Marble City Market Food Hall & Bar — Restaurant in Knoxville

Visited Friday, April 25th (5:30-ish)

The setup of this food hall was different than we are used to in Atlanta. It was not overly busy when we went, which I was happy about because it made it so it wasn't overwhelming, but I do wish thete were more things offered. There were maybe 8 restaurants inside(?). I don't remember exactly.

We found plenty of seating, but like I mentioned, it was not that crowded when we went. There was also seating outside.

We grabbed two phillys and a Cheeseburger from Cravin Carvin's House Burgers and Phillys first. I was hoping for a little bit more meat on the philly when we got ours, but after I bit into mine, it was probably best. A good amount of my phily was chewy fat. I had to spit out most of it. Very disappointed. Our daughter said her Cheeseburger was good and juicy.

We also ordered Pakawra from next door. It was our first time having it. It was VERY good!

We sat in the bar area. I ordered a spicy Margarita and George's Secret Garden. Both were very good. However, I did not know it was Happy Hour. Not sure how they do Happy Hour in Knoxville, but my tab came up to $32 for both drinks. Not sure where the Happy Hour was. Also, the bartender was not friendly. With me or the other patrons. It wasn't even overly busy for her to be short with people.

The lady at the empanadas place was also very rude and refused to speak up. The empanadas were not good. The breading was sweet and the meat, flavorless.

We grabbed some tenders from Hot Birds before we left. I think they were overcooked. Very dry. I wouldn't eat there again.

Also, no sweets. They had ice cream, but regular flavors. Nothing special.

All in all, it's a nice place to hangout. I would recommend the bar put the CC on if the TV is going to be muted.

Oh and we were also in the middle of a wedding reception...

My partner and I have come here for a while now, and we've always enjoyed the food and the environment. It's not crowded, there's food options, and it's clean. But I'll be real with ya bud, this new bathroom thing they've decided to run with might be the stupidest shit I've ever seen.

You now have to use your receipt to unlock the bathroom, which on the surface is fine, except when you realize how jank the bathroom locks are. There's no signage indicating you get the code from the receipt, so if you come in to pee before you buy rethink your order, and if you ask the bartenders who stare at the bathroom all day they'll automatically assume you don't know what "paying" means. Oh, and expect to get stared down about this. It's awkward enough with some dude staring directly at the restroom entrance, but let's add "intently watching you because you're apparently robbing the toilet" to the mix. The lock itself is a touch screen, and if you've ever used one of them you'll know EXACTLY how often they mess up and get glitched. Bonus points for it probably being a Bluetooth model cause our code didn't even match the lock. That we paid for. Hilarious. It's also loud, which adds to the awkward feeling of entering a building illegally through a back door, and yells something unintelligible when it doesn't receive the number it thinks it wants. Introverts and easily embarrassed, you'll have a less awkward time on the streets.

Good food, but the spot we liked for it's quiet convenience, cleanliness, and ease of access is hella more...

I have a couple things to say about ChickNsack.

Bizarre Racial comments Not a fan of one of the stalls whose workers were very rude to customers who had already paid for the food. They thought that my date and I were siblings which felt racially insensitive because we are both Asian but of different ethnic backgrounds. In addition, even though I said we were not siblings the worker proceeds to comment on "our eyes" and how our noses were the same... It was not professional at all and very uncomfortable especially after we paid for our food.

The Food The chicken was soggy, the fries were limp and dull, it took 20 minutes when others had been waiting for at least 30 minutes to get our food, and the staff did not seem to have any sense of urgency. The line cook took out his phone with his hands and still used the same gloves to handle the food... as a former food service worker, that is just unacceptable and unhygienic. The food was extremely expensive for what you receive.

In conclusion, we did not enjoy this food hall and will not be returning. Do not go to this food hall if they continue to keep businesses like the one we visited where the customer service is extremely poor, food is abysmal, and prices are sky high. I highly recommend Popeye's or any other fried chicken establishment that probably has better food and service. Have...