Dave & Buster's Denver — Restaurant in Denver

Disclaimer: I'm not an individual who posts only negative reviews. In fact, I often try to hype up places that are worthy of being advertised via word of mouth or here on this platform.

BLUF: If any health organization were to visit here, i have no doubts they'd be heavily fined, if not shut down within a matter of weeks.

That being said, my idea of a late Christmas present/surprise trip here (I figured 1/2 price game night was easier on the budget for me too) was the absolute worst experience I've ever had at a Dave and Buster's....starting with the most obvious glaring lack of respect or cleanliness of their restrooms. Upon entry i had entered the arcade restrooms only to find out that half of the toilets were inoperable/doors taped shut with blue tape. The one I tried using was similar to using a bidet overseas with water jets involuntarily flushing underneath me as I proceeded to try using the bathroom....absolutely unnecessary and disgusting. There was 1 toilet in particular that was overflowing with soiled toilet tissue all over it. Tissue scattered about all over the floor was the least of my worries since I understand it's difficult to police people 100% of the time. Working toilets on the other hand and warm running water to wash hands afterwards are MINIMAL essentials every place needs.

Upon bringing this to the attention of the manager, she used the fact that most of her staff being women as the reason why they were caught unaware by my concerns. She then called a young associate (didn't look older than about 18) over to "take care of cleaning the restrooms" as if he were some sort of miracle worker, janitor, or plumber capable of repairing toilets...unfair to this lone person in my opinion when this looked like a job for a whole crew of professional deep cleaners & handypeople to restore things back to working order

Fast forward to when we actually tried enjoying the arcade despite nearly leaving right away after these revelations, not only did the place stink like the smell of old dirty carpets, only about half the games were operable, that is the games that weren't already covered in left behind trash from customers...absolutely disgusting once again

Such a shame for this place, being one of few entertainment venues in denver to be this poorly mismanaged. I definitely and unfortunately won't be going back to this location and I'll be forewarning anyone with common sense to steer clear of here until they can get someone capable of overhauling things here.

For this being a Wednesday evening and this place to be a ghosttown like feel truly illustrated their lack of patronage for their customers. I get it if things are super busy and employees just didn't have time to get to cleaning their facilities but to see this deplorable condition made me rethink my decision to invest in them at all going forward. In such a place where people pay hundreds just to be entertained, they have some kind of nerve providing...

WORST RESTAURANT EXPERIENCE I’VE EVER HAD. I show up at 2pm on Sunday for a small get together for my nephews birthday, walked in to a girl playing on her phone ignoring us. I asked her where she would like us to sit- she replied ‘it’s open seating’ and went back to playing her games. My party walked to an area that we thought was open because of ‘open seating’ and sat down waiting to place an order for drinks. Nobody came for 15 mins, they just kept walking by not saying a word. I figure ok, they are busy, no problem, I’ll go ask if we can get someone to help. The waitress I found said we were in the wrong section and the next dining area is ‘open seating’. This happened 3 times of being told where to sit because ‘open seating’ wasn’t really open and you had to be put on a list to sit down. After speaking with the manager, he sat us down and got a server to take care of us. Great right? You figure after speaking with the manager about the organization in the restaurant, they would get their ducks in order, but no. Sadly he brought over the WORST server possible. We initially thought the hiccup at the beginning was just bad luck, timing, whatever you call it, but things kept getting worse. He took our drink order and told us he had been serving for years but that it was his 2nd day at D&B and he would be right back. This guy was picking his ears at the server station, walking around with a drink in his hand for him and totally forgot about our drink order or that he even stopped by our table. We sat there for another 30 mins waiting for our simple drink order so instead of flipping out (he said it was his second day, Ive been there and so I was patient- plus I didnt want my food to be tampered with) I went up to him and asked if we could get our drinks and he acted like he never saw us before and didn’t remember any of the interaction we had 30 mins prior when he initially took our order. This server was high on some kind of drugs so finally after sitting around waiting for over an hour I had enough. I normally would have left at the first sign of trouble but it was a birthday party for my nephew and I had family in town that I told this was a great place to take him, so we tried to make it work. We ended up speaking with another manager about the problem and they offered no solution or took any responsibility, he even said the server we had had been there for a few months and that he was in fact not a new employee. He acted like I was throwing a fit for nothing. This place needs some serious staff changes and better training with competent servers...

My family and I went to the Denver location for Christmas. While there, my partner (25, female) went to the bar to order a drink, and food for my brother (16). The bartender (male, approx. 6’1, white, bald, 40s) asked for her ID, and she provided a valid government-issued foreign passport. Without her permission, he took the passport to the back. When he returned, he claimed he cannot use this ID and began questioning her immigration status. I joined them at the bar by this point, and asked why her legal status was relevant when her date of birth and photo were clearly on the passport. He denied her service and then refused to serve me as well. I walked away implying his behavior was discriminatory. Shortly after, two managers (male and female) confronted us and forced us to leave under threat of contacting the police if we didn’t. They claimed it was due to my behavior with the bartender. I explained the situation and asked why her valid ID wasn’t accepted. They cited policy but refused to show it and did not see the ID either.

I explained the situation to management, but they refused to address my concerns and repeatedly threatened to call the police if I didn’t leave. When I requested a refund for the game credits I had purchased 30–45 minutes earlier, they refused and instead told me to use them at the Colorado Springs location. Feeling helpless, embarrassed, and discriminated against, I told my mom, brother, and partner that we had to leave. The two managers escorted us out in front of dozens of witnesses.

This morning, I contacted Dave & Buster’s customer service. I explained what happened but couldn’t obtain the names of the staff involved. They filed a complaint on my behalf and said they would seek a resolution within 72 hours. This customer service representative was very kind and I appreciated her patience.

Under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, businesses open to the public are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, religion, or national origin. Questioning someone’s immigration status when they are simply trying to order a drink and food can be perceived as discriminatory—both my partner and I interpreted it that way. Additionally, forcing my family to leave under the threat of calling the authorities after we raised concerns about the denial of service, and refusing to refund our unused game credits, further demonstrated discriminatory and unjust behavior. I want the bartender and management to be held accountable for their discriminatory...