First Place Cafe — Restaurant in Barrett Township

To the owner of First Place- I’m going to be referencing James Nicholson’s review on 1/5/25 since it is my husband, Chris, that you personally had the altercation with along with his service dog, Murphy. As a business owner, your reply to James Nicholson’s review seems a little bit petty. Your words: (oh, and two feet from where you were seated was a framed poster thanking us for the past ten years of quilts of valor that were presented to veterans here at the cafe, guess you missed that). Really? Is that necessary? Just so you’re aware, while supporting veterans is a commendable act, it does not give anyone the right to mistreat or disrespect a veteran. Essentially, good intentions towards a group do not excuse bad behavior towards an individual coming into your establishment. Upon walking through your door, you immediately ran over to us and stated “You can’t have a dog in here”. All of us explained it’s a service dog. You then asked us to wait outside, which we did not, while you ran to get your red binder and proceeded to question my husband’s injuries and the integrity of his service dog. First off, James is 100% correct with what he stated in his review. Had you engaged us in a more constructive manner instead of how you seemed to “come at us”, this review or should I say, rebuttal would not be necessary. You claimed you have a right as a business owner to ask what my husband’s disabilities are. Please note~Business owners and staff are only allowed to ask TWO questions regarding service dogs. They may ask 1) if the dog is a service animal that is required due to a disability and 2) what type of work or task the dog has been trained to do. The ADA PROHIBITS them from asking about a person's disability. Then you proceeded to ask if Murphy had paperwork or a license. My husband, obliging your question, bent down to get a Monroe County registered tag out of Murphys vest and you then replied “it’s ok, I don’t need to see it” and walked off. So you’re aware: The ADA does not require people with disabilities to provide businesses with documentation for their animal. You stated that you were following PA State Guidelines. Did you know a person with a disability could file a complaint with the Department of Justice, Civil Rights Section? I may add, we have not done so. Finally after seating our party of 6, Chris and I were conversing with a lovely couple who were thanking Chris for his service and you rudely came up to us 3x and demanded we put our order in which lead me to believe you couldn’t wait for us to leave your establishment. I have never been so applauded at the treatment we received, by you personally. After we finished and my husband went to pay, it was then that you offered an apology to him but not in front of all of us. I walked over when my husband was talking to you so I could explain just how unfairly you treated my veteran. In return, you quickly tried to defend your behavior. It has nothing to do with us if people come into your establishment with “fake” service dogs. A statement in which I feel you tried to convey to me to excuse the conduct you displayed towards us. After reading your full reply to James, I felt compelled to add my version of the encounter. Sadly, there’s nothing you can say that will justify your behavior towards us that day. Despite that incident, I was very pleased with my husband’s ability to handled the situation as calmly as he did. He’s a 28 year Combat Wounded Veteran with a legitimate Service dog and he didn’t deserve the injustice that morning. Much less, the rest of included in the table for 6. The right thing to do would have been to admit that you handled the situation poorly and apologized to our entire table on 1/5/25. We were all offended. 1/17/25 Clearly, As a business owner all you needed to do was offer a brief response to the reviews such as- “I sincerely apologize for my actions and will make a conscious effort to do better in the future.”...

My fiancé and I decided to stop by this restaurant after driving by, and while the food was decent for the price, the overall experience left much to be desired. When we arrived, the restaurant was fairly empty, except for one table of what appeared to be locals. We picked a table by the window in the additional seating area, as we wanted a nice view and the opportunity to relax and enjoy the scenery since we were new to the area.

However, soon after sitting down, the owner rushed in and stated that we must move to a two-top table in the corner, just a foot away from the stairs. While I understand that seating arrangements might need to be adjusted when the restaurant is busy, it had been a quiet morning with only the one other group in the other seating area.

Despite our discomfort, we complied and moved to the other table. My fiancé and I ordered simple meals, and our entire experience lasted about 30 minutes. Throughout that time, we were the only ones in the extra seating area, and all the tables, including the one we had originally chosen, remained empty. However, the owner continued to come into the area and seemed to rush us, giving only short replies. What should have been a relaxing breakfast enjoying homemade food quickly turned into an anxiety-inducing experience, where we felt as though we weren’t welcome.

I can understand if the restaurant had been busier—but the way it was handled felt cold. It seemed as though the restaurant catered more to locals rather than tourists and left much to be desired. Although the food was decent, I had hoped to have more of a welcoming and...

I went to First Place Cafe on01/05/2025 with a party of six. One of the members of my party had a valid Service Dog. We were confronted rudely by the owner who asked us to leave and wait outside until he checked if Service Dogs were allowed. We informed the owner that he was in violation of the Americans With Disabilities Act and that the owner of the dog was a COMBAT WOUNDED VETERAN. The cafe owner actually asked what disability my friend had. THIS IS ALSO IN VIOLATION OF THE A.D.A RULES. After a few minutes the owner finally allowed us to be seated. The owner apologized to my friend before we left but it was too little to late as far as our group was concerned. We will never set foot in First Place Cafe ever again. How disrespectful to Veterans can you be. You are a disgrace to every Veteran and their family that sacrificed so much for this country. As a business owner you should know Federal Law as it pertains to your establishment. I will make it a point to relay this story to every Veteran I know, for you are not deserving of their...