The Russell Restaurant — Restaurant in Hartford

JERK OR FRIED CALAMRI on tiny tables!

I took my wife there for the first time last Saturday, which was supposed to be a part of her birthday celebration but I don't know if that was the right call. Though, she liked her food, the negatives outweighed the positives for me.

The tables are too small. Firstly, we were brought to a round table that was clearly designed for having a couple of🥂 and could barely fit one person's meal, so we asked for a different table.

We were then brought to a slightly bigger "squared" table that only had one chair 😑. Eventually we got two chairs. However, by the time our appetizers came, there wasn't any room for the main course on the table. My wife noticed that a spot having two adjoining "squared tables", like the one we were sitting at, became available and asked the waitress if we could move as she, the waitress, was struggling to place our plates on the tiny table. We were allowed to move and did so.

Our food came out before our drinks despite ordering everything all at once. I've never been to a restaurant where you get served food before beverages 😖.

The customer service of the staff needs plenty of work. Firstly, when she came to our table her approach was a bit dry. She didn't ask whether or not we wanted anything to drink, didn't even offer water. All she did was introduced herself and told us the menu was online only through scanning a QR code that was on the table with no instructions as to say, that's how the menu was, and the hostess who seated us didn't even bother to explain that. She just sat us and walked away. So there we were just sitting 😐, waiting for someone to give us menus. That's when the waitress walked over and asked if we were ready to order.🤔

The place is a little bit too dark. I've seen other reviews from customers saying this and it is true. We were struggling to see what we were eating.

Jerk Calamari or Fried Calamri? I ordered the jerk calamari as it sounded interesting and different. To my surprise I was served over battered fried calamari. I asked the waitress if a mistake was made and wether she lied/told the truth/finessed me, I don't know. She said it was called jerk calamari because the jerk sauce/seasoning was used to season it. If that was actually so, that's the most bland jerk seasoning I've ever tasted. Pictures are below for your own judging. I honestly wouldn't risk ordering it again.

The only highpoint was that my wife actually enjoyed her oxtail.

The beverage/mixes that we got were...

This place is like a makeshift “luxury” spot that’s all about the aesthetic but has zero follow-through. My boyfriend and I made reservations for last night and were no more than 10 minutes late. When I first booked, I was told there was an event at 9 PM, so we’d have from 6:30 to 9 to eat.

Cool, no problem. But when I called as a courtesy to say we’d be a few minutes late, the woman on the phone suddenly switched up—now saying the only reservation was at 6:30 and that we had to be out by 8:00/8:15. That was NOT what I was originally told.

Still, I wanted to check the place out, so we went anyway. We walk in—no more than 10 minutes late—and there’s nobody at the front. The bar area? Completely empty. So empty we thought we had the wrong location. This is the super busy place that’s supposedly rushing people out the door? We had to ask someone setting up a stereo what was going on before a waitress finally approached us. I give her my name, and she just assumes I’m with guests who were already there for a birthday party…guests who had no clue who I was. I tell her I made a reservation for two, and she finally apologizes and seats us.

As I’m looking around, I notice most people who aren’t part of this birthday party still haven’t even been served yet, which makes me realize—I was lied to for no reason. Were they planning to tell every person there to leave by 8:00? Spoiler: They didn’t.

Now, let’s talk about the food. My boyfriend and I are foodies, and Jamaican is one of his favorites. The rice and peas were cold, the pasta was priced at $22, and the additional $14 for no more than 4 undercooked oxtail pieces with barely any meat? A straight-up scam. The only thing we actually enjoyed was the calamari. The restaurant looks nice, and our waitress was cool, but the woman on the phone? A mess.

This place is trying way too hard to be upscale, but the execution is all over the place. And the funniest part? When 8:00/8:15 rolled around, people who clearly weren’t part of the event started coming in—and nobody was asked to leave. Not even us. So what was all that drama about needing to be gone?

Between the mediocre food and the fake luxury vibe, this place gets 1 star. Maybe 2 for the service. But DO NOT trust TikTok—looks are...

Went to The Russell's a day ago and was not happy with the service, the food or the drinks at all. The waitress took a half an hour to come to the table and take our order. She was the only waitress in the whole place that was working 5 tables and a party upstairs. When she came to us she told us there was no oxtail no snapper and something else... we had to wait another 30 to 45 minutes for her to bring our drinks which was water down and lacking alcohol. When the food finally came a half an hour more after that the salmon, the chicken and the cabbage was cold... the only thing that was warm on my plate was the rice. The hostess was no help because she kept disappearing and people who was walking in had waited for 10 to 15 minutes and decided to leave because they could not get seated. What makes it even worse is that people who came in after us who sat at the bar got their food before of us was eating while we were still waiting. When you're waiting to get the waitress attention for you to get your check and then more people come out from the back like they had more waiters and waitresses but she was the only one working for the last 2-3 hours is crazy. You would make more money if you would hire more waitresses train them to be quicker and more efficient and if you're going to have your customers waiting about an hour or two to get there food you should at least give them something complementary to eat and give them their drinks so that they can be liquored up...