TJ's Food & Spirits — Restaurant in Ashland

Insanely disappointing experience here. My friend and I (both young women) went the other night after being recommended the place by some of our own regulars. We are both bartenders and we were told all about a good vibe and strong drinks. Sadly, we definitely were not on the receiving end of said hospitality. After sitting at the bar, we were almost immediately confronted by a female bartender, who instead of saying hello or asking for a drink order or even IDs, proceeded to tell us to sit up and move our chairs away from the woman sitting on the corner beside us since we were "crowding her" and "on top of her". We were startled by this greeting but obliged. We later apologized to the other patron but she insisted she'd had more than enough space to begin with and even felt insulted that the bartender was implying she might need more room as a 'bigger woman' despite no one asking for it. We were then openly ignored for ten minutes (we set a timer after the first six) until a male bartender came over to take care of us, despite the first bartender still being at the bar and chatting away with others. They'd also timed our appetizer to come out the same time as our well-done steak tips for take-out, which we found odd since we'd ordered the app to eat while we waited for the take-out! It could have easily been played off as a ploy to get us to buy more drinks if it hadn't been for the additional ten minutes our empty cups sat on the bar! The food left little to be desired, but the disappointing greeting at the bar definitely added to the sour taste in our mouths. The female bartender was handed our takeout food bag by a server, to which she proceeded to look at the contents and then leave on the service bar, even though my friend tried saying "Excuse me, I think that's my food" three different times as the bartender walked past. I told my friend to not bother trying since this woman was very obviously hearing her and ignoring to prove a point. We only got two rounds of drinks total and while they were okay, we noticed a considerable difference in pours between our drinks and the regulars. The mudslides were not holier than thou as expected, but again, the booze pour difference between ours and others was laughable. As bartenders, my friend and I tend to give the benefit of the doubt in terms of service, but we also know the importance of basic hospitality. We didn't mention our occupations or voice complaints because you shouldn't have to in order to be given decent service. We were both genuinely confused by the judgement and blatant rudeness. We debated on not leaving a tip but figured they pooled tips and the one who DID service us would get stiffed too. Thank God for the male bartender or else I doubt we would have gotten any service besides a dirty look and a hissy comment from the other one under her breath, as she was also doing little to quiet her profanities or hide her disdain about the night, her coworkers, and everything in between. While we will not dissuade others from visiting, we personally will not...

One of the worst experiences I’ve ever had. From the moment we walked in, the service was appalling. The waitress didn’t greet us at the door, and when we asked where to go, she rudely told us to sit down. Throughout our meal, she continued to be extremely rude and dismissive. For example, when I asked about the soup of the day, she snapped at me to look at the front of the menu, saying “it’s the front” in a condescending tone telling me to not undo the papers (there was a front paper, paper clipped to the front of the menu) .

When I inquired if they had Coke Zero, she responded with an unnecessarily rude “no”. It was clear that she had no interest in providing decent customer service. My husband and I couldn’t help but feel that her behavior was racially motivated, as she seemed particularly hostile towards us and we aren’t white.

The worst part was when she publicly called us out in front of other patrons for leaving a 10% tip. When I explained it was because of the terrible service, she told us to never return. While the food was actually good, the dreadful service completely ruined the experience. Needless to say, we won’t be coming back.

Ive worked in the customer service industry for quite some some time now to know that the least you gotta do is be nice to your customers…

Restaurants are not only about the food but the environment itself plays a great part of whether or not customers will return. This was a very unpleasant experience and I hope this restaurant reviews this and speaks to how their staff behaves towards all customers regarding of...

Dine in tavern fare at affordable competitive prices for both food and wide variety of “cocktails”. Not your average tavern food. Example, rack of lamb in Specials tonight, along with their usual hand made burgers with their TJ’s inspired twists. Physical space is 2 halves generally with 4 quarters specifically. The “old half” and the “new half”. The quarters: the original cafeteria style older, quieter tables (older folks ( like me ) and families) then the updated sports bar room side ( younger adults and “blue collar” (again like me) a rear bar in the added room with large windows, and forth, the outside porch, weather permitting. TJ’s notable for being here many decades, supporting community events with food. It’s clear they own the property outright and therefore the food is affordable - no mortgage to pass on to the customer (my own perspective, true or not).

TJ’s has a steady “fan base” and doesn’t need to tell the world it’s a great local place to go whenever you...