Willow Street Pizza & Taproom — Restaurant in San Jose

I just moved into the neighborhood and I've had probably been there four times, once in the dining room and three times at the bar. Previously, Tonight and yesterday in the evening I have the same bartender, both times she's very non attentive, kind of nonchalant and rude, in a hurry, tonight it kind of felt like the bartender was doing me a favor by allowing me to sit there and eat because it was 30 minutes before you close and I understand that it's not good etiquette to go in late but we were not the latest people walked in it was actually people who are barely getting their food as we were done, if you’re not gonna give the same quality of food and service at 8:30 PM he shouldn’t do it all, the past it was cold no bread was given no courtesy at all it was very short and felt like you didn’t want the business of the people that came in. service was way below average, all 3 times but I figured I would give the place a chance because it was my local place and new to me and I thought maybe it was the time of day or busy or I don’t know I guess I was making excuses for the crappy service,she has tended to all of her regulars and apparently not me and the different parties that I took to try to enjoy one of my local places. The first time I was at a hightop near the bar area and was completely ignored after her switching with another bartender, we had no idea that he left and then I saw her and wasn't even sure if she was the bartender and then once I realize she was a bartender she paid zero attention to me and my party at all whatsoever passed by us at least a half a dozen times while tending to her regulars, without even saying hi your bartender left I'm your new bartender or is there anything I can get for you guys, or drinks were empty for at least 20 minutes and he finally decided to close out because we were so disappointed in the service. Just a little advice for the management or owners of this place, if your staff comes in with hickeys all up and down their neck you should probably require them to wear turtlenecks because it's disgusting and...

I've been coming here for YEARS. Today I went there with a coworker and we ordered what we always do... the chicken breast with veggies. She mentioned what few veggies we got and I noticed how thin the chicken breast were... however I said it was probably a different cook... and it was still very tasty. After lunch I ordered a take out LARGE salad... the dinner kind that is a full meal to bring back to a vegetarian coworker. I've been doing this for years. They gave me the same clear square container with about 1/4 the normal simple salad. I was shocked. The prices didn't change but the meal sure did. I went up and spoke to a young man at the register who seemed to act like he was in charge. He said they had been changing things on the menu and they did it that way for "presentation." Huh? So I get 1/4 of the salad, but pay for the full amount cause it looks better? When he saw my face he then said it was also cost effective. The greens are the cheapest part of any menu. I basically paid $10+ for something worth 50 cents. I said I would have to go to Safeway just to add greens before I give this to my coworker. He gave me a form to fill out if I had any issues and that was it. ZERO zero zero customer service. I was floored at how badly this restaurant has changed. It is a shame cause that is the last time I spend a dime on that place. My friend told me to give the salad back, but I knew my coworker was waiting for it so I just brought it back and explained to him why it was so small. I did not even want to give this one star... that star is only because our waiter was very nice... NEVER going back there again... what a shame that they don't know how to...

I was really looking forward to dining at Willow Street with my family, especially knowing that the meat was halal and that Chef Hisham was leading the kitchen. It is rare to find a restaurant that accommodates our dietary needs, and we came in excited to enjoy a good meal together.

Unfortunately, the experience fell short of expectations. While the flavors were there, much of the food arrived cold or tasting as if it had been reheated. The wings were lukewarm and lacked freshness, the garlic fries were served completely cold, and both sandwiches we ordered, the Caprese BLT and the Pesto Chicken, were also cold when they hit the table. The burger was dry and cold. Even the grilled summer steak salad my daughter ordered came with steak that was not warm.

For a restaurant under such capable leadership, I was surprised by the inconsistency in food temperature and quality. It made dishes that should have been standouts feel rushed and underwhelming.

To add to this, we were a party of five adults and two infants, yet were charged a 20 percent gratuity. Normally, I would not mind this at all, as I am always happy to support hardworking servers, but in this case, both the food and service did not meet the mark to justify it.

I truly hope this was just an off night because the foundation is there with the flavors, the halal offerings, and the reputation of the chef. With more attention to execution and service, this could be a restaurant we would happily return to. As it stands, it was a disappointing experience for a highly...