Pete's Grille — Restaurant in Baltimore

The end of an era at Pete’s. We are 3 hardworking neighborhood people who (along with our family and friends) will never go there again. Pete’s used to be our favorite place to eat in Baltimore, a great place to relax at the week’s end every Saturday morning after the farmer’s market. Over almost twenty years, we’ve seen owners come and go, and each time it’s been a pretty smooth transition, but under this new management and new rules – the main one being “to hell with the customer; the dollar is king; the seating chart preempts common sense” – Pete’s is a huge disappointment. Over the years, we became familiar with the staff; they knew who we were and got to know what we ordered (We even supported the waitress Debbie when she and her sister left Pete’s and opened a nearby restaurant, Two Sisters Grille I believe it was, frequently bringing our family and out of town guests there to eat).

On their busiest days, Pete’s always made an effort to make sure the three of us were seated as soon as the seats opened up (or were very close to opening up, in which case they would hold off seating two people who came in after us if it seemed that one of those seats could be added to two other seats opening up and would allow the three of us to sit down). We knew seating at the counter could be tricky and that we would sometimes have to wait a while, but we also knew the waitresses were aware of who was finishing up and that they were always trying to find a way to get us seated. Because of this, we didn’t mind the wait. We, on the other hand, always made sure we tipped the waitresses well, gave extra tips on birthdays and holidays, and tried to be aware of our time at the counter and others waiting to sit down. Today, they were so intent on following the rules that no effort was made to see that we were seated. Finally, after quite a wait, when two seats opened up, two of us sat down, and when the two seats next to us opened up, where our 3rd person could sit down, they called “party of two,” and refused to let our friend sit down . . . even, I would add, when the people they called to sit down said they would wait because we were there first and had been waiting so long. We’ve seen people walk out before, but they were usually folks who didn’t understand how the seating worked at Pete’s. Today, we walked out because we do understand, and couldn't understand the disrespect that was shown to us.

Well, things change, but karma, as they say, is a “b*h.” The reality is that there are more things to life than the dollar, loyalty being one of them. What used to be a good thing at Pete’s has gotten lost, but that’s on them. Management should watch how it deals with customers because it certainly doesn’t hurt us in any way. There are so many good places to eat in the city, we would never spend another dollar at a place that doesn’t respect its customers. Today we went over to One World (where we often go for dinner) and the breakfast and service was wonderful. Pete’s...

I have been coming to Pete's Grill on and off for at least 20 years. I love the food but not so much the service. I have in the past, received less than gracious customer service before but didn't allow one bad experience to stop me from coming back. I just figured maybe the lady had a bad day... But fast forward to today. I went there this morning and my main issue is the Carryout out line... Or the lack of one, that is. There is No system in place to the Carryout process. They have you to bunch up super close to strangers in a corner which is very uncomfortable. But Okay, it's small so you deal with it. I get that part. Next, they have you reaching over people while their eating their meals, to pay for your order and then once again, to get your food because they have people seated right in front of the cash register. How Brilliant? I would be Very dissatisfied if I was seated there eating. Then worse of all, when it's time to pay... and you go to hand over your bank card? That's when they drop the bomb that they Only accept cash and that you have to go across the street somewhere to the ATM if your not carrying cash. So, after All that. I just walked out and left the girl standing there and left the food and all. That's just wrong. I'm not normally one to write a bad review or to even complain but that is just too much. And for them to purposely wait until your food is done to tell you Cash Only because they know you'll probably go somewhere else if you have to leave to go get cash... Well that did it for...

This is a real classic american "working man's" type of breakfast spot. You come here not to live in luxury but to live in the humility of everyday beauty. You come here because it's the day to day spot that you live life at; and where life is, culture is built. The food is straightforward, down home, American diner style cooking. It's all cooked in front of your face. These are the flavors you grew up with, except they don't get the eggshell in your omelet like your mom did at 5am when she's rushing to her job and has to get you to school. It's the type of food that everyone knows how to make but can't get right. It's the type of breakfast your first boyfriend or girlfriend TRIED to make, but they accidentally broke the yolk, so you ate overcooked scrambled eggs instead. But these guys aren't like your first love. They've perfected the American breakfast that you'd get from your lifelong love. This is something for your soul, truly. The prices are extremely fair, which adds to why you trust this spot for your daily breakfast. They want to feed you good food without running your tab up. This place is not for the pretentious foodie but for the everyday human. I'm probably not saying enough. This spot is really special for your heart and you just have...