Central Flats and Taps — Restaurant in Knoxville

Received horrible treatment from hostess and wait staff for coming in with a large party. Ownership, I’m posting this for your benefit - I have waitressed, cocktail waitressed, bartended, and managed a restaurant in my time, and have never even considered treating customers the way we were treated last night. We were made fully aware and reminded with every interaction that our presence was a burden and it ruined what was supposed to be an upbeat celebration for our group. Every single member of my party picked up on the passive aggressive attitude the waitress was hurling at us, and even our neighboring table commented on it. Starting from the top - a friend of mine wanted to reserve the back room for a surprise birthday party. He called to make a reservation, but reservations are not accepted. The hostess advised him to arrive early, perhaps 6-6:30, and try to nab that area. He left this part up to me. I have only been to Central once before and had gathered that it was a casual bar environment, so when I arrived and saw that half of the large backroom booth was available, I set down our gifts and balloons. I checked with the family on the other half of the booth to see if they were alright with us occupying that space, and assured them we would be a small group for a while & that others pour in over time. They were amenable and assured us that we could expand into their half of the booth when they left. I wasn’t sure whether we needed to see a hostess to be seated - that didn’t seem to be the case based off of our friend’s phone call, but I decided to check in with the staff in the front and let them know just in case. The hostess explained to me that customers DO need to see the host stand to be seated. I was very apologetic - having been in that position myself, I do understand how annoying it was that I inserted myself in a way that interrupted their flow - and asked if she would be alright with us having that seat. She (begrudgingly) agreed, as there was no wait at the time. I tried to be as amenable as possible - thankful, I assured her that we would not need service right away, that she could send wait staff only when it suited them. I really could not have groveled more for my mistake, nor been more appreciative for her accommodating us- but she was not afraid to show me how frustrated she was. She pressed me for a number - unfortunately, this was not my party, and I tried to explain that I didn’t really know how many people would show. She continued to press for an estimate. A friend of mine who had shown up estimated 10, but I insisted that, unfortunately, we did not know a hard number. Hostess was annoyed, and I told her we could occupy other tables in the back area as they opened up. She instructed me that we could not crowd the area, as wait staff needed to be able to move around freely - so I assured her that if we ran out of space, we would send members of our party to her to be seated elsewhere. After this verbal spar, she told me that they were short on menus and tossed me a couple, then sent me off. This conversation definitely shook me and more so my introverted friend, but ultimately, we were glad to have the spot. To my surprise, our waitress (Grace) came to us almost immediately. She seemed very kind at first and I took a moment to sincerely thank her for accommodating us, and in an attempt to make sure she was aware and prepared, reiterated that more of our folks would pour in over time. She seemed fine with the situation and again, we were relieved. When she returned with our drinks, my friend asked - once again, in an attempt to make things easier on staff - if we should send our people to the bar in the event that there was not room for them. I’ll never forget what the waitress said: “Um - please DON’T do that. You are my party, and if you send people to the bar, you are actively taking money away from me. Just being honest.” The entitlement of that statement was insane. I could go on, but my experience exceeds the character limit. But please reach out if you need any more...

Central Flats and Taps—where the promise of a good meal meets the harsh reality of disappointment. Stepping into this establishment feels like wandering into a restaurant that’s lost its way, a place where good intentions have gone to die amid overpriced mediocrity.

Let’s start with the food. Calling it "terrible" might be too generous. It’s as if the kitchen decided to take culinary creativity, toss it out the window, and serve up a collection of uninspired dishes that taste like they were crafted in a rush by someone who clearly had better things to do. The flavors are muddled, the presentation lackluster, and every bite leaves you wondering how a place like this can still operate in a world overflowing with culinary talent.

Then there are the servers. Rudeness seems to be the house specialty here. You walk in hopeful, only to be greeted with indifference that’s as palpable as the stale air. It’s as if the staff are doing you a favor by taking your order, and good luck if you have any questions or requests. You’re left feeling like an unwelcome guest rather than a valued customer, which is a shame because a warm welcome can make even the most mediocre food tolerable.

And let’s not ignore the prices. This is a place that charges like it’s offering a fine dining experience, but what you get is far from it. It’s a bitter pill to swallow when you realize you could have spent your hard-earned money elsewhere—anywhere, really—and had a far better experience.

It’s telling that other businesses are starting to vacate the area around Central Flats and Taps. When the competition is leaving town, it’s a sign that something is fundamentally wrong. This place feels like a relic of a bygone era, clinging to a reputation that no longer exists.

In a city filled with culinary gems waiting to be discovered, don’t waste your time here. Save your appetite for somewhere that respects its patrons and knows how to deliver a meal worth savoring. Central Flats and Taps is a reminder that not all that glitters is gold; sometimes, it’s just a tarnished facade hiding what’s...

Good food, horrible service. Visited on Saturday around 2pm and the outside tables were mostly full, but we were seated at an open one in about 10 minutes (after having to track down the host that was not at the host stand). Once seated, we waited about 20 minutes to be acknowledged by a server. The first server that came up to us was not our server but offered to bring our dog a water bowl and track down our server. He returned promptly with the dog's water and promised our server would be right there. We waited about another 10 minutes for her to come up a greet us. We ordered our drinks and food at the same time and she said she would be right back with our drinks. Another 15 minutes went by until she came back with our waters and beer and our food showed up at our table at the same time. In total, it took about 45 minutes from the time we sat at the table to even get cups of water. As a server myself, I understand it can get busy, but this was not the case. Inside the restaurant was dead and there were 3 servers covering about 10 outside tables. The only saving grace was that the 2 flats we ordered were delicious. So, great job kitchen staff, serving staff...