Market Tavern Restaurant & Bar — Restaurant in Mount Olive

I hosted my daughters communion party here on Saturday. Spoke with Susan Quinn who is the new party planner for the restaurant under the new ownership. She suggested since I didn't have over 20 people I couldn't have the private party room but others have had a setup in the the main dining area and were happy with the setup. They would put up a room divider and put the tables together, set the tables with table cloths etc. I could bring my cake and balloons in the night before etc. I would pick apps off the menu and they would have them ready for us upon arrival at 2 pm. I dropped my cake, balloons and favors off the night before and spoke with the wait staff who was there to go over the setup etc. I also spoke with the owners, whom I personally know. I let them know I was having between 22 and 24 people on Monday which was a week before the party.

Well we all got there and nothing was set up at all. My cake and stuff were in the party room set up for the other party that was in there. There was only one waiter assigned to the entire restaurant outside the party room. The party was given 3 waitresses in the party room. Our food was not ready and the tables were not set. We made the best of it and I went to speak with the owners who were having drinks at the bar. They jumped up and got things moving for me but the damage was done. I ended up helping set the tables for my guests while the poor waiter alone was trying to get table cloths on etc.

My guests mingled until about 2:30 when the first apps came out brought out by the owner herself. As we were eating I was going to the bar to get new drinks, water etc and I was busing the tables by myself because the one waiter was so busy with walk in guests.

I was very upset that my party wasn't given any attention and the one in the party room had 3 servers attending to it. The food was good as usual but so slow, half my party was done eating and the others had not even received their food yet, so I began serving my own cake to my guests. The kids were getting a little rambunctious waiting so the bar host gave us baskets of popcorn for the kids.

All in all it turned out OK but I was completely stressed out by the lack of preparedness of the restaurant. Owners need to manage the staff better to make sure guests are getting what they are promised. I felt so bad for the one waiter. He worked his ass off and deserved the tip I gave him. He should have had help just knowing that there were at least 22 coming not including anyone who walked in. To have one waiter and one guy to bus tables is just not enough. Sorry guys....growing pains should be over...its been over a year since you bought the place. I won't plan anything there ever again and I like the place. I'm there often with my friends for apps and drinks. The new owners are awesome people personally, just need to get a grip on the running of...

Ordered food tonight at 6:47 for takeout for 730 pick up. I showed up at 7:20 and watched a group of big drunk guys play fighting and wrestling by the front door, no one would want to enter through or around them, including me. I waited for the guys to re-enter, then entered myself. I walked in at 7:25 and waited about ten minutes before I was even acknowledged. ( There was no hostess and a sign that said please wait to be seated.) before the waitress informed me to go to the bar, the owner walked by, glanced at me, spoke to someone at the bar and returned to the other side of the bar to stand there and talk .

I approached the bar and asked the bartender if she could help me with my takeout order , she told me it wasn’t ready. How she knew this, I’m not sure ,since she went nowhere near the kitchen to inquire. She offered me a drink while waiting and I informed her I wanted to get out of there as fast as possible because it was a circus. The guys who were outside wrestling we’re at it again inside, the place was loud, and I just wanted to pick up my food and get home.

I watched the waitresses and bartenders working hard and it was obvious they were all overwhelmed. I get it, I am dealing with similar labor issues as well. 39 minutes later, I left praying that my order was correct. I returned home and both orders were botched. My burger was undercooked and I asked for no salt on my French fries . My wife’s order had added cheese and no lettuce or tomatoes. Both orders went into the garbage and we ate the salad. What a disappointment, I will never return.

I visit their sister establishment often , and I can’t believe that they would attach their name to a business that is far from the business model of the Market Place. I was also disappointed to see the owner not managing. During Covid, the last thing I wanted to do was stand in this establishment for 35 minutes waiting on my order that I would then throw in the garbage....

Very disappointed in our last couple times back since our initial visit. Stopped in a while back for some food at lunch and were served minuscule portion sizes for lunch that left us wondering if perhaps it was a lunch menu? So we gave it another shot for dinner this time a couple days ago and needless to say we’re very disappointed. Our bartender put in the wrong order (a special burger and steak sandwich). The burger was not cooked to temperature and the steak sandwich was not the correct sandwich. She proceeded to tell us that her boss would be angry with her so she had to try and put in the correct order without him finding out. Seems odd the staff was so nervous about their boss. Anyway we went along as my GF and I don’t like to cause waves but following the second order the meat was inedible, tough chewy and relatively tasteless. She spent the entirety of our time in attentive service to the singular male patrons and the other bartenders were more attentive to us. Lastly she forgot to remove the original incorrect sandwich from our bill which thankfully was corrected before paying. Not for nothing but $20 for a burger that was not worth the money and the same for a special sandwich that was first wrong then tasted terrible and a few beers totaling nearly $100 and that’s the quality of food and service we got?! We expected a great deal more for what we paid and having had prior experiences that were better left us with the notion that we will not be coming back. Such a shame also to hear from staff that their boss was screaming in the kitchen at staff which seemed commonplace there. Rethink your choice in a night out of fine dining if this establishment is...