DULCE PATRIA — Restaurant in Paterson

Our favorite part of the night was getting dressed up for each other & literally coming home to a baby that’s still asleep . 🙃 This was my birthday date & I’m overall disappointed .

First of, I’ll start off by saying the staff is super friendly. They accommodated us arriving 20 mins before closing & without a reservation. Decently empty for a Saturday night, but the music was great. The place is small, buts it’s not the end of the world and the set up was evenly spaced out.

Pros: The presentation of the food is beautiful. The music is well diverse. A photographer comes by and takes pictures to later on purchase if you desire. Their virgin piña colada was different; it was more juiced like and tasted great. Good portion of food too! We didn’t have to wait long fir the food too.

Cons: Limited menu- I felt like it was catered more to seafood eaters & they lacked variety. For a Dominican Owned Restaurant, I missed the Dominican feel! Where’s the pride ? Where the flag? The authentic traditional meals or toppers or sauces and seasonings we are so well known for. Where’s the Dominican Art. Did not like their in house Tequila. The Manager offered it on the house which was Very sweet but we didn’t like the flavor at all so I could of honestly went off without having it.

We got our order taken by the manager as the server was busy and didn’t come to our table right away. I ordered another piña colada as the first one was also on the house as soon as we walked i and unfortunately they added alcohol to it so I did not drink anymore than 2 sips . I still got charged for it … and the on the house virgen piña colada I could swear they charged me for it because it was on the bill… I ordered their chicken and shrimp tempura without shrimp & without eel sauce and they brought it out to me with the eels sauce. I got tostones and they were too soft for my liking and they didn’t have mayoketchup or salt, just a garlic coating . My fiancé ordered crab cakes and it was more potatoes stuffed than crab. Overall the food was okay just not something I would go back for. We felt like it was overall a waste of a date night because they messed up twice with my order & we had a baby sister plus tolls so it was an overall expensive night that left a sour taste in my mouth. My last peeve was the art that was shown on the walls lacked proportions. Now to some it’s whatever, but the Dominican culture is beautiful! Our art, music, food and overall culture is what makes us who we are. I felt like it lacked that & the food was nothing special. No dessert options either.

I was confused as to why gratitude was automatically added for a table of 2 when usually in other spots it’s added for 5+ people and then suggested tip was recommended for afterwards.

For that I would of rather drove to NYC to eat at Mamasushi. I hope Dulce Patria is able to take this review to better themselves and being the spice to...

I’m writing this review because I would have loved to read something like this before deciding to celebrate my husband’s birthday here.

First, the positives: the restaurant is very clean and aesthetically pleasing. Natasha, who arranged my reservation over the phone, was kind and professional—her hospitality was a big reason I chose this restaurant for my husband’s birthday dinner. She confirmed our reservation for a group of eight on Saturday at 9 pm, explained that brunch ends at 6 pm, and reassured me that there would still be a DJ and party atmosphere afterward. She also mentioned that the restaurant decorates the table and provides a complimentary cake for birthday celebrations, which sounded wonderful.

Unfortunately, the actual experience fell far short of expectations. We arrived around 9:05 pm after struggling to find parking, only to walk into an empty restaurant with no DJ. The host, who was on the phone when we arrived, rolled her eyes at us, which immediately set the tone. Our table was decorated with balloons as promised, but we rushed to order as soon as we sat down, even before reviewing the menu. The overall energy from the staff made us feel unwelcome.

My husband wanted to leave right away, but since they had decorated the table, we decided to stay for dinner and planned to go elsewhere afterward for a celebratory vibe. His sister drove from Philadelphia and arrived about an hour later, only to be told by the waitress that the kitchen was closing soon and she needed to order within 15 minutes. This was surprising since we were under the impression the restaurant was open until midnight.

We ordered 2 appetizers, 4 entrees, 6 drinks, and 7 shots, with the bill totaling about $500. The presentation of food and drinks was nice, but the flavors were inconsistent. More than that, the staff’s energy suggested they were eager for us to leave so they could close up. When it came time for the birthday cake, the staff plugged their phones to play a birthday song, and simply placed it on the table without engaging in the celebration. When I asked if they could cut the cake and provide plates, the waitress looked annoyed and said we could just take it home in the box.

Overall, this was one of the most disappointing restaurant experiences I’ve had, especially for such an important occasion. My husband was looking forward to celebrating his 33rd birthday, but instead we felt rushed and unwelcome.

As a business owner myself, I see a lot of potential in this restaurant—it has the space, cleanliness, and presentation. But hospitality and atmosphere matter just as much, and I strongly recommend the owner reconsider staff training and hiring if they truly want this place to grow.

Unfortunately, I cannot recommend this location for anyone looking to celebrate a special occasion or enjoy a warm, welcoming...

Worst date night of 2024!. I'm writing this as me and my date are walking out of the place somehow still hungry after spending 80 dollars ?? We choose to branch out tonight and try something outside of our usual local go-to spots. Big mistake. I'm embarrassed because I choose the place and me and my date had an awful time... let me start with the service. We went for happy hour, arrived at 5 and were sat at a table pretty promptly. By the time our first drink even arrived we had already been there for 25 minutes... needless to say those went down quickly, due to us sitting there THIRSTY the whole time... then our food comes out, which was just ok at best. The real shocker was when i received my order of wings only to find that I had waited almost 40 minutes for 3 wings... yes your reading that correctly, THREE wings (who does that??).. So after consuming the most pitiful portion of chicken I think I've ever received in my life, of course we were quite thirsty AGAIN..... we ordered 2 more drinks and figured we would wait to finish our meal. by the time we got our 2nd drink, it was 6:10 pm.... 25 minutes after we had even ordered it and ten minutes after happy hour? We sat there for 25 minutes practically choking from our mouths being so dry while our food sat and got cold... to add insult to injury the 2 waters we had requested never even Made their way out to the table... we intended on having more then just 2 drinks however the service is SOOO poor that 2 drinks is all they are able to get out to the table.... what made matters worse is that we watched the table directly next to us (table of 6) receive countless appetizers and 5 or 6 drinks during the time that we were there. To have Bad service across the entire restaurant is one thing, But when we see that we are the only patrons being ignored. We understand that we are not welcomed here... granted we had come from work and our attire certainly reflected that. But being in an environment where your customers can't feel welcomed is downright detrimental to a business... if your not going to cater to the working men and women, then honestly just close your doors already and make room for a new establishment.... shame on dulce patria and the staff for being so inattentive and unhospitable. This was our first and last visit here 👎🏽 and to whoever has read this far, take my word, there are so many other AMAZING establishments nearby, don't make the mistake I did, Don't give your business to this one!

And what's crazy is that after calling them out on social media their response was to block me 🤣🤣 the owner is a coward who refuses accountability for his mediocre establishment and staff. The customer is...