Hale’s Ale & Kitchen — Restaurant in Norwich Township

It’s now called Mill Run Ale House. So just last night December 20 we had a party of eight show up for a birthday party. We did not have reservation and we met at 6:30 PM. The place was absolutely packed, which was great to see.. not an open seat hardly in the house. We were initially told by the host that it would be close to an hour before we could get a seat. As luck turned out, we were sat approximately 20 to 25 minutes later. And honestly, from that point things went downhill. After we sat at our table, honest to goodness it was literally 20 minutes before anyone even showed up at the table to take a drink order. In our opinion, the restaurant was significantly understaffed last night. At the 20 minute mark the waitress did take our drink order brought a round of drinks back to the table and then told us appetizers were on the way. 30 to 40 additional minutes had passed still no appetizers brought to the table. As the place starts to thin out 730-745pm, thought process of our party is that our service level should improve now that things are starting to thin out, and people are starting to leave. We were wrong. At approximately 8:15 PM the waitress came to our table and she informed us that there would be no more food coming out of the kitchen tonight. So yes in a nutshell we arrived at 6:30 PM. We were sat around 7 PM at approximately 8:15 PM, after not receiving appetizers or ordering meals, the waitress informed us there would be no more food coming from kitchen tonight. Needless to say we were all pretty disappointed, grabbed our things and left. They did comp the current round of drinks that we were all drinking while waiting for service. Definitely a bit of a bummer because we had all been to this place numerous times in the past with positive experiences and positive feedback. Last night, December 20, 2024 was certainly a bit of a black eye for this establishment. I hope they can get things turned around...

The wife and I needed to go to Lowes to pick up a few items. We thought we would enjoy a nice dinner on the patio of Hale's Ale & Kitchen in the process. It was convenient for us because this restaurant is located right next door. We are not "regulars" at the restaurant but have eaten there before. In the past we enjoyed the stromboli and it was a pleasant experience for us. Today as we entered the bar, we noticed a sign on the door stating that the service may be slow due to the pandemic. We understood that as we took a seat on the patio. Our server, a younger, tall, dark haired young man greeted us with a stern look on his face. As we were sitting comfortably in our seats, he asked us what we wanted to drink. We both said, "water please" . He snatched up the craft beer menu and walked away. In the meantime another older couple, like ourselves, sat down at the table next to us. He (our server) greeted these folks with a big smile and asked them how they were doing and it was good to see them again. Obviously they were regulars or folks who eat there often. Our server's personality clearly was much more upbeat and friendly toward these folks. When our food arrived, the gal dropped off our food and immediately asked these folks next to us how they were doing and it was good to see them again, just like our server did. Our server filled up my water glass and said "you're welcome!" in a very condescending tone, before I had the chance to say thank you. He did it again when he brought the check out to me. I paid the bill and left him a tip. I'm not sure why, because he clearly did not earn it. Also, I left him a note saying, "Be more friendly". As I left the restaurant the server stated to me "That was unnecessary". I said hey I'm just trying to help you out. Try being more nice to ALL your customers. I also stated to him that I will NEVER come back. He...

Always wanted to check this place out, so we did. We did get some comedic value out of how bad it was, but that was really the only positive aspect of our experience.

Our table was dirty and wet when we sat down. Asked the server if they could wipe it off, which apparently pissed them off? So they said nothing and walked away, and eventually someone else came out to clean the table and serve us the rest of our visit. Lol.

Wine glass had lip stick on it, so needed a new glass of that. Our new server had no issue replacing it - not a big deal on its own.

Beer I received was without a doubt not the beer I ordered (not even the right color). The beer listed on the receipt was not even on the menu… I have no clue where it came from. At this point we’ve only ordered 2 drinks and there was something wrong with both items, so already I kinda give up on fighting this.

App we ordered was listed with a side of ranch on the menu, but came with ketchup. Again, not a huge deal on its own, but why list it that way on the menu & create an expectation, just to give us something else?

The food was pretty disappointing, even for a beer oriented place. We got salads, and while I’m sure most people don’t come to a beer hall expecting a great salad, I’ve been to plenty of other “beer” themed places around town that offer a more solid salad option, with plenty of toppings and good dressing. These were a sad mix of lettuce, a few slices of tomato, cheese, and the chicken & dressing. It’s exactly as advertised, which is partly on me, but that is a very sparse offering once you see it in front of you….. my partners salad also had almost no dressing.

Each issue is not a big deal on its own, but lump all these together in a less than 1 hour visit and you have a disappointing experience....