Harolds Chicken & Ice Bar - Charlotte — Restaurant in Charlotte

I’m originally from Chicago and have eaten my share of Harold’s Chicken. Since being in Charlotte I’ve frequented this location on my lunch break and have had a great experience either Mia. Tonight after work, me and my coworkers went to have food and a drink. When we walked in, one of my colleagues stated that she had a bad experience with the bartender, Aynessa, previously. I didn’t really hear her say that because I would have left. However, we stayed. She pretty much threw menus in front of us and never really said anything. She never returned to ask if we were ready to order. She brought us waters and quickly walked away. After about 10 minutes, one of my colleagues said, “we’re ready.” She didn’t respond and then another colleague said, “we’re ready” and she just looked at her. My colleague didn’t respond because she thought she was in the middle of something and then Aynessa says, “what you want” with a nasty disposition. We order and still with a nasty disposition she grabs up the menus and walks off. I ask the hostess if the manager was available and she says she’s in the back. She asks if I want to speak to the manager and I said later, because I wanted to wait until my food came out. As we’re waiting for our food and drinking our drinks, I notice that Aynessa is smiling and talking with other customers around the bar. When she brings our food, she’s scowling again. I say, “hey you having a bad night?” To which she responds, “why?” I say, “it appears as though you’re having a bad night.” She states, “I’m not so stop making assumptions,” in a nasty tone and walks away. At this point, I ask the hostess for the manager. The manager finally comes over and I explain all that’s happened and state that she’s been rude to us since we’ve sat down. The manager says she will talk to her because that’s not her typical behavior. I share with the manager again that this is my first encounter with her so I don’t know her baseline but this is our experience. She states that she will talk to her to see what the problem is. My colleague then shares with the manager that she’s experienced Aynessa before and her experience was exactly the same. I told the manager that I don’t want her service at this point because I don’t appreciate how we’re being treated. The manager the tends to us for a while and after she finishes, Aynessa is still nasty but begins to ask if we’re “ok” or need anything. We order another round of drinks and she brings them. When we finish up and ask for our checks, she brings them. There’s an issue with a gift card and she’s nasty about that. We pay the bill and move on. I’ll be honest. I did not leave a tip because I did not appreciate the experience and how we were disregarded and disrespected by Aynessa. I did leave a message on the signed receipt next to the $0 for the tip. It’s clear that she has an issue, and I’m not sure what it is but if people are spending money and coming into this establishment, they deserve to be treated with respect. Aynessa is disrespectful and nasty and if she’s there, I will turn around and walk out. And let me be clear, I’ve been to hole in the wall Harold’s, actually in Chicago and have had a better experience than this one. Aynessa has to do better or find something else to do. Also the food was cold. It wasn’t crowded and we’ve never had issues with Mia. Let me also add that as we were leaving out and going to our cars and discussing, two other customers (both women) heard us talking and said they agreed and thought it was just their experience. They both stated that Aynessa had a...

I’ve heard of Harold’s but never got the chance to try them out. A CLT location gave that opportunity and my experience went just like this:

11:40 AM - Tried to make an online order but the system said that my items were unavailable until 1/7/2024 at a little after noon. Obviously that wasn’t true because the business had just opened 40 minutes prior to my order. I had read in another review that someone experienced the same thing but I figured that the issue would have been resolved. I then tried to call to place an order but the mailbox was full.

11:48 AM - Arrived to an empty place (with the exception of one person sitting at the bar) and loud music. My partner went later at night when they first opened and said that the music was loud then too.

I sit at the bar and wait a few but when no one came to service me, I walked to the back to look for someone. The employees were doing what they do (rolling silverware) in the back end of the restaurant. One of the women came to help me with my order at the front where I ordered what is pictured. I paid and she said my order would take about 15 minutes and that was that. I went to sit back at the bar. This time a guy was behind the bar and he asked if I needed to place an order or wanted a drink. I responded no to each question and he asked me to sit in another area since I wasn’t getting a drink. That’s understandable but I’ve never been asked to leave the bar if I wasn’t drinking at any other establishment and the guy at the other end of the bar didn’t have a drink so I’m not sure of the reasoning. Not a big deal.

As I waited for my order, I kept hearing the online order system go off. I’m not sure where the disconnect is for some when trying to order online but apparently it can be done. My order probably took less than 10 minutes and was just as I requested. No coleslaw and sauces on the side. My food remained hot throughout the five minute drive home. The chicken had a good texture and although it was fried on the harder side, it wasn’t overcooked. The tots weren’t anything special but the sauces were what I had difficulty with deciding if I liked or not. The lighter option was sweet and the most likable. The mild sauce (Mambo adjacent) was thick, bland and you can tell that it’s ketchup based. The hot option has potential but reminded me of Frank’s Red Hot and didn’t even bring out a drop of sweat for me. I love hot sauces so I was disappointed.

Overall, the food isn’t bad at all and the portion size was good enough for me. I finished the wings but the SP tots filled me up. Harold’s CLT wouldn’t be my first choice when I want chicken and perhaps the experience is different later in the business day but I probably won’t ever experience it. Customer service was nonexistent to say that they had barely opened for the day and that makes the experience...

A friend of mine who recently moved to charlotte wanted to try the catfish that I rave about from this establishment. We arrived about 8:30 pm and were seated immediately( it was a few patrons at the bar and a few seated at the tables). Whenever a friend from out of town visits I take them here for the catfish. Two weeks prior I was here with a friend and we ordered Run punches that taste just like off brand fruit punch. We made our waiter aware and there was no resolve. Back to Wednesday night, the same waiter seated us and proceeded to take our order. I really didn’t want to drink but I wanted a light buzz. I ordered a rum punch and he responded “are you sure” we talked about the prior experience and I said I’ll try once again. My friend ordered a PEAR margarita. Our food arrived before the drinks and we began to eat. Five minutes later our drinks arrived. The waiter stood patiently while I tried the “rum punch aka fruit juice” absolutely not one drop of alcohol was in the drink. The waiter said the managers are particular about swapping out drinks. I said well let her come over and I can speak to her directly. A few minutes later a black women who identified as the manager comes to our tables sits on my right side and states” it’s only a 5 dollar drink”. I mean if it’s free there should be alcohol detected somewhere!!! She then tell the waiter to get her a straw and she takes a sip( unbelievable). She states it is kinda citrusy, and gives the excuse that maybe it was the end of the pineapple juice and that’s why it had that taste. Instead of simply apologizing and offering another option she TOLD me she would let the bartender make it over. A five dollar drink requires all this??? She come back with the drink that clearly was not made over but instead shaken so much that the foam was half the drink. I never touched that remade fruit juice and was definitely disappointed in the managers response. To add insult to injury my friend ordered a PEAR margarita. She took one sip and her tongue was tingling she asked the manger was there pineapple juice in the pear margarita. The manager returned with a yes, there is pineapple juice in the pear margarita. My friend is allergic to pineapple the manager offered to swap the drink for another option. My friend choose a regular/plain flavor to be dafe. The drink that came back was strawberry. Ultimately we both paid for drinks that were untouched. Attention to detail is very important!!!! Supporting black establishments seem to result in zero customer service. I will not be patronizing Harold’s...