Parma Tavern — Restaurant in Buford

Editing my old review due to recent occurrences that have deeply affected my opinion of this place. It went from my favorite restaurant in town to me not even wanting to eat there again in one night. As I arrived, I told the hostess I had a party of 4. I did not include a 2 month old baby because we always sit at a booth and hold him. After 25-30 mins, we finally get the text that our table is ready, only to discover this ridiculous new rule that 5 people are not allowed to sit a booth. It’s literally my wife and I, with 3 very small children, one of which is the 2 month old newborn that I mentioned previously. They didn’t care in the slightest. The hostess and the newer manager that was hired this summer just kept repeating that it was a new rule. Their absurd resolution to the issue was to add us back to the end of the waiting list to wait ANOTHER 30 mins on a table. Despite my frustration, I told them I’d wait and I escorted my family back to our vehicle where we had been waiting since it’s cold outside and they isn’t much room inside. After about 30 more mins of waiting and checking the app to just see that “0” people were in front of me for a while, I went in. As soon as I came in the hostess gave me a funny look and ran back to where the manager was standing. They kept looking at me and then at one of the tables at the back. I quickly realized they never put me back on the waiting list since I went back to my car, they assumed I left. After waiting another 5 mins or so, they sat us in the back that no one had been sitting at for a while. The absolutely horrible customer service from this manager was astounding. He didn’t care about any of it in the slightest. After being a GM for a restaurant in the past, I wonder how people like that even have jobs in this industry. I will say, Corben was a redeeming factor. He was our waiter and was exceptional through out the night. He is the only reason I’m not leaving a 1 star review as even the food that I normally love, was burned. He reminded me of the things I loved about Parma tavern of the past.

I expected the manager to at least try to make things right, but he didn’t even do much as acknowledge the issue. He kept walking by looked at me, but never said a word. I am extremely disappointed and will not return for a while, especially while he is there.

Old 5 star review left over a year ago:

I brought my wife and kids here. Had the Parmesan crusted chicken and it was amazing. My wife and son shared a cheese pizza and although they liked their pizza, they found themselves reaching on to my plate. AJ was my server and did a phenomenal job. He stayed busy but constantly returned and made sure we never had to ask for anything. A pleasant experience, will...

My husband and I chose to eat at Parma Tavern for the first time for our anniversary dinner. We walked in early on a Saturday evening and we were sat right away in a booth with high sides for privacy. The waiter was nice and very eager and willing to help us with the menu. I chose to start the meal with a Blackberry Margarita (one of the best cocktails I have ordered in a long time) and we shared the Calamari. The Calamari tasted great and was seasoned well. I noticed online that people complained about the amount of calamari for the price and I do admit in comparison to other places that sell fried calamari the serving was a little smaller. I definitely wouldn't recommend to share with more than two people. However, the flavor was on point and made up for the slightly lighter portion. Most of the pieces we had were cooked perfectly...only a few of the smaller pieces were kinda chewy. They had the banana pepper pieces coated and fried as well. This was okay with me but my husband said he would have preferred to be able to tell which he was grabbing to eat. And the two dipping sauces were delicious as well. My husband had the Meatatarian pizza and he said he enjoyed it. And I had the Magic Mushroom pizza. I really enjoyed the buttery flavor and the crust had a nice crispiness to it. I also had the Chicken Parm. sandwich and I subbed their fried brussel sprouts as my side instead of fries for a upcharge. The foccacia was soft and fresh and the Chicken Parm was delicious with the mixture of pesto and marinara, it was super tasty. Only slightly critical feedback would be that the sandwich would have been better if the bread had been toasted so that it didn't get too soft as it soaked up the sauces. And if they parboiled the brussels before frying they wouldn't be slightly tough at the core on the bigger pieces (and it fries quicker so there's a tip for them). But the flavors were all on point with the sweetness of the balsamic glaze on the brussels that balances the slight bitterness of the charred leaves. One of my fav ways to eat them. The service was quick and all the food came out in a timely manner and everything was hot. It was nice to see other waiters stepping in to help each other by removing plates and such. (I was in restaurant management (BOH) for several years and this made me smile.) Over all, I really enjoyed my experience and food at Parma Tavern and we will definitely come back for...

Me and the Wife drive up from Duluth when we can to Enjoy the Calamari, Garlic Fries, and Wings and normally have a Decent experience except for 2 times, and this last visit today was the worse.

This particular experience today 5/13/2023 around close to 4:00pm.

We sat outside, and it took someone forever to check on us

We ordered Wings and I asked for extra Sauce due to Wings having little Sauce, and Calamari, Truffle Fries, Margarita, and Sweet Tea.

After our Food was ordered it took awhile to receive which I understood because due to customer volume.

When Food finally came, we received the Wings, Calamari, Margarita, and Sweet Tea, and didn't receive the Truffle Fries UNTIL 25-30 minutes after we received our Food, and the Calamari was overcooked!!

She apologized and said she's going to get the Fries, and it still took another 10 minutes after that to get them. So a total of almost 30 minutes!! Also I did not receive the extra Wing Sauce I asked for, which was finally brought out.. Every time she went back to get something we didn't receive it took awhile to receive it.

She was professional, and courteous, but a bit Condescending stating if she forgot, she would had told us. Smh

When we initially ordered the food I noticed she didn't write it down, and did our order by memory and maybe perhaps that's why the extra wing Sauce and the Truffle Fries came out alot later. After we left and walked to car in back, I turned around to go back inside to use restroom not even a minute later and noticed her and another young lady were immediately clearing off our Table and it look like she was griping to the other young lady. Not sure if it was about us or not. I hope not because we were not difficult customers at all, and we made several trips to Parma for 2 years. I wish she was as quick and attentive while serving us, as quick as she cleaned that table not even a minute after we left.

To sum it up, I feel certain members or member of your Staff needs to learn diversity and race relations because we noticed she was more attentive to others who shared her ethnicity.

When you go out to eat and spend your hard earned money at an establishment, you expect to get good service and to get treated fairly!!!

Again I drove way from Duluth to get...