Whiskey Cake Kitchen & Bar — Restaurant in San Antonio

I’d like to preface this review with the fact that I used to work there. It was only for a few months as I saw an abusive trend in management, but the old general manager was always very kind. I suppose in the past year they got a new general manager because I had an absolutely disgraceful experience with him a few months ago. I tried to just let it go, but I’d never received such demeaning and condescending customer service. He might not work there anymore and if that’s the case, please disregard or contact me and I’ll take this down because their food, atmosphere, and general service have always been sufficient. What happened, was I google searched whiskey cake la cantera and immediately what pops up is reserve a table or place an order. I chose place an order and placed my order, as one does. Keep in mind the order was about $80. I get to the restraunt and say my name for the order, the host says they don’t have it and gets another host. She also tells me for whatever reason it’s not showing up and she’ll get the kitchen manager. The kitchen manager comes out, he’s very nice and tells me he’s sorry for the delay as I’ve already been standing there for about 20 minutes. I show him my receipt, that it’s the right address, that it says they sent the order to the restraunt, and he tells me they’ll have it right out on the fly. I say thank you and continue to wait. Then the new general manager comes up to asking for more information. I go over it all again with him and he says he’s very sorry for everything and the food will be out soon and if I can txt him the order so he can right it. I txt him the screenshot with the total and the correct location, everything i already told him and at this point I started to get a different tone from him. About 15 minutes later he came out with the food and tells me the only way I can have it is if I pay for it. I’m shocked because obviously I already paid for it and just waited an hour for the food. When I tell him this he says he understand that but “we need to get paid” and “that’s just how you run a business”. The switch up was so condescending and unprofessional, maybe because I have a particular inside view as to how those situations were handled when I worked there, we would have given people their food for free just for making them wait an hour! As someone that’s seen both ends, the manager Carlos is incredibly rude, condescending, and doesn’t know how to treat customers. He says “it’s not their fault” and “they don’t have to take accountability because it was technically a third party”. If the manager is there I’d absolutely recommend staying away, he is not at all for the customer. Even when it’s clear the customer didn’t do anything wrong besides use the third party that the restaurant itself chooses to use! Maybe he’s kinder to others and I just was an easy target as a young girl. Either...

Subject: Appalling Dining Experience at Whiskey Cake

Our recent visit to Whiskey Cake was nothing short of appalling. We arrived slightly early for our reservation and were advised to sit at the bar and order a drink while we waited. Despite ordering simple drinks, it took over 20 minutes without any service, forcing us to cancel our order entirely. This level of incompetence was just the beginning.

Once we were finally seated, the service went from bad to worse. Our waitress, who couldn’t even open a bottle of wine properly, left cork grinds in our wine and didn’t bother to apologize. After receiving our waters and initial round of drinks, we never saw her again. This neglect is inexcusable.

The litany of failures continued with our appetizers. The charcuterie board arrived with no explanation of its contents, and our fried green tomatoes were completely forgotten. Adding insult to injury, the waitress didn’t inform us that the kitchen would be closing. After an hour of waiting and preparing to order, we were abruptly told that the kitchen was closed. This lack of basic communication and professionalism is utterly unacceptable.

When we raised our concerns, the manager responded with a condescending attitude, showing no interest in resolving the issues. His dismissive behavior suggested he just wanted us out of the restaurant, rather than addressing our legitimate grievances.

For anyone considering dining in the greater San Antonio area, I strongly advise avoiding Whiskey Cake at all costs. The combination of subpar food and abysmal customer service creates a disastrous experience. Spend a little more at Perry’s, Toro, or the new Tommy Bahama kitchen for vastly superior service and food.

Having lived in La Cantera for over five years, I have seen numerous management and staff changes at Whiskey Cake, but this recent visit was by far the worst. Despite previous enjoyable visits for birthdays and date nights, this experience has ensured I will never...

Dinner with family visiting from out of town. There was a bit of a wait, so we were offered a "high table" in the apparent bar section. Not a problem. We'll take it. The high seats are not comfortable, but this didn't bother me. Our server was nice but overwhelmed. It seemed they were seating a LOT of people in the bar and close to the same time. Our service suffered a bit for it. Not close to enough to deter me from returning.

Fried Green Tomatoes. DELICIOUS!!! Tastes scratch-made with a light layer of breading and fried. You can just barely taste/feel the cayenne (which I LOVE). Served with a remoulade sauce that's pretty good too, if you like mayo-based sauces. I do not like mayo, so I skip this and anything with mayo. These are a favorite of mine and I get them every single time we have Whiskey Cake.

Flash Fried Brussel Sprouts. Wow, these were impressive!! The balsamic glaze was just perfect. There is a sauce that has mayo in it that I will request on the side next time. The sprouts are cooked just perfectly. Yum!!!

Chicken Meatballs with peppers and hummus. Great! Again, taste hand-made. So fresh and delicious. Great combo of traditional mediterranean flavors. The hummus is smeared in the bowl, then the chicken meatballs, then the other sauce(s) drizzled on top of that. I'm a separate food kinda girl, so this was tough for me. But again, the flavors? Amazing.

The service was kinda rough, but I give a pass because of the mass seating she had to endure.

I've had the actual Whiskey Cake. Many times. It' nearly a religious experience. Try a tiny taste of all the elements by themselves. The cake. The whiskey sauce. The creme anglaise (like ice cream sauce). Then, take a taste with all the parts together. ... See? SOOOOOO good. Don't want to keep using the same words, but it's amazing.

Eat here as often as possible.

Might be the best mid-price-range restaurant in town.

Thank you...