Tenn Lakes Brewing Company — Restaurant in Lebanon

TL;DR: The food & atmosphere were awesome, but beware that it will be a struggle to get the management/owners to even partially try to make things right if you have a cluster of an experience. As long as you eventually get your food, they don't seem too concerned when it gets served or if it gets served ON YOU or INSIDE YOU PURSE!

We ordered 5 fountain drinks & 5 calzones (4 cheeseburger, 1 meatball calzone) which totaled $80 with tax. The is only counter service.

We received 2 of 5 calzones. The kitchen guy put them down & rushed off as though he was bringing the rest. We were deep in conversation & then realized as the three of us were almost done eating that we still needed the other three calzones.

We were told the kitchen misread the 4 as 1 and will have to make them. Bummer, but mistakes happen.

When the rest of the order finally arrived, as the kitchen guy was sitting down these three plates, the generous cups of Thousand Island dressing & pickles slid off one plate & into my lap. To my horror, the cup of dressing bounced inside the side pouch of my purse. I now had dressing on my pants & also smelled like pickles that bounced onto the floor. To make it even worse, I detest Thousand Island dressing & pickles, which is why I was the one with the meatball calzone.

Again, mistakes happen, but this has now crossed the line of where I expect the restaurant to do something to make it right.

At first I thought the calzone had also slid off the plate & we were going to have to wait for it to be made again for a third round of waiting. My husband already quickly reacted by removing the cup & soaking up a lot of dressing with napkins, which was his first instinct so it didn't make a bigger mess by soaking into other compartments). I took the purse to the counter lady right after this first cleaning attempt & politely asked for a refund, & she was understanding & was going to see what she could do.

First attempts at making it right were pitiful with the manager sending the counter lady out to do the talking. Attempts to describe it exceeds the character limit for this review. I said I would be happy with 60% for the late food service, the inconvenience of wearing food, & having to clean my purse.

Eventually, the manager did come out & said the owner wasn't there but had called him, & the owner would only approve 50% as it's a small business & struggling with costs & understaffing. He said, "Besides, it's not like you didn't get your food," which was completely dismissive as the bigger situation was about my pants & purse. If the owner could not agree to 60%, then I would leave unhappy & would take the time to write a review about my experience, & they would also lose my family's repeat business.

The manager seemed unbothered by this & it was obvious that he & the owner were not going to do more, & we had already wasted enough time there.

The manager made a comment to the effect of not to worry that he was going to  punish the kitchen guy. Maybe it was made in inappropriate jest, but we stopped him to emphasize that we did not want the kitchen guy to be punished. People make mistakes & that's fine & to be expected, but when they happen it is the responsibility of the management & owners should do what they can to make it right.

I read the owner's comments on other reviews around the Internet about how they value reviews. His responses often ask for second chances & tell reviewers that they should have addressed issues with management so they could have fixed it at that time. Well, we did that & your manager told us he didn't have your approval & was unphased by the mention of a bad review. Response to owner: Securing our repeat business would have been a more profitable move. Your choice to save that extra $8 between 50% and 60% was not a smart ROI, but you have the freedom to run your business how you like....

Update 1/17/2024:

Decided to update my previous review since their menu revamp!

Tenn Lakes Brewing Company has become my favorite place to go in Wilson County.

I have been a fan since they opened, but they have truly exceeded expectations with their recent menu revamp. As a long-time fan, I've witnessed a transformation in both the food quality and overall dining experience.

What sets this brewery apart is not only the outstanding beer and food selection, but also the thoughtful consideration for patrons. The owners' gesture of installing a crutch holder beside my favorite seat at the bar (not even joking!) is both heartwarming and incredibly accommodating. As someone with Cerebral Palsy who walks with crutches permanently, this small but significant detail makes my visits even more enjoyable.

Tenn Lakes Brewing Company not only delivers exceptional beer but also exemplifies a level of customer care that truly sets them apart from others in our community. If you’re looking for fantastic beer, you have to check out Tenn Lakes! The head brewers at Tenn Lakes care about the quality of their product. It has been fantastic to watch them flourish over the last year. I’ve had nearly 1,000 different different beers, and I’ve been to multiple breweries all over the US, and these guys are putting out some of the best beer...

We were shocked to see how big their menu has grown. We each enjoyed a flight and while there's normally one in the bunch I may not like as much, this time I had a really hard time deciding what order to drink them in. Even kinds I'm iffy about had great flavor, like the brown. We talked with the owner and heard about their long journey to get set up. Food pic is sad, I'm terrible at remembering at the start sometimes and we dove right in. Oh boy was that some of the best traditional pizza we've had in a looong time! And they also have the most heavenly pillow of gooey cheesy goodness and pepperoni wrapped up in dough. Those come with marinara and are only $7 for four (as of March 2023) which would have pretty much been a meal for the two of us on its own. I wish this place was closer, but now we know where to head when we're out that way! We'll...