Meat Market Steakhouse Tampa — Restaurant in Tampa

I would like to express my extreme dissatisfaction with the service my friend and I received on New Year's Eve. We had purchased the NYE package for five at $500 USD per person, plus drinks, in the hopes of having a special evening. Unfortunately, we were thoroughly disappointed, both by the service and the overall treatment we received.

To provide context, we are regular patrons of Michelin-starred restaurants across Canada and the US, so while I didn’t expect the same level of service as Don Alfonso or Alinea, I did expect basic decency. Regrettably, we left feeling disrespected and frustrated.

Here are the key issues we faced: Seating: We were initially seated on the sidewalk, by a parking meter, with only one chair added later, directly in the path of smokers and pedestrians. When I raised this concern, I was told, “these are the best seats in the house.” We did not escalate the issue, thinking it was simply a busy night. Drink Service: After sitting down, it took 1 hour and 45 minutes for me to receive a simple drink (bourbon with one ice cube). This delay was completely unacceptable for such a straightforward order. Portions and Food Delays: The first course was a tiny portion of sashimi for five people (one of whom does not eat fish and another who is allergic to shrimp). We were told that more appetizers would come, but they didn’t arrive until much later, and the portions were still small. By nearly 11:30 PM, we were told that our salad and main courses were ordered, even though we had never been asked what we wanted. When I questioned this, I was told, “Oh, we’ll take your order now.” Poor Food Delivery: When the manager finally checked in on us, we were promised that the delays would be addressed. However, the food that came out was poorly presented and seemed like leftovers. This was especially egregious given the $500 per person price tag. Champagne at Midnight: The manager apologized for the delays and promised to bring us champagne to “make it up to us.” However, the champagne was brought out for everyone at midnight—not as a gesture specifically for us. To make matters worse, we were later charged extra for leftover ravioli and additional hidden costs. The most frustrating part of the evening was not the delays themselves but the attitude and treatment we received throughout the night. We remained calm, polite, and respectful, even though we were increasingly frustrated. To be clear, we did not cause any scene or disturbance—yet we were consistently treated with indifference and disregard.

This experience was far from the special evening we had hoped for. Given the substantial cost, the service and overall treatment we received were completely unacceptable. I hope this feedback will be taken seriously to improve the experience for...

Yesterday, a group of my friends and I went to Meat Market for brunch. We were so excited to attend, as we heard amazing things about the food and drinks and traveled 30 minutes to the restaurant for our reservation. Upon arrival, though, our excitement turned to dismay when the hostesses indicated that one of the members of our group, a male, would not be allowed entry due to him wearing open toed shoes. We found this to be jarring, as our friend (who I should add, has very clean feet and cute toes) wouldn’t be able to join us for this meal. We asked if there was anything that could be done, and the hostesses proceeded to recommend that our friend go shopping down the street and purchase a pair of close toed shoes. While the majority of the rest of our group were females wearing open toed shoes, there was, thankfully, one female member of our group who wore Converse and traded shoes with our male friend. Then, he was able to walk into the restaurant “appropriately” with his toes covered and enclosed in too small sneakers, while our female friend slowly shuffled to the table, as she was now wearing very oversized Birkenstock sandals.

Now, I’ll say that it is completely understandable for a restaurant to want to have their customers look presentable and nice. However, as an establishment in 2025, it is interesting (disgraceful and frankly unacceptable) to 1.) have and uphold dress code policies that are solely exclusive to men and 2.) subjectively follow said dress code, as there were patrons who were allowed entry into the restaurant who were “technically” not following the dress code (males wearing sleeveless tops, men and women wearing athletic wear, etc.). I would highly encourage the management at Meat Market to engage in some reflective processes about how and why a male wearing sandals negatively impacts the ability for staff to provide the “highest level of elegant service to our guests and to immerse guests in our unique environment”, why having gender specific dress code policies solely for men is necessary, explore the meaning of “fashionable casual dress” in a more inclusive manner, and finally, examine how training and enforcing young staff to subjectively judge people through the lens of these discriminatory policies impacts society as a whole.

Meat Market is clearly looking to serve a very specific population, and although the food was very good, the experience will always be tainted by their strange and discriminatory dress...

I've never left a one-star review before, and I certainly’m not someone who does it just for the sake of complaining, but the way we were treated here was so disrespectful that I feel I need to share our experience.

My friend and I decided to sit at the bar and made sure to ask if it was first come, first serve. We were assured that it was, so we chose seats there. From the start, it took our bartender at least 15 minutes to even acknowledge us — meanwhile, she efficiently served at least 10 men who arrived after us. At one point, right when we started drinking our third cocktail she asked if we wanted our checks. We hadn’t finished yet, but she was so pushy that we reluctantly agreed. Shortly after delivering our checks, she placed “RESERVED” cards directly in front of us.

I worked in the service industry myself for six years, while in college and grad school; and there’s no such thing as “reserving” seats at the bar. We were initially told a reservation was due at 8:45 — when that time passed and the party hadn’t arrived, we stayed, expecting to continue our Saturday night. A little later, another bartender came up to us and insisted we leave due to a “VIP reservation.” At this point I still have not even finished my last glass of wine. I addressed her respectfully and explained we were told it was first come, first serve. She even acknowledged that was true — yet then proceeded to talk about the VIP policy, as if we were supposed to appreciate or care about it.

I normally avoid arguing with service staff, understanding how difficult their jobs can be, but I have honestly never experienced this kind of unfair, dishonest, and discriminatory treatment before. The bartender didn’t show the least bit of kindness or understanding — instead, we were made to feel unwelcome simply because we aren’t “old rich men” there to watch the pretty blonde bartenders. It’s a sickening business model for a restaurant that purports to be sophisticated and elevated.

I think it's only fair for the restaurant to be up front with its policy: seats at the bar are NOT first come, first serve — and you may be forced to move if you’re not spending enough or aren’t a preferred kind of customer. All that said, I still left a 20% tip because I appreciate hard-working service staff, even when the experience falls far short of...