Ale 'N 'Wich Pub — Restaurant in New Brunswick

This place has had a rep of being welcoming to LGBTQ folks for years and hosting union-run events, I've never had issues w/ it -- yet when a close friend of mine visited recently while wearing a respirator, the bartender leaned over to them and said they were apparently making themself and "everyone else in the bar look like a douche" because they were wearing a heavy duty respirator.

My friend politely clarified that wearing a heavy duty respirator is the only way they can safely leave their home because of several disabilities. They weren't hurting anyone and were minding their own business. Instead of the staff member acting like a grown adult and maturely expressing some understanding in response, or even just agreeing to disagree and moving on, he responded by wordlessly, rudely mocking my friend and walking away. This was after he was clearly knocking back drinks with his buddies while on the job.

Undeniable discrimination against people with disabilities, plain and simple. A paying patron wearing a respirator or mask to protect themself from getting sick has nothing to do with the bartender or the establishment. Going to go somewhere else that doesn't treat the disabled community as inherently contagious...

I visited Ale and Witch on Wednesday night (2/12) to play chess with friends. Our plan was simple: the loser buys the drinks. When I asked the bartender for a chessboard, he initially went to hand it over but then abruptly demanded to know what I wanted to drink. When I said we were good for now, he pulled the board back and, in a more forceful tone, repeated, “What do you want to drink?”

This level of hostility was completely unnecessary, especially considering the bar was nearly empty. We left immediately. As a regular customer who has spent thousands of dollars here over the years, I was shocked. You’d think it would be good business to have people in the bar so when new people come in the bar, it is not empty.

The owner’s response was interesting—essentially stating that customers are not valued beyond their immediate purchase. I have changed my review from 3/5 stars to 1/5 stars. Instead of addressing the situation professionally, they chose to be dismissive and condescending. If that’s how they see and treat their patrons, it speaks volumes about...

Everything was really good when me and my friends went into this bar for the first time. We were all having a good time until I asked the bartender if they had any more drinks that were lighter than what was on the menu. The bartender then gave me an attitude and made a snarky comment about me asking the question. I simply asked a normal question and his whole demeanor changed and became disrespectful. The employee should always be polite to the customer no matter what and being disrespectful because of a question is not ok at all. It seemed like he was in a bad mood or had a bad day before talking to me and then suddenly let it out on me. Food was good but that bartender ruined the whole experience for me and my friends. After I overheard him whispering to the other bartenders about my “stupid question” when I stepped away from my friends and went to the bathroom. I personally don’t want to go to a place where I get disrespected and made fun of for asking a question and I don’t know why anyone would...