Mugshots Grill and Bar - Tuscaloosa, AL — Restaurant in Tuscaloosa

It was a bit crazy! When we got there we were told it was going to be a 40-minute wait. We were seated in about 10 minutes. We ordered drinks right away and everything seemed fine. We ordered appetizers and everyone ordered their main course for the evening as well. That's when the fun started! The place started filling up. However there were several empty tables with people waiting to get a table, and yet they remained empty. There were at least five tables who had drinks on their table and had ordered, yet had not received any food at that point. It seemed that they had plenty of staff but it also seemed like the kitchen was just not putting the food out fast enough. I saw several tables complaining, and I must say the staff was very understanding. It just seemed like they were overwhelmed. The bartender, who seemed like an owner based on his demeanor, got into it with one of the guests who insisted on sitting at a table that was not available for anyone to be sitting at. I overheard him telling staff that he was not going to serve him and then I heard him ask this guy to leave. At about an hour in, we finally got our appetizers. They were pretty good. The main entrees followed about 10 minutes later, also pretty good. Overall the food was good, however it just seemed that the staff were in over their heads. It was parent weekend at the University of Alabama, and I feel that they just did not prepare for the extra large crowd that they should have anticipated. I would think being a restaurant in the downtown section of Tuscaloosa, minutes from the University, that they would have this down to a science. But who am I to judge. Maybe they had five people call out that night, I don't know. In the end the food was good but the service was underwhelming. I would go back again when I would think that there would be less crowds and less pressure to get the food out from...

Some friends were visiting from out of town, so we decided to eat here. I ordered the breakfast burger plain, specifically stating "Plain, just meat, egg, cheese, and bun". My server Riley asked "okay, did you want the bacon with that?" I responded "yes please". When my burger arrived it had mayonnaise on it. I mentioned it to her and she took it back. She came back out about 2 minutes later. It was clearly the same burger, just throwing back on the grill after having the mayonnaise scraped off, and they browned a new bun. When she came back by the check on us, I told her "just giving me the same burger with the new bun and throwing it back on the grill for a minute is not going to work." She took the basket and said she would take it off. She came back and asked if I wanted another one, or just for them to take it off, to which I responded that I would like it taken off the ticket. I thought everything was settled, but she made sure to make her feelings known after we had paid and tipped. She proceeded to lecture me that most restaurants would have done the exact same thing by sending the same burger back unless there were concerns about allergies. I thought things were square, but clearly Riley had some hostility that she wanted to address. This could have been handled differently, and I left disappointed. I understand that she's only works there a few months, and I hope that her sense of hospitality and courtesy improves. My wife and I previously enjoyed this restaurant on our one previous visit, but I can't return with this lack of...

We entered the restaurant in the early afternoon and waited at least 15 mins at the hostess station, never acknowledged by any of the wait staff that passed by. We were seated, given menus and left waiting for 30 mins or more for our waitress who escorted a white family to their table, gave them menus, promptly brought them water and reviewed the specials. My dining companion had to walk back to the hostess station to get their attention. While the young lady apologized she did not leave it at that she made excuses for being new, being asked to take on two tables, and worse she continued to deliver slow, lackluster service not giving us have the attentiveness that she gave other customers. The food was not warm but by far the best part of the worst experience. Sadly, my dining companion did not want to come there due to the establishment's poor reputation for not being welcoming to Black people. As a local I disputed that based on previous experiences during which I received great service and great food. I even refrained from writing this review initially and reached out to the establishment via email to share my experience which has gone without a response. I will never eat here again and I encourage any Black person to stop frequenting this or any place that does not treat you as a valued customer. There are far too many restaurants here providing quality food AND service to settle for one that really fall short...