James and Main — Restaurant in Town of Hempstead

Think twice before making a Resi…. I don’t like leaving bad reviews because as a business owner, I always like when we are given a second chance. But our experience was so bad I had to leave a review. The atmosphere is great, the food is delicious although it’s a limited menu but that’s ok. The Service on the other hand is horrible if I could give it zero stars I would. I absolutely cannot emphasize how bad the service was.We waited 40 minutes for a table, but that’s OK, we didn’t mind all restaurants have a wait. So, we got a drink at the bar. once we were seated we waited 20 minutes for a menu of which the Server told us she was going to get, but NEVER came back with them. So we asked the hostess, who was walking past for menus and water and the bread that was promised. She brought us the menus after 15 more minutes. Then a plate of bread, butter and two glasses of warm water were brought over by a Bus person. Another 15 minutes went by and the server took our order. We ordered a few apps and an entrée. After another 30 minutes, it all came out at once and was placed on a tiny table, But at this point, we were so frustrated. We just told the person who brought the food to our table to just leave it. We never saw the waitress again. We asked for refills on our drinks. We never received them even after asking twice. No one came to check up on us. There was no salt or pepper on the table and there was no one to ask for it. We also didn’t get refills of the warm water we received. We had to ask two times for the check and never saw the server again. The hostess apologized for the horrible service and the owner on the way out. This is the second time this happened to us, and it’s a shame because the food is really good. It’s a neighborhood restaurant with nice indoor and outdoor ambience and live music. But because of the horrible, horrible, horrible service we will...

I can't tell you how the food was because we were never seated! The service there is so horrible, I will never go back and give them my business. And I will let everyone know, that there are much better places and nicer owners. We had reservations for 6:30. It was a birthday celebration and my sister was traveling almost an hour and we got there at 6:43. Not once did they call to confirm, call to make sure we were coming, they just gave our table away! When I saw another booth available they said thats reserved for someone else. I said how could you just give our table away! We had reservations and they had no answer. It was a young kid at the hostess counter and then the owner/manager I don't know who the old man was, but he came over and was mean, nasty and not accommodating. WE would have spend a decent amount of money there it was supposed to be a special night and they were horrible!!! If I could give less than one star I would. Thank god for Haviland! We should have just stuck with what we know is delicious with great conversation and service. Since it was a Saturday night and hard to get in any place with 5 people and no reservations, Don from Haviland helped us out and Chadwicks of RVC got us in. Thank you to them, they both saved the night! It was delicious food and a great atmosphere. I highly recommend Haviland of East Rockaway and Chadwicks of RVC. Not that either need a great review from me, the food and service speak for themselves but I just wanted to thank them and let others know my experience at James and Main. I am a local resident and will never recommend this restaurant to anyone. I actually miss the Fishery!! Maybe they though we weren't the type of clientele they...

The food was ok; nothing to complain or rave about. My issue is with service. Our server, while very nice, introduced herself, leaned on the table and proceeded to point to and tell us about all the items on the menu she'd recommend. I don't know if they are told to do this or if she takes it upon herself. If I don't ask you for a recommendation, please don't give me yours.

We ordered an appetizer, soup, a salad to share and our main course. The appetizer, soup and salad came out all at once. All plopped down on the table at the same time. Granted, I did not request the order, but I thought it was standard to stagger the appetizer and salad. The bus boys, while attentive, were ready to take any dish away at any given moment which is a bit much.

We were about three quarters of the way through our main course when she put the dessert menu on the table. We were not done eating, the dishes weren't cleared away and we weren't asked if we wanted to see a dessert menu. These might seem like petty complaints but service and presentation are a large part of the appeal of a restaurant. I hope the owners take notice of...