...

First off, these other less than 4-5 star reviews are so off course. This place is exactly what it advertises, good food alongside the river. The best way to enjoy this restaurant is to let go of all expectations, go immediately to the bar to order a drink (or multiple) and put in your food order. Sitting a table is "nice" but the real gem of this place are the bean bags or tables alongside the river to the far right. Those are first come first served. I ordered two drinks, an appetizer, and two entrées. We got the drinks in 2min, and the food in 10min. They hand the food to you on an adorable bamboo tray that you then take to a beanbag or table spot. We got the croquettes, duck, and lobster roll. At the time of writing this, we currently live in Barcelona, and the croquettes were very reminiscent of Spanish croquetas. The highlight for us was the duck. Served with a truffle aioli and crushed nuts, it was heavenly. We also got the lobster roll, but this slightly missed the mark for us. Not because it was bad, but we were expecting a Boston style lobster roll and got a more Japanese twist on a lobster roll. All in all, it was worth it. I'd definitely recommend this place to people looking for a contemporary restaurant on the...

Nice location and would probably have spent the evening there with dinner had we not been told to move up from the river's edge to make way for other guests! Quite extraordinary approach to esconsed customers with masses of space in the venue and absolutely no evidence of waiting customers looking for a space. My offer to move when seats were required was rebutted with a "they are on their way". Families either side of us were subjected to the same demands and were similarly stunned by the attitude of the staff member, being very different to the waiter who had served us 30 minutes earlier with no mention of being in required seats.

Our response to the attitude and lack of respect for paying customers just made us pack up and leave. We found many other lovely establishments far more atuned to customer service and respect.

My advice and recommendation would to give Racines a very wide berth. We certainly won't be heading back, even if it's the only place left open...