The Spiritualist Aberdeen — Restaurant in Aberdeen City

On the few occasions I've frequented this elongated porta cabin, I've always been struck by the bar staff's consistency - at consistently bad service.

Whether the bar area be busy or deserted, the few bar staff steadfastly stick to first gear and display the sort of zen-like oblivion to their surroundings that would make a Buddhist monk envious. They will not be rushed or hurried, and they are blind to the people on the other side of the bar. When they do glance up, they are only capable of seeing what is standing immediately before them, not who is to the left or right, and certainly not however long those people may have been standing there. They have the focus of a blinkered horse and the attention span of a goldfish.

However, there is order in their attention. For the barmen it is firstly those they know. Then the pretty girls. Then whoever else is leftover. That is the way of the Spiritualist, and lo has it always been. At least every time I've walked in.

And on the last occasion, I just walked out again. I'm an undemanding sort but the service at the Spiritualist just takes the proverbial. Maybe I'm too old for the place. Maybe if I was 20yo and never been anywhere, I'd put up with it, bedazzled by the garden shed feel of the décor, too.

Sigh. Anyway, I don't kid myself that my custom will...

I want to start this off by saying the drinks and food themselves are lovely, however this is where the good times stopped! My friend booked for a medium size party of us for nibbles and drinks to celebrate a birthday, thinking it would be a special evening. We were so wrong! We were dealt with by a young-ish girl with dark hair, who never introduced herself (rude), but we picked up that her name was something like “Flo” or “Florence” (as used by her colleagues on the evening). We waited an unruly time for our orders, and when ordering/asking questions this young girl responded with snappy remarks and one word answers, followed by eye rolling. I did not expect to attend a special celebration to be spoken down to and made to feel threatened by a teenager/young adult!! My poor friend who was celebrating her milestone birthday was left feeling as though she was treading on eggshells! We felt ignored and due to her approach with us, as if we could not ask for anything or even go up to the bar. As someone who has worked in Aberdeen’s hospitality sector all her life, I will be passing this experience on to my past and present colleagues, and will not be stepping foot in this establishment again, despite The Spiritualist being my favourite haunt for years, which is a real shame for myself, my husband and...

Average food with a poorly performing kitchen and low staffing levels.

Some of the turkey in the Christmas dinner option was extremely overdone to the point that there was no moisture left. The staffing levels were woefully inadequate to the point that the place was only half full yet the waiting staff didn't have time to check on us even though we were a large table. I assume the kitchen is equally poorly staffed as our three courses took over 2 hours to serve even though everything was pre-booked.

Other guests didn't fair any better either as I witnessed some leaving after giving up. Another group had to wait for an extended period for our table to free up while we were waiting for our food to arrive following the aforementioned 2 hour wait.

The gluten free turkey Christmas dinner option doesn't actually seem to be anything other than the regular dish with gravy, Yorkshire puddings and stuffing removed which was disappointed.

The only positive was that the waiting staff seemed friendly when we did manage...