Vicious Fishes Taproom & Kitchen — Restaurant in Fuquay-Varina

It is rare to be made to feel like you are not good enough to eat at a restaurant but the young man with shoulder length hair at the front desk managed to pull it off. We've attempted to eat here three times. The first time we had no idea reservations were required...so we were told by this young man when we arrived midweek to a half empty restaurant so we left. The second time I completely forgot and we again walked in midweek to a not so busy restaurant and the same young man telling us reservations were required. So we left again. The third time, I made reservations a week in advance. The same young man met us at the front podium. I can't say he greeted us because he talks down to and rudely to both customers and staff. I asked a waitress about this young man and said he must be related to management because someone with his level of arrogance should have no place in customer service. She said no his mother works there ...and she didn't feel the warm and fuzzies either from him. When your first impression at the door is to be talked down to...on three occasions, I'd imagine folks may eventually decide to eat elsewhere. Although most of our meals were good, except for the tenderloin medallions, which were incredibly tough and looked like and had the texture of London broil. I had to send it back because there wasn't a tender part on the entire portion...loaded with grizzle. So I ordered the pork tenderloin instead and after waiting 20 minutes, the waitress came back and apologized that they were out. So I settled on some chicken wings which were good. The restaurant was only one third full the entire time, so why the required reservations? I can understand staffing and supply chain issues but this does not seem like a very hospitable approach to dealing with it. After I left I looked at your website and it actually says reservations are recommended... Not required. Which is not what we were told by this man. While there, I asked the waitress if I could speak to a manager to discuss his rude conduct but the manager never came. Then as we were leaving I stood at the front of the restaurant trying to get the attention of one of your staff, there were several walking around, again a 1/3 full restaurant. And nobody stopped to address me. I had hoped to avoid doing this on sthe internet but I think folks ought to know that one bad apple can really...

Update to review 8/29/23: as per the below. The owner Ken had decided to slander myself and our group. While we were on a party bus, we were not in any way inebriated to a point of there being an issue. In fact, as stated in my initial post, Aviator sat us and served us without issue. There was no reason Viscous fishes needed to act the way they did and additionally, I don’t appreciate the slander on Google reviews. 0/10 so not recommended. They are quite Viscous!

Original review May 2023: Unfortunately this place was awful. They had many open tables and turned my party of 14 away. They apparently cheered when we left. It was unprofessional and rude. They clearly did not want to accommodate us. We would have been a bill over 1000. Manager was smug and rude. We then went to aviator and the manager was so welcoming and nice and apologized on their behalf for the poor experience at fishes. I’m getting married nearby in November and I won’t be sending people there . We thought about having an after party but clearly we won’t be now. They need a lesson in a hospitality.

UPDATE: I want to update my review as I have been in touch with the general manager. I appreciate the quick response but there’s been a lack of apology and accountability for the poor hospitality. Our party has been accused of being too inebriated but their bar still served us while we were waiting to be seated. I think this is just the staff trying to defend their poor hospitality. Additionally, we went to Aviator and had fabulous service (and no one turned us away) after so that should tell you what you need to know. Avoid this establishment. I hope the management will apologize so I can update this review with a positive outcome. Again I appreciate that at least there’s been some response from management. I’ll...

I recently had a profoundly unpleasant experience here and I feel compelled to share my disappointment. As a business owner myself, I understand the importance of good customer service, but unfortunately, this establishment fell woefully short in that regard.

Upon arriving at the restaurant with a group of friends, it quickly became evident that the staff had no interest in accommodating us. Despite there being multiple empty tables, the restaurant was unwilling to be flexible and find a solution that would allow us to dine there. We were even willing to split up our party or order at the bar, given their limited staff on duty, but our suggestions were dismissed outright.

To make matters worse, the attitude of the staff was downright rude and unwelcoming from the moment we stepped through the door. It was disheartening to see the employees cheer as we left, as if our mere presence was an inconvenience to them. Such behavior is completely unacceptable and unprofessional.

I understand that there may be constraints and challenges, but it is the responsibility of the establishment to handle such situations with grace and professionalism. Unfortunately, they failed miserably in this aspect. Their unwillingness to accommodate a willing group of customers and their rude behavior left a lasting negative impression.

I expect better, and I hope my feedback serves as a wake-up call for this establishment to reassess their approach to...