The Hudson Cafe — Restaurant in Detroit

I’ve always loved Hudson Cafe and have dined at several of their locations many times. However, I hadn’t been to the downtown Detroit location in a while, so I decided to stop in for a quick brunch with my boyfriend around 1:15 PM on a Tuesday. Unfortunately, this was one of the worst dining experiences I’ve had—ever.

We sat at the bar and were greeted by a slim brunette bartender. I didn’t catch her name. She asked for our IDs when we ordered drinks. My boyfriend’s ID was expired, so he went to grab his passport from the car—no big deal, or at least it shouldn’t have been. When he returned, she snatched the passport from his hand in a noticeably rude way. As a fellow bartender myself, I tried to see both sides and didn’t make a fuss. We let it go.

But the issue came when he tried to order a grilled cheese with fries. He’s a vegetarian, and he orders this all the time at other Hudson Cafe locations—it’s never been a problem. Sometimes there’s an upcharge, sometimes it’s charged as a kids’ meal, and that’s totally fine. But the bartender smugly told us that grilled cheese wasn’t on the menu and made a sarcastic remark about him not being 12, referencing the ID she had just checked. The tone was completely unnecessary and condescending.

I calmly explained that he doesn’t eat meat and has had it at other locations before, and I asked if it could be accommodated—even with an upcharge. Rather than responding with any kind of professionalism or helpfulness, she started gesturing at us to calm down and said, “You don’t have to do all that,” as if we were being unreasonable. We hadn’t raised our voices or shown any disrespect—we were simply asking if something could be done.

I was stunned. I’ve never experienced such a “Karen” moment in real life before. The bartender acted like we were causing a scene when all we wanted was decent service and a little understanding. I was more upset than my boyfriend because he was being treated unfairly, and I felt totally powerless in the moment. It felt racially motivated like we were made out to be aggressors It’s unsettling how someone can flip the script and play the victim while treating others poorly.

Needless to say, we left without eating. I had no desire to pay for food after being treated like that. I don’t know if the bartender was having a bad day, but it doesn’t excuse the attitude. As someone who also works for tips, I know how important it is to treat every guest with kindness and respect—especially when they’re being polite and have to tip me. Which I do very generously since I know it’s crucial for us that work for tips.

This experience was incredibly disappointing, and while I still enjoy Hudson Cafe’s food, I won’t be returning to the downtown location...

My husband and I came for our anniversary weekend brunch. We had a reservation at 1:45pm and arrived between 1:55-2:00pm. My husband called to notify them we were late, but will be there soon. The woman on the phone confirmed we were good as we followed direction per their policy, which states they offer a 15 minute grace period and we were there before the grace period, but still called as a courtesy. I checked in at the counter and was told to give them just a minute. People were still coming in. Several had parties of 4+ or more. The last straw for me was that lots of couples were leaving, and I noticed tables became available, yet we were still not seated, then there were two girls that went to the counter after coming through the doors and were immediately seated before us, at this time we are approaching 2:30pm. I had to go to the counter to ask how much longer the wait will be and to ensure that we are checked in, the girl then said snarkily, "Yeah, you're checked in, you just have to give us a moment!" With a confused look on my face, I simply said, "Ok, " and walked away. Finally, after a few more minutes, she called our name and sat us. I was sooooo sick to my stomach about how they handled just getting a seat WITH A RESERVATION, I was no longer looking forward to the food anymore.... However, if it weren't for my husband reminding me that people suck and knowing how much he wanted to come here for our anniversary, I decided to stay and try the food. Any other time, I would've left immediately. Now let's talk food.... The food is YUMMY!! We've been talking about this restaurant for months and finally were able to try what the rave was all about!! We ordered the Throwback Crepes 10/10, Very Berry Stuffed French Toast 8/10, Salmon Croquettes 7.5/10, Shrimp and Grits 7/10, Cheesy House Potatoes, and Eggs 8/10 Everything was bursting with flavor and the portions are decent!! The Chipotle Hollandaise is everything and gave the perfect kick to any brunch dish!! I highly recommend the Throwback Crepes for mouthwatering savory goodness. The pancakes were fluffy and delicious!! Our server was very nice and attentive to making sure we were taken care of. IMO... Keep the chefs and wait staff, but get rid of the two girls that operate the front counter. You need people who are welcoming, have a smile on their faces, and positively represent your establishment. I can hardly say that I'd recommend people to visit here, and if I do, it'll be with a warning to ignore the attitude at the front counter... We all...

the restaurant itself was super cute and the food i got was good. i ordered the blueberry burger. our waitress however was so rude. we had reservations and when we arrived early and we got sat. she continued to ask us when the rest of the party was joining - mind you they sat us early knowing one was still not there. we said she was on her way but we were a few minutes early. she asked us every 1-3 minutes when she was coming. she did arrive at our designated reservation time.

she never told us her name, she never said anything to us at all besides when is our party arriving, what are we ordering, and then the check. we were there to celebrate a birthday and she did bring over a birthday waffle but she had already cleared plates and silverware and never came back for our friend to get a set of silverware. she ate with a candle and her finger (it’s covered in sauce you can’t pick it up) so while it was a cute and yummy looking dessert, she literally couldn’t eat it.

the bill came and we asked if we could split it (she never asked us or gave us the space to ask) so she stormed away and came back with separate checks. after we paid my friend was still picking at her waffle she got for her bday and the host came over and asked us to leave.

when you reserve it does give you a time limit and that was fine but we still had 30 mins left and our friend was still eating. she asked how our service was as well and we told her that our waitress wasn’t very kind and now we’re leaving when still eating and she said “well that’s not my fault”. someone in the back of our group didn’t hear her and said what - she replied nothing but i need this table.

so while the food was decently good, the service between both the server and the host will ensure we never come back. the birthday girl had been here before and she was so excited to come back and celebrate her birthday only to be...