Brook — Restaurant in Salamanca

Horrible waiters which caused a bad dining experience for me.

I went with a group of 4 friends on a Monday.They say it is an authentic New York experience. Being a native New Yorker I can say that unfortunately, if the waiters were working in New York, they'd be fired if they worked this way there.

Our experience started by being told it was mandatory to order something to drink. We asked for a "jarra de agua" as we were five. According to Spanish law, restaurants must give water for free to clients. They looked at us strangely as we then asked for 5 "vasos de agua."

Next, when our hamburgers arrived, the waiter asked us if our burgers were cooked to our "gusto." I told them my hamburger was cooked too much and was dry. The waiter then disappeared for five minutes instead of asking me if I wanted a new one. When he returned, I asked them to bring it back and again they gave us a strange look. In New York if your burger is not to your liking, they will immediately take it back, not wait for the client to tell you. My new burger was rare, however it was watery and made the bun all wet and soggy. I did not finish my burger because of this. To end, the waiter came over while I was still eating asking me if he could take my plate away. Again in shock of the rudeness of the waiter. So rude. I was clearly still eating.

Another thing that is a sin is that they bring you 4 individual ketchup packets for 5 people. Again, when asking for more, another strange look. Also, there was only ketchup and mustard. I asked for mayonnaise and was told it would cost an extra euro for a packet of mayonnaise. Flipo, la verdad. If you are in New York, you will have a bottle of ketchup, mayonnaise and musturd on the table. I had to ask for ketchup twice.

I also had asked if I could have a side of coleslaw. The waiter didn't know. When he came back, he said yes. I proceeded to ask him how much it would cost. He didn't know again. When he came back, he told me that in the end it was not possible.

Also, I had asked for an extra napkin and he never came with it.

To conclude, my dining experience was ruined due to the incompetence of the staff. Not friendly at all.

The place is nicely decorated. Burgers are OK, but I've had better burgers in my 10 years of living in Spain.

I think that if the waiters were better and with some changes, this restaurant could be...

Beware: Many surcharges and stealth add on at the final bill.

Gluten free bun has an extra of €1, which wasn’t written anywhere in the menu. The iPad’s menu pricing was also different from the pricing written in the Menu itself. I had to spend elaborate time at the end rectifying the accurate amount in the bill.

I went for the custom burger option. The basics of a burger, such as tomato, onion, pickles has a €1.6 surcharge. I ordered a Guacamole 🥑 (€2 surcharge) and received literally one tablespoonful of it in my burger. I had to raise a request to make the amount of Guacamole remotely reasonable for the price I paid.

Fortunately, the saving grace was that 1) the artisanal gluten free bread’s quality is above average. 2) Sweet potatoe fries were finely done.

For the same price point, I enjoyed a beyond burger gluten free burger in Aarhus, Denmark 🇩🇰 (which is a far more expensive city than Salamanca), plus a big drink and a very generous portion of potato wedges - all for €18.

If not for my elaborate attempt to fight back all the hidden / stealthy presented charges, this would have been what I paid for this portion crafted by a miser of an owner. The dining experience was ruined by the end of it.

Needless to say: once is more...

NO RECOMENDADO PARA GENTE CON PROBLEMAS ALIMENTICIOS

Ayer fui a cenar con mi pareja y mi amiga. Le dije a la camarera que era celíaca y que, por favor, la ensalada César la prepararan sin gluten que sí estaba en la opción sin gluten de la carta. Ella me asegura que sí que se hacían modificaciones y punto.

Tengo que decir que hicimos una reserva a las 22:30 y el chico de sala nos dijo que estaba mal eso. Que lo tenían que cambiar…

Esto lo digo ya que, muchas veces, en cocina no sabes lo que te van a hacer y yo no sé si el cocinero lo hizo a mala leche, para fastidiar o qué.. más adelante explico esto.

Pues bien, la ensalada César viene con un montón de queso y con un montón de salsa cesar. Cuando empiezo a probarla me doy cuenta que le habían echado picatostes ¡¡¡¡¡PURO PAN!!!!!!!!!!!!! Y yo ya había comido!!

Mi pareja y yo nos levantamos a preguntar si eran picatostes sin gluten o qué había pasado y el cocinero nos asegura con soberbia que no, que eran normales … Le dije llorando que era celíaca y que eso ahora me iba a joder el estómago.

Para mi sorpresa encuentro a un cocinero que asegura que por 5-6 picatostes que hubiera comido no pasaba nada. Mi pareja empezó un revuelo con él y le dijo que si me pasaba algo iba a ir a comentárselo porque esa poca profesionalidad no la entendía. A lo que el cocinero responde que estuviera tranquilo, que iba a ir a explicárselo él con sus colegas!!!!! Después de todo AMENAZAS!

Aquí en Salamanca faltan muchos sitios sin gluten de calidad.. comer fuera de casa es un riesgo. Sobre todo porque en restaurantes que especifican que son sin gluten no tienen a gente competente que tengan en cuenta las alergias y problemas alimenticios de la gente.

Si eres celíaco o tienes cualquier restricción alimenticia y no puedes tolerar ni la contaminación cruzada este NO es tu sitio. Porque si tienen a gente que, literalmente, te echan pan en una comida sin gluten… imagínate las trazas… ¿¿¿¿¿cómo te fías de ellos???? Tienen personal poco especializado en cocina.

Obviamente la hoja de reclamaciones está puesta y todo lo que viene después ya se hará efectivo.

PARA SORPRESA DE NADIE ACABÉ EN EL HOSPITAL

Esto es serio. Cualquier problema alimenticio es serio… sea de gravedad extrema, como puedan ser los frutos secos, o cualquier intolerancia/alergia alimenticia. Puedes hacerlo pasar muy mal a una persona que está confiando en el servicio del restaurante.

Si eres celíaco… no te recomiendo el sitio.

Bien sean por las prisas de querer cerrar, por despiste del cocinero o porque el cocinero no “crea” que esto es importante; una persona se ha ido al hospital por intoxicación alimenticia…

¡¡¡¡¡Que el restaurante en particular se lo haga ver!!!!!

Un mínimo error por prisas, de mala gestión de los alimentos o de falta de profesionalidad de sus cocineros puede provocar algo muy gordo.

De ahí que puntuara anteriormente que nos dejaron reservar 22:30 cuando, en verdad, a esa hora cocina los lunes cierra. En la web eso no viene especificado; por eso que la misma web nos dejó reservar. Y no sabes si fue cabreo del cocinero y quiso fastidiar o mala praxis por desconocimiento de lo que implica intoxicar a alguien con gluten. De cualquier modo … INCOMPETENCIA TOTAL DE LOS COCINEROS DEL TURNO DEL 21/04/2025 por la noche .

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