The National — Restaurant in Athens-Clarke County Unified Government

I’m only giving the National 2 stars instead of 1 because the food was yummy. I have lived in Athens for 4 years and have always heard rave reviews about the National. My boyfriend and I finally decided to try it for our date night dinner on Saturday. We made a reservation for 5 and showed up 10 minutes early. They sat us at a 6 top and did not even bother separating the tables even though we made a reservation in advance. When we asked for a different table they told us they were “all reserved up for the night” even though we had a reservation as well. We stuck with the 6 top table and it was so spacious and awkward for just the two of us.

We asked our server about his drink recommendations and he had absolutely no idea. He asked to see our menu - looked it over - said he hadn’t even tried 3/5 of them- and recommended the first one. Great. We ordered our drinks and mine was subpar- though my boyfriends was a pretty tasty twist on a classic Manhattan.

Next we ordered some appetizers- one of which our server came back to tell us they were out of even though they had just opened on Saturday night. Halfway through our apps I went to the bathroom. The bathroom was littered with paper towels all over the ground and had no toilet paper. Considering they had JUST opened 30 minutes before and this wasn’t after the dinner rush this is unacceptable.

We felt rushed to order entrees and when we finally did we sat staring at empty dirty appetizer plates for 20 minutes while we waited on our mains. Our server simply never cleared our table of old plates and glasses. We literally had to move our own plates and drinks out of the way so there was room to put down our main dinner plates. Our server never checked on our dinner and we actually had to end up hailing down another server to help with ordering desert and end of dinner drinks.

For a fine dining restaurant “The National” did NOT live up to expectations. I was so excited to try it- but I will not go back. I can get good food and terrible service as well as dirty and awkward...

I don’t usually leave reviews, but after my experience, I felt compelled to share. My daughter and I had planned a special evening for the holidays and decided to attend the UGA vs. GT football game. We wanted to make the night even more memorable with a nice dinner, so we chose The National based on its stellar ratings. We made reservations a week in advance for 5:15 pm. We arrived a bit early, around 4:55 pm, and noticed a large crowd outside the restaurant. Initially, we assumed it was the usual game day rush and that there would be a wait. I went inside to confirm our reservation and inform the staff we had arrived. The host was less than welcoming and was unexpectedly rude. She curtly told me, “Sir, everyone outside has a reservation. Please wait outside in order of arrival, like everyone else,” before adding a condescending “Thank youuuu” as if to dismiss me. After stepping back outside and waiting as instructed, we were eventually called in. However, the same hostess met us at the door with a blank stare—no greeting, no “how can I help you,” just a look that made us feel unwelcome. I had to remind her once again that we had a reservation. Finally seated, we noticed several tables for two were available, but she sat us right in the path of the busy kitchen traffic. Plates were constantly passing over our heads, which was distracting and uncomfortable. When the food arrived, things didn’t improve. I had the chicken, which was rubbery and slimy in texture, and my daughter’s salmon was undercooked, which we couldn’t eat. Neither of us could finish our meals. However, I do want to give credit to our server, who was incredibly gracious, attentive, and professional. She did everything she could to make our experience better, and we left her a generous tip for her efforts. Sadly, despite the great service from our server, the overall experience was disappointing, and the food didn’t live up to the hype. It’s unlikely we’ll return to The National, especially given the rude reception we received and the...

We chose the restaurant due to it being labeled Mediterranean food. The Menu had a chicken pork beef vegetable option for that night I picked the special a fish dish. I eat a lot of raw and rare fresh fish and love it.

I asked our waitress if the fish was fresh enough for the chef to cook rare?

She went and asked the chef who said it was. The dish had nice presentation how ever you could smell the fish before taking a bite. I could have forced the fish down but a 30 dollar dish it should be enjoyable. The waitress asked how everything was I told her it was ok. She asked if there was what the problem was. I told her the fish wasn't fresh. I had eaten two small bits of one slice of fish my wife who also eats fish often said she couldn't eat it. The waitress asked if there was anything else she could bring me I told her no. After my wife was done with the vegetable plate the waitress cleared the table asking if we would like dessert. I asked for the check. When the check arrived I was shocked to see the fish was still on the check.

I asked the waitress to box the fish up for me to take to my dogs if i was going to pay for it. She said it was no longer available the chef had eaten it.

After talking with the chef again the fish was removed from the bill. The waitress was now very rude.

I never spoke to the chef.

We regularly eat at and love finding nice restaurants and Suport small business owners rather than a chain. I have never had an experience this bad. We won't be back and hope those who go have much better...