The Whiskey Priest — Restaurant in Belleville

By far one of THE WORST experiences I've had at any bar ever!!!!

If I could give ZERO stars I would.

When my friends and I got there we immediately found an open spot at the bar to order drinks. After waiting for about 15 minutes, the bartender finally acknowledges us only to rudely tell us, "I'm making drinks here, go over there" while waiving her hand towards the other end of the bar. I completely understand how busy they were, that comes with the territory of going out on a saturday night, but the attitude wasn't necessary or deserved.

We ended up finding a spot in a corner of the otherside of the bar that was empty and decided to stay there for the night. The bartender there was much nicer, but she messed up our drink orders twice. I ended up opening a tab with my discover credit card, which she accepted without hesitation. We were ready to leave and I close my tab only for the bartender to NOW inform me that they don't accept discover and that she forgot. I asked to speak to the manager. He came over and was immediatley on defense. He could care less what I had to say, and never took accountability or aplogized. I only had my ID and my discover card on me. Due to fradulent activity and sketchy employees I do not use my debit card, let alone open a tab at bars. The manager absolutley escalted the situation by having the bouncers suround me, and at one point telling somone to call the police. All I was looking for was an apology and for him to take accountabilty for his employees mistake, which is what a real manager would've done. I've worked in the hospitality and customer service industry for over 12 years and can tell you that he handled the situation HORRIBLY. He chose to degrade, embarass, argue, and treat me like a criminal. IN NO WAY SHOULD HE WORK IN THE SERVICE INDUSTRY, LET ALONE BE A MANAGER!!!! At the end of the day, the bartender dropped the ball by not telling me they don't accept discover as soon as I handed her my card. Mind you, discover is accepted at 99% of businesses nationwide. This place probably just doesn't want to pay whatever fee discover charges them, but in this case an exception could've been made. The bill was going to be paid, and it was, but it's the principal of the whole thing. Perhaps some customer service and de-escalation training would do the staff some good, they are in the SERVICE industry.

If you enjoy being disrespected and dealing with incompetent staff then you'll love this place. If not,...

Jersey has disappointed me, over and over again. So here we find our selves at The Whiskey Priest. Nice name and this is where the positives kind of stop. Parking isn't the greatest because it's in a residential area. I am officially making it my business to only visit establishments in New Jersey that get a rating of no lower than 4.7. And even a 4.7 is a risk in New Jersey when you come from Brooklyn, New York. They have the nerve to have a list of things that you cannot wear at the front door. This place is like a sports bar. They must have taken that sign from a fancier spot. We walk in and the bartender greeted us and said to take a table. I don't think that was her job but it's appreciated. About 7 minutes later, a server approached our table. Bar stools and chairs were hard. We ordered different wings, chicken fingers, fries and a volcano nacho. The wings looked good and were seasoned well. The chicken fingers were horrible and was returned. As for the volcano nacho... Fake melted American cheese, with no flavor on the chips nor on the chicken. Only taste was the jalenpeno peppers. This was also returned. The fries are good. We were highly disappointed. Now there are places in New Jersey, that if you go on a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday, you may get a bad meal because their top chefs usually work Thursday thru Sunday. Like at Hook and Reel. Went on a Tuesday and wanted to throw my food away. Then went on a Friday and it was amazing. In the case of Hook and Reel, my first visit was on a Friday (great). 2nd visit on a Tuesday (Horrible!). 3rd visit, a Friday (phenomenal). Unfortunately I will never know if this is the case at this establishment because I will not be returning. Side note, this was my first visit and it was on a Tuesday. Just saying. If you do go, I would just stick to the wings and fries. Make sure it's a Friday or Saturday but I'm not sure if that will help the situation. For what we got, we overpaid. A very disappointing night. You live...

I recently hosted a gathering at The Whiskey Priest in Belleville, NJ, for a party of 25. Having enjoyed previous visits, I anticipated a seamless experience. However, several issues arose that were disappointing.

Reservation and Seating: Despite reserving for 25 guests, only 18 seats were prepared upon arrival. Staff mentioned this was their standard for large parties, a detail not communicated during booking. We had to occupy an additional table, with constant reminders about potential other reservations.

Service: After settling in, our waitress was notably absent. Water glasses remained unfilled, and appetizer plates cluttered the table throughout the evening. Additionally, the roasted potatoes, corn, and coleslaw that were supposed to accompany our ribs were never served. To top it off, I had to request our birthday cake be brought out by speaking to three different staff members—a server, the host, and the event coordinator—before it was finally presented.

Bar Experience: The bar appeared understaffed, leading to over 10-minute waits for drinks. A concerning incident involved a bartender dismissing a relative’s attempt to order, suggesting she go elsewhere. When addressed with the manager, the remedy was a round of green tea shots, which felt inadequate.

Age Policy: Midway through the evening, we were informed that my 18-year-old cousin had to leave by 8:30 PM due to a Belleville ordinance restricting minors in bars after that time. This policy wasn’t mentioned during booking, causing inconvenience for our guests traveling from afar. Upon reviewing local regulations, I couldn’t verify such a law.

While previous experiences at The Whiskey Priest were positive, this event was marred by communication lapses and subpar service. I hope management addresses these concerns to enhance future patron...