Antone's Kitchen Columbiana — Restaurant in Fairfield Township

My first & last time here. The free bread brought to the table was overspiced, cold, & tough. I also expected dinner rolls, not rolls with spices. I got French fries for my kid. They were too salty & spiced with Italian seasoning, which was not mentioned on the menu or by the waitress. (I only saw these listed on the kid's menu, so I presumed they were cooked as I child would like them). Regardless, they were not hot, fresh, or crispy, like they had been in a warmer for forever. But the worst part was that I ordered the fried mozzarella ($8.50) & the menu said it was served "with" Sunday sauce. I had inquired what that was, but was never informed that it would be served on top of the cheese, instead of "with" it, per the menu. There was lots of discussion with the waitress about ranch & other sauces being served on the side, so I never dreamed that I would get a plate of sauce with two tiny cheese triangles hidden underneath it. (I thought all sauces were served on the side because of the discussion). Also, before ordering I had a separate discussion with the waitress specifically about the fried cheese. I asked how many cheese sticks there were. She said, "It's not like that." Then she gave a long explanation of how it wasn't sticks but a big slice that is cut in half for the small size and whole for the large size, but her description ended there. She never said that it would have sauce all over it. I had said I thought the item was mozzarella sticks that get dipped in sauce, so I don't know why she didn't included the rest of the description about the sauce. As close as I get to Italian is that I live in Italian, former mob-boss, Joey Naple's, old house, so I was relying on her description!

When the plate was delivered to the table, at first, I thought I had received the wrong item. When I realized what it was, I said that I had no idea that it was served with sauce on top of it & I reiterated that I had never been to this restaurant. I said that neither my kid nor I eat sauce. The waitress came back and said she spoke to the manager, & there was nothing they could do because “technically“ there was nothing wrong with it. By their behavior and response, I felt like the staff thought I was trying to scam free food or something, which was offensive, especially as I sat there trying to decide if I wanted to now basically pay $17 for 2 triangles of fried cheese for my kid (by having to pay for the dish that we couldn't eat in addition to ordering a new one with no sauce) while we already couldn't even eat the cold fries or rolls. I asked my kid if he just wanted to go to McDonalds to eat, hoping he would say yes, but he wanted to stay with the friends that we came with. So, I said, "Well, we won’t eat it, so bring me another order of the same food again, only this time with no sauce on it." So, I had to pay $8.50, plus tax, for an item that neither of us ate. I told the waitress that I won’t ever be back, & I meant it. I’ve owned and managed several businesses, including a nightclub that I owned for 8 years. I feel like the customer service I received at Antone's was poor, & certainly not how I would have handled the situation with a brand new customer who made it clear that they are not familiar with the food or menu & had asked numerous questions about the dish they ordered BEFORE ordering it! It’s so inexpensive to make a happy, repeat customer with good customer service (in this case, a whopping $8.50), especially compared to the cost of advertising to bring that same new customer in. To be clear, I wanted no monetary compensation or “free” food. I only wanted my kid to be able to eat the one item that I had asked several questions about & I thought we ordered! There's no way I would let a new customer leave unhappy & chance that they will leave negative reviews & never come back! And for the record, I have tolerated a lot of bad experiences and mediocre food & never say a word, but my Antone's experience was bad enough that it left such a bad taste in my mouth (no pun intended) that I left this...

When I learned that we would be having unexpected company on Monday, 10/21/24, and I realized I wouldn't have time to prepare anything, I decided to purchase Take Out from Antone's Kitchen in Columbiana. We had dined there several times prior to that date and were always satisfied with both the food and the service. I spoke with Erin when I phoned in and ordered from Antone's "Family Style" menu at 1:19 PM and proceeded to pick it up shortly after. What I ordered and what was printed on both receipts I was given was Antone's Cavatelli & Meatballs. Imagine my surprise when I removed the foil from the entree and instead of Cavatelli, I had received Rigatoni. Shortly after our company left that day I phoned Antone's & again spoke with Erin. I explained why I was calling. Erin apologized countless times and explained that they had hired a new cook & apparently he was unfamiliar with their pasta. She stated she would immediately issue a refund for the entire amount we had been charged. And since I had been charged $7 more for the Cavatelli I had not received, I was pleased. I waited patiently all week for the credit to appear on my debit card. And when it hadn't posted by Friday, I phone Antone's again. And once again I spoke with Erin. She was surprised that there had been no refund issued and stated she would contact Chad, who I later learned was the owner, and then phone me back later that day. She never returned my call and I never received a refund. If you are reading this, I hope you will take a lesson. Check your order to make sure you receive what you paid for if you order from Antone's in Columbiana. I, for one, will never step foot in any of their restaurants ever again. I feel like they must have thought I was trying to put something over on them. I wasn't and I am not a dishonest person. Shame on them. And shame on Chad. But I guess you need the $42.61 I paid for dinner more than I do. UPDATE 11/16/2024 I received quite an eloquent response from Chad, Antone's owner. I even took the time to respond to it via email. Too bad his actions aren't as good as his silver-tongued words. I received no response to my email and no...

Visited for 1st time on Friday with a friend. Had a horrible experience with the waitress. Tried to order broiled stuffed fish. She said it would the at least 45 minutes. So I order the fried fish, with salad and French fries. After 15 minutes we asked if we could get our salads . She continued to seat people, take orders and deliver food but no salad for us. Finally comes with salad and immediately brought the fish. We asked about the French fries and she turned away and did a few other things. Finally brought the French fries. One big plate of fries. I prefer my order in my own plate but kept quiet. I asked for ketchup. She left and started going thru her receipts at the counter. I finally asked again for ketchup. She did not respond right away. After BEING TREATED SO DISRESPECTFUL I ASK FOR A BOX so I could leave. I ask for a smaller box for my salad since I did not have time to eat it. Totally ignored me so I took my tip back from the bill and left. Will not ever return. Her name was Trinity I believe. Her loss because I'm usually a very good tipper. Anyone's loss because we will...