American Barrel — Restaurant in Columbia

We had a disappointing and discriminatory experience at this establishment on July 4th. My husband — a two-time combat veteran — was denied entry with his identified service dog. I, too, am a veteran, and both of us are disabled.

Despite the dog laying on my husbands feet, wearing a vest clearly marked “service animal,” the server chose to ignore it entirely. Moments later, the manager, Nathen, confronted my husband by Googling ADA laws on his phone and holding the screen up to his face, stating, “I’m allowed to ask these questions,” before launching into an interrogation.

While the ADA does permit limited questioning — specifically: Is the dog a service animal required because of a disability? What work or task has the dog been trained to perform?— the manager crossed the line by asking about the nature of my husband’s disability, which is a direct violation of federal law.

The overall tone of the encounter was dismissive and confrontational, and it left my brother-in-law so uncomfortable that we chose to leave rather than subject ourselves to further humiliation. They did not even want to serve him a drink if he would go outside. The behavior we experienced was not only disrespectful — it was discriminatory and legally problematic.

As disabled veterans, we expect basic dignity and legal compliance when accessing public spaces. This fell far short. Rest assured, we are taking appropriate steps to report this incident through the proper ADA and state channels.

Veterans and individuals with disabilities deserve better. So does the community that...

Went for lunch. But, there is really no lunch per se. Just snacks. No prices on menu. No cocktail recipes on the menu; just a list of the liquors available. How am I supposed to order a drink? Make my own up? Ridiculous! We were the only table in the place, after struggling to decide what cocktail to order, it took the bartender/waiter over 40 minutes to make three drinks. He was at the bar measuring like he was in science class. He couldn’t suggest any cocktails to actually order, so we just had cosmos and a gin drink.

Someone else came in and sat down and got pissed waiting to order while bartender was making our drinks, asked if he could order and was told it would be awhile. The guy left.

We ordered a butter board and the tapas dips. They come with bread. We asked for more bread snd were charged $4 for a 1/4 loaf.

The drinks were $15 each with a $6 charge for “cosmo” flavor. So, $36 for 2 drinks! This isn’t downtown Nashville or NYC to justify the price. Drinks weren’t even served in a proper martini glass; they used bell shaped champagne glasses.

The check came and it was cryptic. Didn’t list the taxes. Just 15% liquor tax and 9.75% state tax, not the actual amount.

The front door is broken and doesn’t close, so we had to get up and close it. They had workmen coming and going through the dining area. They should have been going in by the back of restaurant.

Overall, the space is beautiful and new. But, this concept left me feeling ripped off and angry. Service is extremely slow, it took over 2 hours for the...

I waited until I visited this spot a couple times before making this review because the first time was lackluster. Same for the follow up visit, which is a bummer because the idea was right, the execution was lacking. The drinks aren’t consistent (you can order the same drink and get a completely different presentation or flavor), and 2 of the three drinks didn’t match the description in the menu. My first clue should’ve been the fact that this “cocktail cafe” doesn’t know the drink is called an “old fashioned” and not “old fashion.” It’s on the menu and website that way, and when I mentioned it casually, the bartender didn’t know what I was talking about. The wife’s drinks were creative but also inconsistent.

The vibe is chill, I liked it. The staff and patrons were all nice, also a plus! They don’t a have a lot of food offerings but the ones we tried were good. It’s just unfortunate that they can’t lock in their bourbon drinks, because this place would be a good hang for my...