Khinkali House on Rustaveli / ხინკლის სახლი რუსთაველზე — Restaurant in Tbilisi

I really hate writing a negative reviews. Normally I don't understand people who give restaurants 1 star, because at least something should be good in this restaurant and we had it as well - inexpensive wine with decent quality. But it is not enough to justify 2 stars in our case. Our entire experience sounds like an episode from Kitchen's Nightmare. When we entered and placed an order - suddenly music was turned on to the level when it was impossible to have a conversation. It's OK, we just found much more remote table, it was loud there as well, but manageable. Ordered a chicken and lamb BBQ. Chicken (Chkmeruli) was horrible and we had it in different restaurants like 10 times before. This one was overdried, mostly bones. Things happen, so we were not too upset. Then the lamb BBQ came - burned pieces of meat so salty that my girlfriend (who adds a tons of salt to all the food she eats) - couldn't even chew it, it was burning her mouth with a salt. Well, just a bad day for a kitchen I guess, until we politely asked to remove a BBQ from a bill (we decided not to do the same with a chicken). Waitress left. We waited for a while, called her again. Seems like she is not willing to do it. Then we asked for a manager, manager came, took a BBQ away to try it from our plate (OMG), went back and she was swearing with a health of her children that this is a normal lamb in Georgia and she personally hates salt and this BBQ is not salty at all. At this point it became crazy - this meat is salty to a degree it is impossible to eat. After 30 minutes of fighting they were pretty persistent that we have to pay for a BBQ. Obviously being in a foreign country - it is a little different in how far are you going to keep fighting. We payed but it cast a little shadow to a Georgian hospitality unfortunately. Luckily all our experience with other Georgian places were great, so do yourself a favor - pick any other place, there are so many great places around. And yes, they automatically added...

I was invited as a guest to visit Khinkali House on Rustaveli it was yesterday evening. We had 6 adults and 3 children. 2 of the children were under 2 years of age in strollers prior visiting the restaurant we did call and made reservation. Upon arrival we were told that our table is right in front of the door by the stage. Music was so loud we and space around the table was so small we had to ask the waiter to move us. No one guided us to the next table we were told just peak another one in the back which we did. It was further in the back where we could all get sitted. Kids were hungry and we asked 3 times some one to assist no one paid attention to us. Then another older lady waitrss with black hair to her shoulders came to our table and “ORDERED” us to leave the table because it was for 15 people and it was only 10 of us! She was very rude disrespectful and without any respect to neither of us. When my son started to cry because he was hungry and we already were waiting to order food she stared at him and wished him like “shhhh with her finger pointing to his mouth” I was shocked, I was mad and upset all at once. I could not take that type of attitude and behaviour towards my child. When I expressed my frustration and asked for manager they just disrespectfully refused to let anyone know. My husband told us to leave at that point because why to pay and eat at somewhere where people have no respect and customer service towards to their customers and public. I have never been treated with so much disrespect and aggression towards me in my whole life. I’m just a tourist who wanted to enjoy the Georgian food in a beautiful atmosphere. I hope that someone form their management and leadership team could take this seriously and retrain the staff and employees on how to handle customers and be genuine to children and older...

On a recommendation from the hotel reception staff, I decided to try a restaurant located at a busy junction. My expectations were high, as I was eager to experience authentic Georgian cuisine.

Upon arrival, I checked the menu at the entrance, where I was approached by the manager. Unfortunately, there was no sense of warmth or excitement in the welcome – it felt more like a formality than hospitality. A waiter with limited English guided us to the upper seating area, but due to the heat and sense of isolation, we requested to move downstairs.

From the very beginning, the expressions on the staff – a waiter and a waitress – felt sarcastic and unwelcoming. Despite this, we decided to give the place a fair try.

We ordered a couple of beers, BBQ pork ribs, beef Khinkali, and grilled trout. The beers arrived after a short wait, followed by the Khinkali, which turned out to be the highlight of the meal – juicy, bursting with flavor, and absolutely delicious. The trout was also perfectly grilled: moist, with a delightfully crispy skin.

However, the BBQ pork ribs were a letdown – dry and lacking in portion size for the price paid. We had to ask for some traditional Georgian sauce just to add some flavor. Wanting to end on a positive note, we ordered another round of Khinkali, this time with a pork and beef mix – and once again, they didn’t disappoint.

As for the service – it left much to be desired. The staff didn’t seem engaged or interested in the guests, especially foreigners. There was no effort to check on us, no feedback taken, and no suggestions offered with pride for their...