The Guenther House — Restaurant in San Antonio

I have been looking forward to going to this place for a while. Online, it looked like a place that was historic and nice to have a small gathering of friends or lovely outing with your significant other.

So you can't make reservations, so expect a waiting time. My husband and I waited about 40 minutes before getting our text notification that our table was ready. We didn't mind that because we had the option to choose indoor, outdoor, or no preference. I assume the long wait was because I wanted indoor seating.

However, this is when our service went downhill. I noticed that indoors had two different waiting staff. Each served 5 tables, and looking out the window, were others serving those outside. It took a while for our server to come by our table, but he had glasses of water and told us he would be back soon to take our order.

I usually do not mind waiting. It's time to chat and look over the menu. However, with the 40 minutes waiting for the table, my husband and I already knew what we wanted, but he walked away as soon as he could.

While waiting for him to come back to take our order. I notice the other side of the small indoor seating area that the other waiter attended to was seating people who check in after we were seated, being asked their drink options as well as being able to order. They even got their drinks before we got to order ours.

When our waiter came back, we ordered our drinks and food at the same time. From the time we ordered our food to getting our food. The two tables that came in after us received their food. One table outside that sat down after us with about 6 people received their food, and a table inside that my husband noticed that sat down after we ordered got their food less than 5 minutes after us. We had checked in at 11:27am and were served our food around 1:15pm. Our table was ready at 12:06pm. (I know the times due to being notified by text when your table is ready and my husband checking the time when it was 1pm and we still were not served)

By this time, I think the waiter knew I was agitated because he walked by to let us know that there was one more ticket ahead of us. Unfortunately, I was already upset by this point and trying to understand why we received such a service.

Once the food was served, we were really hungry and weren't in a happy mood. The pancakes and waffles were good, and if our service wasn't so disappointing, I would have wanted to come back.

I wanted to walk the grounds, take pictures of our food and building inside and out, buy things in their store, but by the time we left, I just wanted to leave.

I don't know why our service was so slow cause those around us came after us, was served before us, and left before us. I was left with a bad first impression, and I won't be visiting again. It is a shame because the food...

I think it's a great place to check out at least once. I just hope your experience was better than mine. I hoping they were just having an off day.

It's a great place because of the history tied into it. We had an hour wait, which we expected. We went to the gift shop and walked around the riverwalk while we waited. There was no employee in the gift shop. I found something I wanted to purchase but couldn't find anyone to ring me up. I waited 10 minutes at the desk while my husband looked and showed me trinkets. Just as we were about to leave the checkout desk, an employee showed up, no apologies, warm greetings, or eye contact, just, is that it? Not the end of the world, I just thought it wasn't the best customer service. 😕 Once we were sat, we chose to sit outside. Someone had a dog in a carrying case, yipping in an ungodly high-pitched manner. I had read on the website that only registered service animals were allowed, so we left our 2 fur babies at home. We would have loved to bring them to walk around, but we wanted to be respectful. This dog yipped the whole time, still yipping as we left. Not one employee said a thing to this woman about her dog, which clearly wasn't a service animal. I understand employees not wanting to lose business or cause a potential scene, but her dog was horribly loud. I can't speak for anyone else, but it certainly had an impact on how much I enjoyed my experience. The service was decent. I never felt like I wasn't being taken care of, maybe just a little rushed. Our server did the best to his ability, but he had a large party that was constantly needing his attention. None of the employees seemed to be enjoying themselves. They looked like they dreaded life. I've worked in the services industry for many years, so it made me chuckle because i get it, but they could use a moral boost. I highly recommend their Founders coffee. I ordered chicken and waffles, and my husband had an enchilada. The chicken and waffles were good. The waffles were a little dense for my liking. The enchilada was soggy and cold. Not the end of the world. Our server was working hard. We really just wanted to leave because this dogs bark was ear wrenching. So we decided not to send it back, and I would rewrap it with a fresh tortilla when we got home. I'm glad we checked it out. It just wasn't the experience we...

Disorienting Experience with Unwelcoming Service

I recently visited a restaurant that, despite having a great location and potential, left me feeling frustrated and disappointed. Let's start with the positives—the building itself is situated in a lovely spot, and it has a two-story structure that could offer some unique charm. The decor, especially with its antique touches, could make for a cozy atmosphere—if only you could actually find your way around.

The main problem here is the total lack of direction and clear signage. From the parking lot, you're already lost. There's no clear indication of where to go, and trying to figure out the right entrance is a maze. I ended up wandering around the main building, hoping someone would point me in the right direction. Eventually, after some trial and error, I found myself heading upstairs, only to find more rooms, antique decor, and an elevator that went to…who knows where. It felt like I was walking through a store or a museum, not a restaurant.

Once I finally located the patio at the back, where the actual dining area is, things didn’t improve much. No one seemed to acknowledge my presence or guide me on where to check in. I had to go back outside and stand in a random spot to finally find the check-in area, and when I did, the person at the desk barely even looked up. The response? “It’s going to be a 1.5 to 2-hour wait.”

Really? On a holiday, no less? A little warmth and hospitality would have gone a long way—especially considering the disorienting experience leading up to that moment. I get that wait times can be long, but at least some friendly acknowledgment would have made the whole situation more bearable.

It’s a shame because the location and the potential for a nice experience are there, but the lack of proper guidance, poor service, and general sense of chaos made this visit a frustrating one. If you’re planning to visit, just be prepared to get lost—and don’t expect much in the way of customer care. A little effort in hospitality could turn this place around, but as it stands, it feels more like a treasure hunt than a...