The Bodega Deli — Restaurant in Charlotte

I can't think of a worse first time experience. I walk in excited to try a new and local place. There is one customer eating at one table and children of an employee at another. There are no other customers so I walk up to the cashier and order two sandwiches and an empanada to go. I'm given my receipt with my order number.

I watch as one person who ordered before me gets their order then another person who called their order in gets their order. No big deal. I start to wait. A couple walks in, orders empanadas, receives their empanadas and walks out. At this point it had been, it had been 15 minutes with ZERO customers in the place. Literally just me standing there.

Another person walks in, asks me if I'm in line, I say nope I'm just waiting on my order that's taking a while. He proceeds to stand and wait for someone to take his order. I still wait and I watch an employee from the kitchen leave, go next door, and come back with food. I'm still waiting. The employee behind the register is just laughing and talking with his employees all while I'm waiting, plus another person waiting to order!

The entire time I was in his line of sight. The employee saw me waiting and never asked me what my order was or if he could help me. Finally, I walk up to the register with my ticket and he asks what's your order number? I tell him my order number and he remarks oh it's been up here the whole time! I was pretty ticked off at this point. I didn't have earbuds in, I watched him call multiple order numbers but for whatever reason he decided not to call mine so I know he never called my order number. He just sat there and watched me wait plus another customer who was waiting to order. Again, there were no other customers in the place! Literally me and another customer waiting to be helped while this employee did nothing. I let him know it was my first time there and it is definitely my last. Pay attention to...

I only leave reviews if it’s REALLY GOOD or REALLY BAD and this place is REALLY GOOD. My husband and I just found this place (it’s a hidden gem) and we’ve been having lunch here everyday for a week (I know smh that’s really bad but it’s so good). The club sandwich?!!? maaannnnnnnnn quit playing! It’s so good sis! And my husband gets the double cheese burger plain (just meat and cheese) and loves it lol. The chicken empanadas are really good too and the chicken Philly (I get mine plain with just meat cheese and Mayo. You might need extra meat if u get it plain tho. Thank me later girl). Oh and there’s this little strawberry shortcake thing they sell, it’s a really simple dessert but it’s SO GOOD). The chicken wings are decent but could be great if they fry them hard or pull the fat/skin off. They’re not fried hard enough so they’re that texture we don’t like (fatty like jellowy skin) but everything else I’ve tried is top tier!!!! Okay girl, I’m full so I have to go but,...

Let me start off by saying that the staff is very friendly and warm with their customers. Maybe I came on an off day but I really wasn’t impressed with what I ordered. It was very very dry (the meat, the fries, the bread), and everything was severely under seasoned. I don’t add a lot of salt to my cooking, so for me to say that I feel like most others would agree with how under seasoned MY order of food was. They may season other orders better, but my order wasn’t that great. They do serve Boar’s Head deli meats, which I should’ve gotten, but based on what I was served I wouldn’t come back. Maybe you’ll get a better order if you try them. Also, I did order my food and started eating within 5min of it being prepared, so it wasn’t sitting...