The Morning Star Bar & Restaurant — Restaurant in Belfast

Never ever had the worse as bad in any establishment than what i did in the upstairs restaurant, two occasion's we have visited for food the second we were hoping improvements had been made but still same middle age - oldish restaurant manager there. The sceond time we were totally ignored for over 10-20 minutes after being seated upstairs, therefore we walked out as didnt want a repeat of the first experience, instead we to fountain street bar and restaurant highly recommend there.

The first expereince was a while ago but we dining in restaurant for ‘Belfast restaurant week’ and i was horrified at the service. We arrived at about 20 mins to 7 and was promptly seated, then took 20 minutes to get staff attention to order despite several staff member walking past checking on table right beside us. After getting her attention at 7pm a Young blonde girl waitress then took our order, we waited over 45 minutes for starters to arrive and had to ask staff members twice to be give the excuse it was busy despite my partner going to toilet and noticing half the restaurant was empty and several members of staff just seemed to be walking about and that we could could kitchen staff laughing and joking beside being seating at the other side of the restaurant to the kitchen door. When starters arrived we were amazed at how it was small and simple starters soup and bread that was unbuttered and pork bites - ideally this is starter that would take no longer than 10 mins to prep and serve. A table nearby that was seated 30 mins after we arrived then received their starters promptly in comparison to us. After we had finished starters we sat a while with empty dishes before having to ask the same waitress could she clear our dishes rather than walk past us we said our mains would be shortly. Then Another 35 mins still no mains despite the restaurant getting quiet I asked the bar man for two drinks which he just left on a tray on the bar instead of bringing them to the table, after 10 minutes waiting for them to be served I just went up and lifted the tray to service myself to the table. After still waiting for our mains and getting ready to walk out and being ignored by several member of staff a staff member a oldish balding man told us our mains would be shortly 5 mins, this was despite the nearby table who seated 30 mins after ourselves receiving their mains of steaks before us, this made no sense. Our mains were basic burger arrived with no beer battered onion ring and was dry and tasteless very basic. My steak medium - well done, was definitely well done very grey and was I considered a cheap selection of steak similar to a buffet cooked steak with a lot of fat on it. After our mains we promptly decided despite ordered deserts we would cancel them and leave rather than waiting another 45 mins for them to come. On our bill we were still fully charged and no compensation. This experience ruined our evening, we thought being restaurant week we would have been impressed with the morning star, this is honestly the worse service I’ve ever seen from staff lacking basic incentive to no manager seeming to be in charge and customers receiving food despite arriving much after ourselves. I will most definitely be in touch with...

This was recommended to us by one person and had good reviews, but it was absolutely horrible. Maybe the first time online reviews have led me so wrong. The server was rude from the second she approached the table, and was annoyed with questions about the menu. When the drinks did make it to the table eventually, one of them was on ice when we ordered a shot of Jameson. I asked the server to fix the error when it was delivered. It took about 10 mins to get back to me and when it did, it was clear that the shot had sat in ice for several minutes and turned into a watered down ice cold Jameson. I thought for sure it was a mistake but the server was not returning any time soon so I brought it to the bartender to ask for him to switch it out for what I had actually ordered, a straight up shot, and he said “yeah if you pay for it.” Ok, I’ve worked in the industry for a lot of my life, I get it people are jerks, but this was me asking him to fix his mistake. I told him I am paying for it, the thing that I ordered and he said, “you ordered a shot, I put it on ice, then I took it off the ice and sent it back to you, so there’s your shot.” Asked for the manager who very reluctantly fixed the issue…what?? They were not serving the steak pie, the item we specifically came to try, which was disappointing but it happens. The roasts and fish and chips were pretty bad though. So ok, horrible service, bad food.. the bill comes and there’s a service charge. I ALWAYS tip, I think even on an off day, people in restaurants deserve the support, but this was an exception. The people I dined with said they were going to ask for it to be taken off the bill because of how horrible every second of our experience was. One went the manager and asked for it to be removed because of how rude the staff had been (different manager than earlier who had not been present for any of the earlier rudeness of bartender, server and lack of care from earlier manager), he asked if everything was ok and the instances of rudeness and were explained, and he agreed. Less than 10 seconds later he approached us and said that “no one was rude, no one was rude.” Ok, again, whatttt is happening here? We reassured him that they were awful to us, and he reluctantly agreed to remove the service charge… toilet overflowed and bathroom was disgusting. Other tables were having to get up/ shout to server to ask her for her attention, which she ignored. Probably the worst customer experience...

I don't normally write reviews because my experiences are never something amazing, but after visiting a few days ago, It has sat with me and I feel I need to let you know about how amazing of a staff member you have working for you.

The young man, I believe Owen/Eoin (Dyslexic and can't remember the spelling) Was absolutely Outstanding while dealing with me and my family. He greeted us with a smile, Respect and a Warmth that immediately made me and my Wife feel really Comfortable and Welcomed. This was our first time visiting the place and we where nervous about the food as I'm a picky eater.

So being annoying to Owen, I was asking him every question under the sun about the food, recommendations, drinks, whats the best seller, what people like? All that - And with a Charming Grace he answered my questions with accurate information and more! I Normally feel like a bother when it comes to asking about these things but he made me feel really comfortable about it.

Throughout the time I was there, he was So Pleasant to us, he treated us like we where old friends that hadn't seen each other in years, it was truely an incredible experience for my Family.

If Owen reads this, Thank you. Thank you so much for being such an incredible person, You made us feel like we mattered and that we were important. You're a Charming young lad, with a Good work life ahead of you! You will go far in that job with how you treat people and how welcomed you make people feel! You are a Great Example of how Customer Service should be!

For the Owner, Don't let that Young man go! He is a Shining Star in your business! Not sure if you offer Raises, But if so, He is the most Deserving of that! We will...