The George — Restaurant in Town of Hempstead

My first visit went as follows: -Arrived to a warm welcome and immediately seated (++) -Restaurant was very cold which makes sense since it was night and October, but my girlfriend and I noticed that the Thermostat was set to the high 60s (since we sat right next to the thermostat). I was freezing the entire time. I'm not sure why the AC would be on that low. (---) -Waitress brought us free popcorn covered in a very good twist on traditional butter. Possibly butter with some spices in it. Either way, for a burger bar, it was a real pro and we thoroughly enjoyed it. (++) -Waitress asked us for our order and was generally good. Nothing exceptional, but did her job. (+) -I ordered a beer which was on the crisp of being flat (--) -We both ordered burgers, but the order took over 45 minutes. Given the place was nearly empty and I saw barely any other food coming out in the meantime, this was too long for even fancy burgers. (---) -I enjoyed my burger (double patty with a restaurant special sauce) and I do feel like it was worth the price. But it wasn't particularly exceptional either. (+) -My gf's burger was a mac and cheese burger. Interesting take on it, and the flavor profiles would have worked, but it was a fatally flawed dish. The flavor seemed to be in the mac and cheese, which mostly falls out when you go in to bite the burger. As a result, you eat most of it separately. Without the mac and cheese, the pretzel burger strongly overpowers the actual burger and you lose out on that flavor profile. A good attempt, but its flawed in its execution. (-) -My gf's drink came very late, but the waitress was very fair on it and we were happy with the resolution (+)

Overall, the experience was okay. It wasn't bad, but I'm not sure if we will be coming back anytime soon if this was a typical experience. The few issues that were problematic like temperature and time to prepare the food did influence this review alot. But there were also many pros and I wouldn't be opposed to coming...

UPDATE: In response to my review, GM management offered our family a make-good based on the subpar experience. They were genuinely interest in learning from my experience, and demonstrated a professional commitment to addressing the required improvements.

We took advantage of the make good this weekend. I’m pleased to report the food quality was significantly improved, alongside the always pleasant service and engaging, family friendly atmosphere. Brunch with Santa in Dec has become a bit of a tradition with us, and we have every intention of going again this year. Thank you, GM.

—- My family’s recent experiences at this restaurant have been nothing short of disappointing. We’ve been regular customers of Burger Bar (and the other GMs) since 2014…but about a year ago, the quality of the food took a drastic nosedive. It's now on par with a hungry man microwave dinner - burnt, yet seemingly undercooked, flavorless (except for an overwhelming amount of salt), and shockingly expensive.

We made the mistake of bringing my extended family here for my daughter's birthday, sticking to simple burger orders, but 7 out of 10 were sent back to the kitchen. Sadly, those that returned mostly went uneaten. We decided to give them another chance a few months later after they experienced flooding due to heavy rain (as we’re all for supporting local businesses), but our hopes were dashed once again.

The $12 kids' chicken fingers (3) were practically 99% breadcrumbs with a mere 7 fries, the kids' grilled cheese was a sad combination of break-apart cheap white bread and a single slice of American cheese. The shakes tasted like bland skim milk with zero flavor, and the $20 fiesta chicken tacos on “special” (see pic) left much to be desired.

I'm writing this review with the hope that it catches the attention of the restaurant's ownership and motivates them to improve both the food quality and the overall dining experience. Otherwise, this once-beloved establishment seems to have...

Had a reservation, and when I arrived, the place was packed. We only waited about 5 mins for the table, and everyone was super friendly. Sat us down in the far corner, it was the only table available since they were so busy. Our server, Alex, was a fantastic guy and took really good care of us all night. I do have to mention, even when the front host walking by, would ask if we were doing ok. They were very attentive here. My friend is a fan of French onion soup and got the usual bowl. What i liked about it was there was not much bread and plenty of thick cheese. It had a nice flavor to it. There was a special on Bone in rib eye, and we ordered that to share. I was a little disappointed because it came with no bone. I always believe the bone adds more flavor to the beef. I do like to rip into the bone also!! It tasted more like an entrecote than a rib eye. It's not as juicy but not bad. We also added the creamed spinach and the grilled broccoli. One thing i can say is their drinks are phenomenal! We had a total of 4 drinks. I had some Amaro at first to digest, and then I had the Clooney Naked and famous, which was really good. My friend had an Aperol Spritz and the Cherry Tree. All in all, it was a good place to dine, and I would return to try their short ribs and other delicacies. We terminated our mewl with the mpist double chocolate cake. It is very rich and nice portion!! Alex really was super friendly and very nice! Definitely would want him again as our server!!

Upon reflection, it looks like i may have been given the...