Pepe's Wharf Restaurant — Restaurant in Provincetown

We truly wish we could leave a positive review, but the server (and eventually then the manager) who was assigned to us last night for our party of 4 - myself, age FIFTY TWO, my partner, my daughter age 24 and her fiancé, out celebrating their engagement - decided to appoint himself the legal arbitrator of Massachusetts State Law and declare that our fully valid Ontario drivers licence’s were not sufficient ID. We were ordering a bottle of champagne for the occasion -certainly not our first taste of alcohol in the state, or in Provincetown - all other times we’ve purchased were at legal establishments where we presented these same drivers licences and were accepted without any issue.

When we protested that we have had zero issue at any other restaurant bar store or otherwise, he said at least twice that we must have been lucky to have found establishments that “don’t respect the law” - with the clear inference that we were the type of people that needed to visit illegal boozecans. The entire thing was so ridiculous that the table beside us, 3 lovely gentlemen probably the same age or older than myself, began to protest on our behalf and they finally also cancelled their drinks in solidarity.

When the manager came, we brought up the pictures of our other ID - passport, state issued health cards, etc - but she was not any more helpful. She said the restaurant can be liable if they get caught serving to minors or those with fake ID.

But here’s where Pepe’s staff and management are missing the intent of the law - they are only liable if (and truly this would have to have been some extreme circumstance) SOMEHOW if challenged by law enforcement, we could not prove that we were in fact who our drivers licences said we are and the age that we are. There aren’t any roving cops randomly approaching tables of 4 at the back deck of Pepe’s Wharf. Even if we went out on the street drunk off our faces - note: we arrived for 8pm dinner and they close at 9 or so, so getting drunk that fast would be nearly impossible - any cops who would ask us for ID on the street would gladly accept our drivers licences and photos of our passports to issue us a citation.

In other words, based upon several trips here over the years, always being served, establishments in Mass are operating on the balance of probabilities, accepting our ID because it’s quite apparent that we are obviously over the age of majority to purchase alcohol, and that the risk of legal liability by the restaurant is zero or near-zero. This is a discretionary call that restaurants are making probably a hundred times a day or week, and assuredly servers at Pepe’s have made this same call. Pepe’s decided that *we were not deserving of it.

But then again it did make a bit of sense, when we were told upon arriving that we’d need to wait 10 min so they could clear a table - only to watch them clear off the back corner table one of the least desirable ones, when the nice tables by the waters edge sat empty and uncleared from the previous diners..they just didn’t want to clear the nice spot for us.

Not to mention the fact that my daughters fiancé is US Navy personnel and had his credentials - to this the server “joked” that he’d be able to bring him a drink but no one else.

So that’s where after considering all the facts, and the way the other table protested on our behalf, we landed on discrimination. We believe these two - the server and the manager - just didn’t like that we were a mixed race group and decided to treat us with the most strict application of this law. We were definitely discriminated against, so we had no choice but to leave and find somewhere else to eat - at nearly 8:30pm

They should be ashamed of themselves, but as it turns out there was another fine restaurant that not only welcomed us in, they also didn’t challenge a 52 year old man when he ordered a bottle, and very graciously provided us a fine meal service on a $500+ bill. I guess our money was good enough for them.

Shame on you Pepe’s, you tried to ruin our little...

I made my 5:30pm reservation for Thursday, June 17th for two adults and three kids (with 1 high chair on the reservation) on May 31st - 18 days ahead of time.

When I walked up and shared my name, they told me that my table was in front of me, overlooking their - parking lot.

I walked to the back of the lot and looked at their gorgeous patio overlooking the water and saw it was half empty. When I went back to inquire if there were any tables available on the patio, they informed me that those tables were all reserved before I did. Obviously the hostess had no clue that I booked 18 days ahead and that was impossible. This is what she is trained to say and I'm sure it works most of the time.

So I mentioned that I'm surprised - as I booked 18 days ahead and when I made my booking, every time slot was available. There was no way the restaurant booked out that far ahead. (In fact, today I see there are still reservations available for tonight - a Friday night.) They aren't as popular as they pretend to be.

The manager walked over and the hostess raised my concern to him. He also told me that he was sorry, but everyone booked those tables ahead of me. I pulled up my e-mail confirmation to show that I booked it 18 days ahead of time. Then he said "I'm sorry sir, but when we see children on the reservation, we put them over here away from everyone else."

The issue is not that they have this policy of putting kids away from everyone else. If that's your policy, own it. Embrace it. And manage the customer with respect. Be transparent an honest.

The issue is how Pepe's Wharf manages the situation:

1. They could have managed it in advance: I booked 18 days ahead of time. I got on an airplane. I found a restaurant within walking distance from our whale watch that I also booked well ahead of time. Pepe's Wharf Restaurant had my e-mail and phone number with my reservation. They could have contacted me at any time to tell me they don't like to children in their restaurant. They could have e-mailed me before I got on an airplane for my trip.
2. They could have managed it with honesty. They led with a lie. They weren't transparent with their customer. When they said that everyone booked those tables ahead of me, the hostess lied. She has been trained to lie. The manager lied. They are trained to lie to their guests. If they lie about something as little as this, it makes me wonder about ingredient quality, cutting corners in the kitchens, etc. etc. If they treat their customers with little respect like this, how do they treat their employees?

I'm in the food service industry. Pepe's could use some help with how they manage their client expectations and train their staff to treat their customers with respect, honesty, and transparency. This management team appears to lack these qualities.

In addition, with Pepe's being located Provincetown - a town that prides itself on being welcoming of all people, they may want to revisit how they welcome people...

I was there with my partner on 6/26/24 for a late lunch. We opted for the 2nd floor bar and were directed to the two seats closest to the service station.

Why did we sit there?

There were about 8 empty bar stools, but your staff had allowed a female patron to reserve all open stools for a party that showed up about 20 minutes later and opted for a table on the patio instead.

We ordered a dozen oysters and 2 cocktails.

Only 6 came out. The bartender had to intervene to get the remaining six brought to us.

While sitting at the bar, on a stool, my partner’s flip flops came off. A member of your stuff came over and advised that footwear must remain on at all times. Ok, we’re outside at the bar but sure, if that’s the rule he obliged without making a scene or creating a fuss. It was a shorter black man with an ear piece that came to us.

Now, throughout all this, your service staff was coming to the service station, reaching around my partner to get a hold of the soda gun to fill glasses. Not the bartender on the service side, but your waiters and waitresses on the customer side reaching around my partner for the gun. Every time they did this he politely adjusted his body to give them space.

When I went to use the restroom I approached the gentleman who told my partner to put his flip flops back on and quietly said something like, “I get that my partner has to keep his shoes on, but can you tell your staff not to reach around him to get the soda gun?”. I didn’t yell, I didn’t make a scene, I just politely asked if they could stop while we were eating there. He replied that they weren’t supposed to do that and said he’d take care of it.

This is how that played out:

Another one of your service staff, probably around 30ish white male brown hair, brown eyes, glasses also with an ear piece came up to us and made a scene. In front of the entirety of the bar customers, bar staff and servers said staff need to use the gun. He said that’s what we get for sitting where we were and if we didn’t like it we could move. He said this loudly, and in manner meant to embarrass us.

If I had wanted to mortify my partner in public, I would have told each and every server every time they reached for the soda gun to stop and I would have told the bartender not allow them while we were there.

It was ridiculous that this other staffer should come over and yell at us when my interactions with your staff were polite and cordial.

So, we didn’t go back to Pepe and ate only once at the Patio. We ate at ciro’s, mews, jimmy’s etc but won’t be returning to either of your three places for this...