Rachis Ubani — Restaurant in Tbilisi

My first impression when I arrived at this restaurant was that the view was spectacular. But keep in mind that outdoor seating at any establishment in this part of the world is by default the smoking area!

I went by taxi for lunch. I found my way to the balcony area directly from the outside. Out of no more than six tables, a server suggested a table in the middle, but in an effort to avoid potential secondhand smoke, I indicated that I wanted to sit at the far end of the balcony from the other guests, and I sat down. I was given a menu, but before I even got to order, a couple came in, sat two tables away from me, and started smoking. I then got up and moved inside, where there were no other customers. It's a classical wooden building, and the inside is cozy. However, there's no view of the city from the inside.

I decided on a menu item. The male server asked me if I wanted bread. I asked if it was included with my order, and he said yes. However, I saw bread as a separate item on the menu, and I didn't really want to order it. There was also more than one type of bread on the menu, but the server didn't ask me what kind I wanted. A few minutes later, I approached the server again -- using Google Translate -- asking if the item I had ordered came with bread. Again, he said yes. However, after my meal, when I asked for the check, I found out that the bread was a separate order. Furthermore, the bread plus my order together were too much for one adult to eat. It would have been more suitable for two people! Even after walking at least an hour, I didn't have dinner that night because I was so full. The server should have known those two items would probably be too much, and he should have pointed out the bread on the menu to indicate the additional charge. Then if I wanted bread, he should have asked me what type of bread I wanted.

I also wanted to charge my phone. I couldn't find an outlet, so I walked up to the servers and asked if there was a place I could charge it. I saw an outlet available at their desk, but they said no. A little later, back in the dining room where I was sitting, I noticed a power outlet on the wall adjacent to a little shelf (for a phone), though the outlet looked discolored, like it had been burnt. I asked the server about it, and she seemed to shrug and indicate that it could not be used. I didn't try to charge my phone because my understanding was that the servers had basically said that this was not an option.

In both cases, there may have been a miscommunication. The servers did not speak...

We stopped by this restaurant after visiting the Ethnographic Museum, lured in by the wonderful aromas and expecting something great—but left deeply disappointed. Here’s a point-by-point account:

The moment we walked in, a very unhappy-looking waitress “greeted” us. I could have overlooked her attitude if the food had been good, but she also forgot to write down one of our dishes—the shashlik.

The food itself was decent, though overpriced, and one dish came with an unwelcome “surprise.”👇

Details: We had ordered the shashlik right away, but after a long wait I realized it wasn’t coming. When we politely asked how much longer it would be, the same grumpy waitress snapped, “What shashlik?” I said we’d ordered it from the start, yet she argued with us. That was annoying, but still not enough for a bad review (I’m pretty patient—I get that staff can be tired, etc.). The real issue came next: when the pork shashlik finally arrived and I cut into it, the meat was raw in the center. I politely called the waitress over and showed her. She rudely grabbed the plate, muttering that she’d “redo” it. At that point my friend lost patience and posted a brief review online with a photo of the raw meat.

They did bring a replacement, but while we were eating the manager planted himself at our table. Instead of apologizing and waiving the charge, he lectured us: “What you did was very low. You should have overlooked the shortcomings and eaten the shashlik as is.” He warned us that raw pork can cause lethal intoxication—as if we didn’t know. Then the manager and the owner joined forces, insisting we delete the review. They claimed that if we’d “behaved properly,” they would have wiped the bill—pure fairy tales, considering no one intended to approach us until we posted the review. The surly waitress even accused us of being bloggers out to smear them, saying our review wouldn’t affect them anyway. The owner boasted he serves the best shashlik around.

To top it all off, we were actually told that we should be grateful for the second (properly cooked) shashlik—even though we had paid for it and waited an hour.

In the end, it was all just empty words: they didn’t discount a thing, not even the shashlik, and made us pay the full amount. With service and attitude like this, I absolutely do not recommend the restaurant. The only thing it has going for it is the...

This restaurant is between the Open-Air Museum of Ethnography and Turtle Lake and can be reached on foot (do note you'll have to walk along the road, which is all right as long as you are careful). It is quite special as it is located within an old Georgian house that has retained and possibly refurbished its traditional features well. The food is also good and affordable, especially a delicious mushroom soup. Even though it seems touristy due to the location, it is well frequented by locals as well. Highly recommend if you are in the area and looking for a place to eat aside from the more crowded restaurants at...