Undercroft — Restaurant in Bentonville

Honestly the WORST experience I have ever had in all of the states and countries I have ever visited! We had dinner reservations at the preachers son, it was phenomenal, excellent service, food, atmosphere, all the things. We heard music and asked our waiter where it was coming from. He told us there was a speakeasy in the basement that we should check out after dinner. We had the last reservation of the night so at the end of our 3 course meal, we asked how late they stayed open. We are from out of town and we're honestly just sightseeing. The waiter said they were still open. We went downstairs, entered the bar with horrible cheesy tiki decor, walked up to the bar and one of the members of our party asked for an expresso martini. The bartender was visibly annoyed and said they did not have coffee. I asked what their signature drink was with the tiki pop-up. The bartender stated, "well obviously a mai-tai it's a cocktail with rum and juices" I ignored his rude sarcasm and stated my husband does not prefer sweet drinks. My husband then said it's ok can you make a rye whiskey mule? The bartender retorted, " obviously we have rye whiskey, but it's last call, and honestly I don't feel comfortable serving you." Mind you myself and the other wife were not ordering anything my husband looked confused and the bartender continued, "I'm not serving you because you're inebriated" My husband was taken aback, and we said wow...ok... and walked away, the bartender then walks over to the other bar keeps and states "yea I kicked them out they are drunk"

First thing first, none of us were inebriated, secondly the bartender was rude from the start, third if you are going to committ to a theme like tiki bar at least get some interesting cocktails and decor. The level of disrespect was unreal.

I WOULD LITERALLY GIVE THIS BAR zero STARS if I could.

To add insult to injury, now you are straight lying! Any video would show four adults walk in a bar from upstairs. The two wives are set away from the bar as we were not ordering anything. The two husband's stepped up to the bar to ask the bartender about drinks. Again, he was visibly annoyed, rude, and then just shut them down. They stepped away from the bar asked us, the wives, if they said something wrong, we told them no, the bartender was a lazy jerk, and we walked out. So I am really curious what "story" your security camera told.

I worked in the restaurant industry in college and know full well about overserving. We were NEVER served a drink so for your bartender to make that assumption, we would have had to have slurred speech, smelled of alcohol, belligerent, stumbling, anything to indicate we had been drunk. No camera could show ANY of that because it never happened.

We could care less about getting a drink it was the fact that we are visitors bringing money to your town on vacation. Law abiding citizens. Responsible adults, and were treated poorly. Period. And if you were a sensible manager you would simply apologize and even possibly say it was the discretion of the bartender. But to come out and just LIE shows not only your character but the poor management of this bar.

Again ZERO STARS 1000 times!

‐------- Update I have read the MULTIPLE bad reviews and noticed a trend. My husband is black, and it was when he ordered that the bartender refused to serve him. Wow! It's 2024 get...

My first impression is darkness, a heavy but not unpleasant darkness that makes everything seem quieter than it is. Rather than hiding something, the gloom seems keen to expose it. What little light there is brings out of the shadows a dozen glinting textures: metallic threads in the upholstery, shimmering accents on the black wallpaper, a glitter-encrusted skull on display.

Narrow spotlights accent segments of the long, low room, creating personal oases so that each table becomes an intimate sanctuary. Long wallbenches accommodate large groups of after-hours drinkers as well as couples and trios; the squat portable stools making it easy for more to join in. In the middle of the room are curious chairs with arms as high as their backs, one facing another down the line like a row of intimate cubicles. Here is another attempt at privacy: the three tall sides of each chair blocking out everything but the person sitting directly across the candlelit table.

The bar is golden and glowing, the center of the action that manages never to overpower the darker corners. Cocktail waitresses float to and from it, friendly and faceless, serving the thirsty 5:30 crowd.

As I am notoriously indecisive even at familiar restaurants, it takes three visits from the waitress before I make up my mind. Then my drink of choice is not on tap, and I have to scramble. Thankfully, she has a recommendation on her sleeve, and I order in a breathless rush, happy to finally resolve the matter. When the pale pink confection arrives in its martini glass, I feel the halo effect of pure sophistication. The drink tastes bright and sparkly, and the fruit juices and orange liqueur play over my tongue.

I'm drinking in sounds with the liquor. Like the sharp top notes of an urban perfume, I hear the sharp sound of the exuberant bartender rattling a shaker above his head. The heart notes come with the music, warm and thrumming, easy to talk over but filling in silent gaps with ease. The background hum of conversation lays the base note, steady and comforting.

Time passes without a thought in this underground room. When I've paid my tab and poke my head out at the top of the stair, I'm surprised to find that it's already late evening, and the downtown is bustling with nightlife. Down below me, the congenial humming continues unbroken; it will carry on until the wee hours of Saturday morning. As for me, I've had my taste of elegant society, and it's time to get home...

The decorations for Christmas were absolutely fantastic and the presentation of the drinks were so cute. The food was okay. We had a reservation and had an incredibly awkward encounter regarding our table. There seemed to be an issue about our table from what we could tell when we told them about our reservation at check in, but he said he was going to check on our table. When he returned, he asked us to follow him, in which we proceeded to stand there for about three minutes while he spoke with the people sitting at our supposed table. He left, with the people still sitting at our table, as we stood there with no explanation as to what was going on. A minute later the people left and we were able to sit, but the host never checked back in to let us know what exactly had occurred or to make sure we ever got our table. It was incredibly awkward. Our waiter however was very nice, attentive, and did a great job. He did spill a water that got on the table, floor, my shoes, and pants. He apologized profusely, which it was totally fine - accidents happen - but we did eventually have to go the bathroom to get paper towels and wipe up the water ourselves. Overall, it was a fun place to start an evening of my birthday celebration. I would definitely recommend stopping by to see the decorations and a quick drink, but the initial table situation and lack of explanation or concern for the issue makes me think I don’t really have to go back...