Golden Isles Olive Oil Gourmet Market and Restaurant — Restaurant in Georgia

I used to enjoy this place when they were in Redfern. While they had some service issues and some food inconsistencies even just in charcuterie there, it was made up for with the very nice setting of Redfern and coziness. Unfortunately, I was very disappointed with my experience at their new spot. Getting a table for 2 seemed to be a bit more of a chaotic process than it should've been. They couldn't find the party ahead of us, and the hostess ran around looking lost to find them for 5 minutes without telling us what the table situation was. The general manager(?) also pushed us multiple times to go to the bar or outside when we explicitly said we wanted a table inside and were happy to wait for one. We weren't too keen on sitting outside facing a parking lot alongside a very busy road. For how big of a location it is, the dining room feels rather cramped into a corner with only tables for large parties available, all of which were full at this time. Compared to their previous menu, their new one seemed significantly smaller. I didn't assume much from this because I thought it might've been done to put greater emphasis on the quality of their food. I did notice that most options seemed to be premade (pie, quiche, etc.), which was also kind of disappointing. Neither of us were impressed with what we ordered. I ordered the caprese salad and tomato bisque, and tried my friend's tomato pie and quiche. The caprese salad was a full ball of burrata on top of warm, flimsy mixed greens and cherry tomatoes. The burrata itself was good and the tomatoes were fine, but the ratio of greens/tomatoes/cheese didn't make sense, which is why I would've just preferred a more "traditional" style caprese salad. My bisque just tasted like salt with a hint of tomato. I'm never usually picky about these sorts of things, but my salad plate was so small that it barely kept the food on it. The table was already unsteady and small, so the food's presentation just made eating an annoyance. My friend's greens with her food were VERY wilted. We couldn't locate our waitress but asked another server if they could bring out some fresher greens. They apologized profusely, but never actually brought out any, and we just decided to let it go. The tomato pie and quiche weren't great at all. She would've chosen differently had the waitress not raved about how amazing both items were. We're aware that these items aren't made to order, but they didn't even seem fresh on the scale of premade food. That plus the wilted greens just made both dishes very disappointing. Nothing was necessarily "expensive", but it was definitely too expensive for what we got. I'll also add that we had at least 3 different servers throughout lunch, and they never came around at the right time for drink refills or checking in. Overall, we weren't pleased. Due to the loud, live music happening indoors amongst a busy & cramped dining room, chaotic staffing situation, less than mediocre food priced highly, and the loss of Redfern's ambiance, I will not...

Yikes. It was one thing after another.

The food is pretty good and the bingo night is super fun! But the service needs quite a bit of work.

I’ve worked in restaurants for years and i like to think i know good service when i see it. Every single server seems to be confused about one thing or another. Didn’t get our servers name, he was very quiet and didn’t say much. there were 6 of us and waters were poured before we sat down which was nice but we were short one glass so when my sister asked for a water he didn’t say anything and just pointed to one of the glasses on the table ?? I thought that was extremely rude honestly, as i server i would have responded with something like “oh we’re short a glass? i’ll get one for you” Unprofessional in my opinion.

We also had to grab his attention many times if we needed something like an extra plate, or the fried egg my sister ordered on the side of her burger that he just removed completely.

When we wanted to order dessert they brought around a little chalk board with three items on it. For a nice place like this it just seems like that would be the kind of thing servers could easily memorize.

Other servers/food runners came to our table more than once with food that wasn’t ours, there were two items that we tried to order that they said they didn’t carry any more or were out of stock, one of us tried to order an espresso martini and they said they were missing a key to the wherever the ingredients to it were kept, we made a reservation for 6 and were missing a chair when we got there, no big deal but the hostess just pointed to where they were and didn’t really assist us, checks were a mess at the end (we expected that at this point) he took them back and attempted to fix them but still ended up being incorrect in the end but we just moved on.

It could be a wonderful restaurant if the servers just had a little better training and were a little nicer. I have quite a bit of experience in customer service and I would say this was maybe one and a half stars tops.

We will definitely be eating at the other delicious and much more welcoming restaurants around the island and most likely will not be back.

(the short rib sandwich was really good but not worth the unbearable...

A Bittersweet Experience at Golden Isles Olive Oil

My family and I have been visiting St. Simons Island for the past 20 years, always on the lookout for unique and memorable experiences. A few years ago, we stumbled upon Golden Isles Olive Oil, a charming establishment that captured our hearts with its simple yet sophisticated take on charcuterie and local cuisine. However, it's with a heavy heart that we admit our most recent visit might have been our last.

The food remains as delightful as ever, a testament to the culinary talents behind the scenes. Moreover, the new building boasts considerable potential, hinting at an even more promising future for the business. Unfortunately, it's the service that has taken a significant downturn, deviating from the warm southern hospitality that we've come to cherish in our visits to the island.

During our latest experience, we found the service to be lacking, with our server appearing disinterested and slow to check on our table. The young man who delivered our food was polite, addressing us with "yes ma'am" and "yes sir," but his demeanor lacked warmth and enthusiasm.

Suggestions:

As longtime fans of Golden Isles Olive Oil, we hope that our feedback can be taken as constructive criticism. To rekindle the magic that once defined this establishment, we recommend the following:

Focus on staff training: Emphasize the importance of genuine, friendly interactions with guests. A warm, welcoming atmosphere can elevate the dining experience and keep customers coming back.

Encourage staff engagement: Create a supportive work environment where employees feel valued and motivated to provide exceptional service. Happy, enthusiastic staff members can make a significant difference in the overall dining experience.

Consider implementing a rewards program: Recognize and reward staff members who go above and beyond to provide exceptional customer service. This can help boost morale and encourage others to follow suit.

We hope that Golden Isles Olive Oil can recapture the spirit of southern hospitality that initially drew us in, as we would love to return and support this local business...