Liberatore's Ristorante — Restaurant in Maryland

I only write reviews when I LOVED it or HATE it. So, here I go..I made a reservation for 8pm on saturday for my friend's birthday. I arrived at 720pm (myself) and I stated I was here for the 8pm reservation and said whenever a table was available I would like to be seated but that I understand that I was early. I went to walk the little plaza area and came back at 740pm to check the status (I knew my friends would be arriving shortly). The hostess tells me that there are no tables available yet, so I was like okay. I sat down to wait and then the reason for the one star. I saw parties of 2, 4, and 6 being sat..walk ins. The waiting area is very small so it is literally next to the hostess, that is how I knew they did not have reservations. So, I went to ask if there was a table available now 750 and she states that there are NO tables available. At, this point I do not understand why she does not want to seat me, should I have just been a walk in and not made a reservation!? Then, I thought maybe because it is just me. But, then two people walk in and ask for a table for 6 and they were sat immediately. So, next time should I bring one other person (I think not because there won't be a next time). So, at this point the hostess keeps looking at me because she knows that I can tell she's just purposely not seating me. Not to make it about race but how coincidentally were that all the people she sat were white (everyone in the restaurant was white) and us (hispanics) she did not sit, even though its an italian restaurant, so I did not want to think that. By this time my friends were there and she was just staring at us because we were just waiting to be sat. People were still coming in and being sat left and right, I did not want to be rude and it was my friends birthday so, I waited patiently, we all did. We finally were sat in a little table in the back near a bigger party and a little gap between the table, where people squeeze to walk. At, this point we decide to leave and never look back lol. But, seriously horrible experience, I don't know about the food but by the way we were treated we didn't even want to stay. Definitely, not a welcoming...

LONG REVIEW WARNING (INTENDED FOR PEOPLE CONSIDERING A PARTY AT THIS ESTABLISHMENT)

We decided to have our 1 year old son's birthday celebration here this past weekend, and we were extremely pleased with that decision.

The room they provided for us comfortably seated 50 guests. Temperature was a little warm, but once we requested it'd be cooler, the staff immediately adjusted the temp and it was cool throughout the evening. We had a religious segment, so asked for some privacy, once the staff closed the curtain walls, it was almost as if we were in a banquet hall detached from the restaurant. No employee entered in until we gave them the ok.

The food was made PERFECT. Calamari was crunchy on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside. Chicken was SO moist and the sausage was diced to some very unique flavors. None of the meats were gamey in anyway. Quantity was just as great as the quality.

The staff were very attentive. I peaked outside our room and noticed that the restaurant was busy as it is on a typical weekend evening. But the staff still managed to check on us regularly (not too much, not too little, it was just right). They never shied away, always asked us before touching anything or removing anything. When there was a cup spilled, or utensil missing, it was cleaned up and supplied in a blink of an eye.

I would recommend this establishment to anyone and everyone regardless of different ethnic culture(s). Majority of our guests were first generation Koreans, so we were worried that they'd disagree with the food, given that it's not traditional. But our guests were very pleased with the location and food. We received compliment after compliment.

Excellent...

NOT RETURNING! The waitress was sweet, didn't know her menu, and was a nuisance at one point. It's not like the place was crowded and they had to turn tables over. I get that but this wasn't the case. The crab cake sandwich was just ok - A LOT OF FILLER, the roll was HUGE, no tarter sauce as listed on menu, shredded lettuce instead of a bed and the "side salad" was lame. The meat lasagna was horrible!! Noodles were very pasty, hardly any beef in the ricotta mix and the sauce was lousy! We sent it back! Another pasta dish ordered was just ok but too expensive for what we received. Your lasagna should be your baseline, if you can't get that right then there's a big problem. Not impressed that the menu was mainly A la carte' except for the sandwich section that the waitress didn't even know about. What Italian meal doesn't come with garlic bread and salad? Their's doesn't! The manager/owner came over to check on us because I suppose he noticed that my husband had put his fork down not eating the lasagna. We expressed our issue and he immediately accommodated us by removing it from our bill. However, we still paid $60 (including tip) for 2 waters, 1 sprite an unacceptable crab cake sandwich, just ok bruschetta, and a pasta dish (bucatini di cosimo) and a separate, too expensive, "side salad" that didn't measure up. We were shocked at what we were experiencing. We didn't want to cause anymore havoc so we just left.

To conclude, this is NOT the Liberatore's Restaurant that I remember! Something needs to change because word-of-mouth is either your best friend or your worst enemy in the restaurant business. Sorry guys but 2 thumbs...