Capital Craft Beer Academy — Restaurant in Gauteng

Dear Capital Craft Management,

I hope this review finds you well. I am writing to express my disappointment and frustration regarding a recent experience I had at your establishment during the Rugby World Cup final.

On 21 October, after attending the Rugby World Cup semi-finals at Capital Craft, I approached our waitress, Alana, to make a reservation for the final match. Alana informed me that the hostess was unavailable, and I should call the following day to secure a reservation. I took note that Capital Craft would open at 10 am the next morning, and accordingly, I promptly called at 9:45 am.

To my surprise, when I called, a man answered and I requested a reservation for the Rugby World Cup final at 8 pm inside the restaurant, specifically by the big television. He assured me that no one had reserved the table and agreed to reserve it for us.

However, on the day of the Rugby World Cup final, my friends and I arrived at 7:45 pm, 15 minutes before our reservation time. To our dismay, we were seated at the coldest and furthest outside table, not the inside table we had reserved. The manager informed us that we had not reserved an inside table and that they were fully booked during the semi-final, contradicting the information I had received from Alana.

I was left bewildered by the conflicting information, and it became evident that the inside table we had reserved was given to other customers. The reason provided was that they were "paying customers." We, too, were paying customers, and this situation left us feeling confused and disrespected.

What compounded our disappointment was the lack of available inside seating. We were the only predominant group of people of colour in the restaurant, and it felt as though we were unfairly relegated to the outskirts of the restaurant, despite having made a reservation.

While the restaurant kindly offered to cover the cost of our first round of drinks, this gesture did not adequately compensate for the inconvenience and the sense of discrimination my friends and I experienced. We believe that a resolution to this matter should extend beyond a single round of drinks.

I kindly request that you review this incident and address the reservation mismanagement, as well as the perceived discrimination. It is important that your restaurant ensures fair and equal treatment for all patrons. I hope that my feedback will contribute to a more positive and inclusive experience for future customers.

I look forward to hearing from you soon and hope for a prompt and satisfactory resolution to this matter.

EDIT: follow up review I am writing a follow-up on my previous review written during the rugby finals. Following my initial review, Kayt Vianello contacted me and provided a video showing people completely trashing my reservation sign and kicking it under the table. As I mentioned in my previous review, I was accused of lying about making my reservation. Kayt acknowledged that I did make my reservation and offered a voucher for everyone affected (i.e., me and my friends) to return for a meal the Friday after the finals.

I was grateful and accepted the offer. However, when Friday came, we did not receive the voucher. I messaged Kayt, but my message was left on read.

This experience exemplifies awful service and suggests an undercurrent of racism, as we were the only people of color during the finals (as mentioned in my last review).

Such treatment is unacceptable and disappointing, highlighting serious issues in their service and...

We've been to Capital Craft for a 3rd time to date between 22 March and 31 May. We've celebrated a birthday there; honoured an employee and her husband for her hard work; and treated a business partner and his girlfriend to the Capital Craft experience. That means: the beer tasting; food platters; rugby on the big screens. The service is excellent. The waiters know the beers, lagers and stouts and help the customers to choose 6 items from the wide range to taste in generous measure that allow others to have a sip as well. There are a number of craft beers on tap and it's fascinating to watch them pour the liquid in a specific way. I have to acknowledge the expertise and experience of the waiters and barmen. There is a booklet full of gins, whiskeys, wines, cocktails and other cold and hot beverages to choose from for those who prefer non-alcoholic drinks. On the 1st visit I thought: "Ah, typical pub grub." It turned out that I was very wrong. On all three occasions we ordered 2 generous platters and a burger. I particularly enjoyed the Puff Puff Platter because the chicken, ribs, brisket and sausage each have distinct flavours. The sides are delicious. I enjoyed the beer bread too. The food is well presented. The restaurant has a warm ambiance where various different people sit comfortably inside or outside. People feel it's okay to bring their children with them. There's no raucous behaviour; just jovial, good fun. Nobody gets out of hand. Big party groups are easily accommodated with a quick rearrangement of tables without disturbing other customers. I've noticed that the music is not too loud so everyone can enjoy good conversation and laughter. When the bill comes, be sure to calculate and add the 10% tip. It's the right thing to do. If you want to reserve a table for the weekend, give them a call the Monday or Tuesday before. We were too late to reserve a table last Saturday but we went around 15:00 and managed to get a table. We left about 3 hours later but there was no one rushing us to leave. Capital Craft is situated among a number of other restaurants and pubs as well as the Afriforum theater. But we haven't struggled to find parking. Be prepared that you might not find parking near to the entrances. The car guards are efficient though. It's always kind to put aside a good tip for them. On the whole, I would recommend the Capital...

What an utter disgrace! I can count the amount of time I've gone to Capital Craft on a single hand, and each experience is worst than the last. We attended your "Disney quiz"...haha more like Pixar Quiz.

Firstly, the quiz master of the event is possibly the most unprepared and non worthy quiz master my team has ever experienced. He was constantly mumbling the questions to the extent that several teams had to constantly call over the hostesses to ask them what the question was.

Secondly, if the quiz is advertised as a Disney Quiz then stick to Disney. 26 of the 50 questions were Pixar based. (YES, we know Disney owns Pixar, but the also own Marvel, LucasFilms, 20 Century Fox, ABC and ESPN.) So by your quiz logic and way in asking questions as you did you could ask about Nascar (from ESPN), TV series (from ABC) and Marvel and Star Wars. So next time stick to the Theme allocated. Maybe you took into account the teams chanting and yelling "We want a Disney quiz!" Or "is this a Pixar or Disney quiz" or the teams making sighs of relief when an ACTUAL DISNEY QUESTION WAS ASKED.

Thirdly, when it came to the bonus mark, my friends and I wanted to clarify that we heard the correct thing, so we called over the Quiz Master and asked for him to repeat it for us. Not a blink had past after he had given us the question and he said "everyone, pens downs, if I see you writing you are disqualified ".... uhmmm excuse me, we just got the question you asked and had to write down 7 films in chronological order for the answer.

Forthly, the receiving of the prize voucher. I had to message Capital Craft of Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp to get hold of our prize voucher.... I had to wait 6 days and message multiple time to receive what is owed to me and my team, and I still have to print it ourselves. The unprofessionlism from a Quiz host is absolutely shocking.

The ONLY saving grace to this restaurant are the staff. And I hope Capital Craft treats their staff well, because they all deserve it.

In regards to this unprofessional event you held, my friends and I will not be returning to Capital Craft again. We will most likely give our voucher to a people who are looking for a...