Woody's Wharf — Restaurant in Newport Beach

Dishonest Practices at Woody’s Wharf – Beware of Extra Charges

I recently visited Woody’s Wharf, and unfortunately, it left me deeply disappointed due to a troubling pattern of dishonesty. This wasn’t my first time experiencing such shady practices at this establishment, which makes it all the more concerning.

During my recent visit, our group of five enjoyed drinks inside the restaurant, only to find three extra gratuity charges sneakily added to our bill. The first was labeled a “large party charge” for six people—even though we were only five. The second was an “outdoor seating charge” but we were sitting inside? As for the third, I can’t recall exactly what it was, but it was yet another suspicious gratuity charge.

When I questioned the server about these charges, his response raised even more red flags. Without hesitation, he apologized and blamed it on the “computer doing that all day.” He then walked over to the manager, who was sitting casually at a nearby table, and relayed the issue. The manager, without even looking at the bill, immediately instructed him to remove the charges. The ease and speed of their interaction gave me the strong impression that this wasn’t the first time they’ve handled such a situation. It felt rehearsed, as if they’ve been doing this for quite some time.

What’s even more alarming is that this same dishonest behavior occurred when I visited Woody’s Wharf ten years ago with my ex-wife. Back then, the server tried to pull the exact same trick—adding extra gratuities to the bill and hoping I wouldn’t notice. That experience stuck with me, and seeing it happen again a decade later confirms to me that this is a deliberate practice at this restaurant.

I suspect that Woody’s Wharf relies on its party atmosphere, where many customers are distracted or intoxicated, to get away with adding these hidden charges. If I hadn’t carefully reviewed the bill both times, I would’ve unknowingly paid more than I owed.

This is not just a case of an isolated mistake—it’s a blatant scam. I worked as a server for 15 years at many different restaurants. I never used or even heard of a POS system that adds extra charges to the bill. In all my 15 years of serving I have never encountered that! In my experience those kind of charges have to be manually added to the bill. The server and manager clearly thought I wouldn’t notice, which speaks volumes about their attitude toward customers. I’m shocked there aren’t more reviews exposing this dishonest practice, but I want to warn anyone considering a visit: Check your bill carefully. If they’ve tried to scam me twice, how many others have fallen victim to their shady tactics?

Woody’s Wharf may have decent food and a lively atmosphere, but that’s irrelevant when the management and staff engage in unethical behavior. I won’t be returning, and I strongly advise others to think twice before supporting a business that treats its customers with such blatant disrespect. Check your bills very...

Food is good, but service is just so, so.

(UPDATED 12/7/20) We had a very disappointing experience at Woody's on 12/5/20. I spoke with Christa and made a reservation for 12 people for a birthday brunch on 12/5/20 – as we had pretty good experiences there in the past for business and pleasure. I explained that it was for a b-day celebration and we did not want to be seated in the front parking lot (due to COVID restrictions) and requested the back dock patio area that was open. Christa was very accommodating and explained that they had a large party reserved for 11 AM with a 2 hr limit and if we came in at 1:30 PM we would be seated in the back patio as requested - give or take a short wait for clean-up. I called back 2 hours later and reduced the party size to just 8 people, making it easier for them to accommodate us. Upon arrival at 1:20 PM we were told by the doorman that it would be a short wait while they cleaned our table for 12 (I corrected him…it was only 8 after I called in – he looked perplexed). After about 30 minutes they said our table was ready at the end of the PARKING LOT right next to the main street. I explained that Christa reserved a spot for us in the back dock, but the doorman had no note of that in the reservation. The manager came out and told us rudely that there was no table for us in the back and that they don't make reservations for the back patio. I said Christa, who took our reservation, did tell us we would get a table on the back patio and that one should be available by 1:30 PM. I asked to speak with Christa and the manager refused, saying she was busy and she was one of their top waitresses and that she would NEVER say such a thing (essentially calling me a liar). He then said we could give up our reservation and wait for the back patio table, so I ask how long. He said I don't know. I ask if he had an estimate, like 15 minutes, half an hour, an hour...? He said NO, he had no idea. Normally I would have left that instant, but I explained to him that we had a 4 PM boat reservation that I could not cancel and 8 hungry people so trying to find another location nearby with waiting lists was not an option. He could care less! We reluctantly took the parking lot table in direct sunlight and loud cars driving by. Needless to say, we needed a lot of drinks to get over it and try to enjoy ourselves. We will NOT BE GOING BACK TO WOODY'S AGAIN, to say the least. They should have handled the situation much better – people make mistakes, but there is NO EXCUSSS...

The place is clean and the employees are nice. Our server was on point the entire time.

The food was served fresh. We had the salmon and crab stuffed salmon, along with a shrimp cocktail as an appetizer. The portions are large, and could feed two depending on the couple. Afterwards, we asked for a dessert suggestion and the waitress suggested a vanilla flavored bread that had strawberries on top. That dessert alone was well worth the trip. It too was a large portion. The flavor was light, but memorable.

We didn't get to explore the beer and wine selections in depth, but there were a variety of IPAs on tap with the standard selections of wines: chardonnay, merlot, etc...fairly priced.

The customers where mixed... it's family friendly, but was mainly adults. The decor has the tavern feel inside the building with classic coastal restaurant decor outside.

I'm not sure if it's weekends only, but they had a band that reminded me of New Orleans bands playing classic and modern music in big band style. Some music choices brought the New Orleans vibe to the restaurant. All could be seen having a great time.

Towards the end of our meal, the manager or owner was walking around speaking with customers. We enteracted briefly with him, but his smile, tone, posture and playfulness with customers showed customer...