Seconds Restaurant — Restaurant in Town of Athens

If I could give negative stars I would. I have Celiac disease and made it VERY clear to the server that I had Celiac and could not have gluten. I wanted to order the salmon and asked that she double check with the kitchen that it was gluten free. She did and they said it was. When the dish came it had a side, I was unsure what it was so I double checked that it was gluten free and she said yes. A few minutes later, she came back and said she was sorry, but the side was couscous and it was not gluten free. I had already eaten several bites which meant I would soon be very, very sick.

As someone with Celiac, I always make it clear that I have Celiac and I 100% understand if a restaurant feels they cannot accommodate me (or any allergies for that matter). I always say that I am normally pretty aware of gluten containing ingredients, but sometimes things are hidden (soy sauce, malt vinegar, a sauce that uses flour to thicken) but in the event I order something with gluten, I ask that the server let me know.

Despite this, I understand mistakes happen. However, what outraged me was when the owner/manager came up to me and said, "Didn't you read the menu? Didn't you see the side was couscous?" I have worked in the service industry for 30 years. Rule #1, you don't accuse or berate the customer in these situations. You simply apologize and ask if there is anything you can do. Instead, this woman literally blamed me for not paying enough attention to the fact that the side was couscous. Honestly, I hadn't even seen that. So, okay, I'll take some responsibility, but I eat out weekly, and have for years, and when I explain I have Celiac and ask that the server share that with the kitchen, I DO depend on the kitchen staff to understand what that means and avoid putting anything with gluten on the dish. But even so, for her to actually not be apologetic, but rather accusatory, was shocking.

The server was sweet and apologetic. She was young and I could see she felt badly, but again, she clearly wasn't trained to deal with people who cannot have gluten. The salmon was amazing, and I was so sorry I had to stop eating it. It was delicious (but I knew anything I ate would come up later so I stopped).

Again, I 100% understand it is not easy to deal with people's dietary restrictions and allergies as a restaurant owner/manager. I know people like me are a pain. And I know it seems to be even more prevalent that people have allergies and restrictions and even particular tastes. But to treat a customer in this way, one who was quite calm and kind, is not acceptable. I will never go back. What's more, my children have Celiac too and if this would have been one of them and she acted like that, well, I would not have remained as calm as I did.

I know this review is very particular, and I never usually write reviews, but I am...

My mother and I had dinner at Seconds last evening and had a fantastic experience. She thought she had made a reservation through Google, but never received a confirmation. When we arrived at 6 PM—on a busy summer concert night in Athens—we realized we didn’t have one. Despite the crowd, the hostess was incredibly gracious and managed to find us a table for two.

The service throughout the evening was excellent. Our waitress was warm, efficient, and attentive—our water glasses were never empty.

We both enjoyed a glass of the organic Chianti (a generous pour) and the eggplant Parmesan, which was outstanding. It came stacked with tender eggplant, spinach, and ricotta, served alongside a perfectly cooked and seasoned pasta in vodka sauce. The portion was just right—we each ate half and took the rest home.

The restaurant itself is beautiful, with great ambiance. It was busy and lively, but everything flowed smoothly. Everyone around us seemed to be enjoying themselves just as much as we...

Reviews looked great! Not sure if the restaurant was understaffed when we came in, but, honestly service was terrible, rushed, unresponsive and slowwwww. Food came out cold and everything tastes like it’s cheap, reheated & frozen. Even a simple pasta with sauce was gross & ice cold. The bread and olive oil was the best part! Delish. Some more bread while we waited 40 min to get our food with no explanation or check in would have been nice. C’mon guys! If you’re competing with all the great food offerings in the area, you need to step it up. Wanted & hoped to love this place! But it falls short - & I don’t recommend. Spaghetti at home would have been better. I hate hate writing bad reviews & I only do it when I feel like a biz is super unprofessional....