Agnanti — Restaurant in New York

Lost a regular customer as of 5/29/21

As someone who has grown up in the restaurant and hospitality business and who is 5.5 pregnant, I WILL NEVER RETURN TO AGNANTI AFTER MY EXPERIENCE WITH THEM LAST NIGHT.

I am 5.5 months pregnant and showing. I live 1 block away and since lockdown, I’ve ordered takeout or delivery from Agnanti on average, once a week as part of my efforts to support local restaurants.

Last night, I was feeling very nauseous (as I have for most of my pregnancy). I called Agnanti to see if I could do takeout for warm bread and olive oil on the side since that’s about all I felt I could stomach. I spoke with a woman there who told me that they usually don’t do that (they don’t have it on the menu and usually don’t charge for it when sitting down at a table). I replied to her that I would pay whatever they wanted to charge me, explained to her that I was pregnant and nauseous, and she replied I could pick up the bread.

When I arrived at Agnanti to pick up the bread around 8:19pm (so almost a closed kitchen), a different woman on staff greeted me and proceeded to explain that they wouldn’t be able to sell me a side of bread because it was Saturday night and they only use the bread for table service. With tears welling up in my eyes, I explained to her that I was pregnant and nauseous and would pay whatever they wanted to charge me for the bread, and that I just really needed some warm bread. The woman replied that they couldn’t do that because of the previous rationale. I said “so if I sat down at a table right now, would you let me pay for the bread?” She said no because I would need to order food with the bread. At that point, I was like “forget it” and walked out.

I walked over to Gregory’s Taverna, and with kindness and compassion, the woman on staff there gave me even EXTRA bread and a side of olive dip and for only $2.

AGNANTI- YOU JUST LOST A GREAT CUSTOMER AFTER THE APPALLING LACK OF COMPASSION I EXPERIENCED LAST NIGHT WHEN I TRIED TO BUY BREAD FROM YOU THAT YOU USUALLY SERVE FOR FREE WITH YOUR TABLE SERVICE. And I will make this known to as many mothers in...

I have been to this restaurant numerous times over the last 7 years, and the food and the service was always fantastic. So, for my birthday, I couldn’t think of a better location. We were not told when we made the reservation that they would be celebrating orthodox easter with a limited menu (that would have been good to know as we would have most certainly reconsidered). So, when they asked for a $200 deposit for our party of 13 over the phone, we went ahead without hesitation. Upon arrival, to our surprise, we received the limited Easter menu, but already too late to turn back as the deposit was made and friends were coming from afar to join us. It was a cold and rainy day, and they sat us in a tent outside with a mini heater. We were still working with the situation until the holes in the tent began dripping rain steadily upon us, so much so that by the time we left, there was a few small puddles on the table and floor. The heater never quite heated the space (so every one of our guests had to wear their winter jackets the entire time and we could see our breath when we spoke). The main meal was mediocre at best, and one of our appetizers (the cold platter with pita) arrived with just 8 small slices of pita (barely enough for even one of the 4 spreads). When we requested more pita, the server said that would not be possible as the oven was in use. That entire plate went to waste. We came from all points of the city to enjoy this place that was once such a joy to go to, and will likely never return again. On the upside, our server was very nice and the wine he suggested was great. Those were the two highlights of the day, but overall a very disappointing, uncomfortable, and...

My friend and I stopped in here for lunch at the end of a trip when we were on the way back to the airport. It was a cozy little place with a neat patio closed in by mostly clear panels so it was like being outside, except climate controlled! The food was pretty phenomenal overall (though I'd skip the spinach pie next time, it was a bit dry). The problem I had with this place was that the service was awful, even though we were the only ones in the place. Our main server was slow to come back and check on us, and once another person came in, he almost completely ignored us. The secondary server was useless. She was sitting around playing on her cell phone. We sat around for awhile between being seated, ordering, finishing, and getting the check. I even asked the primary server for the check and he said he'd bring it back. He walked past several times while we sat and stared at him and never brought it to us. Finally I went and found the secondary server sitting around playing on her cell phone and then got her to run my card to pay. I thought it was odd that they don't accept tips on cards, and I didn't have any cash to offer as a tip, and at this point I was annoyed enough to not leave anything anyway. While we were standing outside waiting for our ride, secondary server had the gall to come out and ask us what the problem was and why we didn't leave a tip. I sternly but politely told her that while the food was great, they were very inattentive and that they should pay attention to their customers if they want a tip. Also, what's with no card tips? Are these guys trying to do something sketchy here? Wouldn't go back. The experience...