Hamp & Harry's — Restaurant in Marietta

We were deeply disappointed in our recent dining experience. We arrived at 2:15 on a Saturday. The place was pretty empty but that's fine. The first mistake was that server went to the table seated after us, first. After a brief introduction with them he came over to greet us. We were prepared to let that go.

He then went over the menu and we ordered an appetizer and drinks. When he came back we were prepared to order. We already ordered the H&H Fries and I didn't want more potatoes with my meal. I asked what else was available and he limited me to what was on the brunch menu. When I said I didn't want more fries or meat there was no other suggestion. No effort to offer any suggestions like a biscuit or toasted sourdough which we later learned was available. In fact lunch was about to start so he could have suggested a lunch side. It was obvious I wasn't satisfied with the choices and apparently the waiter was fine with my unhappiness.

Then, he took our order but did not write anything down. That technique is fine bc there are only two of us. However, don't come back twice to confirm what we wanted. Just write it down the first time.

Our drinks were very good, a little overpriced for lunch/brunch but delicious.

The food was a different story. I had the crabcake benedict. It was bland overall but the eggs were poached perfectly. I give it a 2 out of 5 because I generally like crab. However, I DID NOT ENJOY THE SHELL THAT WAS INCLUDED. I notified our server but he seemed generally unconcerned. He said he was sorry but did not send the manager to provide any remedy.

Prior to that my date ordered some toast because his traditional breakfast could have used a little something extra. He was literally done with his food when the server came to say the kitchen had messed up but the toast was coming. Not sure how they messed it up with a whopping 9 people in the restaurant but it happened. A more likely reason was that he forgot, like he did with previous portions of our order. After a good 8 minutes we asked him to cancel the toast, which came out anyway because poor communication abounds at H&H.

So the meal ended with no acknowledgement about the crab shell and charred (not in a good way) dry sourdough. Oh and that 'salad', stop it! Just say it comes with a side of greens. The green leaf lettuce could use a squeeze of lemon juice, some purple onions and maybe yellow cherry maters.

Overall, our brunch bill was almost $100 and we definitely left feeling...

I had a very complicated experience with dining at this establishment. I'll start with the good as it deserves.

Food - The food was a 4 out of 5. Charred octopus, mussels, and lamb ravioli were very good. The burger, at its price point, was an absolute 5.

Service - Our service was consistent with a restaurant of this caliber. Our waiter only had a limited number of tables and was attentive to our needs.

Now I'll move to the confusing:

Identity - My wife was excited as H&H plays itself as a bit of an oyster bar, and I do love oysters. I was a bit confused by the fact they had one oyster type available, but the waiter came back later to let me know they had run out of New Brunswick and had an alternative.

Identity Contd - The drink menu is extensive and definitely a mixologist stop. But at the same time, there is not space at the bar to order drinks. There is great food, but there is not space to serve tables. Oysters? I think I covered that before. I have no idea what this place will end up being.

Now the bad:

Reservations - My wife made a reservation 2 months ahead of time for a 2 top. We arrived at the restaurant to be seated at a 2 top, on bar stools, in-between a 6 top and an 8 top. There were 4 booth tables behind us, one of which was available. I have never, EVER made a reservation in the US at a restaurant that put me on a steel stool between 2 large parties. At Five Guys or the Marietta market, absolutely that is fine. Not an intimate dinner with my wife for a special occasion.

Atmosphere - The atmosphere as I could closely describe is a bar. I was 2 feet from my date and had to yell to talk to her. I know I sound very Boomer, but it is loud in here. If you want a celebratory event with a select group, this isn't the place. It is loud, cramped and impersonal.

Credit Card Charge - I have never been to a place that charged an additional fee, 3.75%, for credit card processing. At 50+ dollars a plate, it is offensive and an absolute shame that the feel ok to put that charge on the menu.

In the end, if my wife hadn't looked so nice for the evening and been so excited, I would have absolutely walked out at the seating. I would have happily walked down to Mac's or Piastra for a much better experience.

I did tip the waiter well, he was great but we will not visit Hamp and Harry's again unless we can get a burger to go. I cannot recommend this place with so many other great alternatives...

Two of my friends and I decided to try Hamp and Harry’s last night. I can’t tell you how disappointed we all were with the quality of food, lack of customer service and poor handling of a situation at the end of the night. We ordered three coffees after dinner and was told at 9:30 (30 min before close) that they were not making any more coffee at that time. We all paid via three credit cards and afterwards one of my friends noticed that they had charged us for the three coffees. We asked the server to rectify the issue and she came back stating that her boss would give us a gift card but couldn’t refund our money. I asked to speak to the supervisor in charge and was approached with defensiveness and unprofessional behavior. He also told us that he couldn’t refund our money because we had used three credit cards because we had split the bill three ways. My friend and I told him this was unacceptable and was not the way you handle business. We asked for a cash refund and he initially said he couldn’t do that either. We emphasized again that we were not going to accept a gift card but wanted our money back. At this time another man came up and had his fists clinched by his side as if he was preparing for a fight. As the conversation continued the supervisor told us that we could not tell him what to do and accused us of screaming. My friend stepped in and said no one is screaming at you but need you to handle this appropriately. We also pointed out that the other man was standing there with clinched fists. The manager walked away and came back with the money in cash and demanded we leave the establishment and never come back. He had a raised voice because as we were walking out the entire room overheard him. I have never had such a horrible experience with a restaurant like this before. We spend a lot of money dining and enjoying food and beverage. At no point did he introduce himself by name nor did he ask how he could rectify the situation. He made no efforts to diffuse the situation but instead responded with hostility and disdain. I am a business owner and couldn’t believe how he was treating us. He clearly doesn’t care about earning and keeping new and repeat business. Save yourself the time and trouble. Eat somewhere else in the square. We won’t be surprised if they answer this review with the same canned response as all of their one...