Lovejoy — Restaurant in Holland

The food was amazing. Absolutely incredible. The warm gooey cheese was a favorite - definitely order this!

The service was good, but not the quality I would have expected. I like the relaxed atmosphere of tapas, but the whole place felt a bit chaotic. We did find out from the server (after asking - he wasn’t complaining!) that they were understaffed. Understandable! But you are also able to take less reservations then - don’t put it on your staff to make up for the understaffing! It would also be more understandable if the regulars at the bar weren’t being served way faster… Again, I want to reiterate that our serve was incredible. He just had way too large a work load.

The other strange bit was that because it’s a small space, you can really hear everything. When employees are arguing, even in jest, that noise carries.

Additionally, even though we made it clear that we had a reservation and the hostess acknowledged that, they did not mark it properly with OneTable. I now have to submit a review to OneTable so my ability to make reservations through that app in the future is not jeopardized.

A few things to note if you are planning on going…

1. The online menu does not necessarily reflect the actual menu
2. If you ask for extra crackers with the charcuterie board, you won’t be told but there is a charge.
3. If you make a reservation, MAKE SURE they mark you as present!

We do look forward to coming back on a night they are...

I want to start with the positives. The food here is absolutely amazing, this is a restaurant, so ultimately, that is the reason you will come here. The serving sizes are perfect for a tapas experience.

We got a text a few minutes before our reservation time and headed to the restaurant, and as we walked in, we got a follow-up text saying our table wasn't actually ready. We were told it would be a few more minutes... which is fine. I understand things can get busy. A table opened up in the window, and we got hopeful it was for us. Then, a group of four who came in after us with a later reservation immediately got sat at that table.

One of the workers apologized for the wait and said they could comp our drinks, which was appreciated.

But by that time, I felt like it was already just a damper on the experience. I felt like putting in a seating request and saying it was a special occasion far in advance for it ultimately not to matter just as a letdown (the booking asks you to note if there is a special occasion.) I made a reservation a month in advance, I requested a table near a window and made a note that it was my ten year wedding anniversary so it would have been nice to get a nice seat while we enjoyed our evening.

The food is good and if you were to make a reservation for dinner with friends or something it is great but don't be hopeful for a special occasion with a...

We have been to this restaurant a handful of times, and have always had good experiences. The food is some of the best in the area, and offers something a little different than the usual West Michigan fare. We went a couple weeks ago, with a larger group. We did have a reservation, we had to wait an extra 15-20 minutes past our reservation as the table we needed was camping out-we waited outside, no complaints from us. We finally get to the tables and they were split apart, but next to each other so we asked if we could slide it together, as this was a birthday dinner so we wanted to converse together and share everything. So as we are moving it, another server is talking to our server right behind us, and she tells our server "ohh have fun with that group", in a sarcastic tone. From then on it seemed like we were a burden, even though we spent a few hundred dollars that evening. Our group has worked in the service industry, we are not a difficult group, we looked past the late reservation, the missed food orders, the spilled entrees....but this vibe that we were some table meant to be dealt with is hard for us all to overlook. It left us all with a bad taste for this place, and I will have a hard time recommending it...