Tucannon Tavern — Restaurant in Walla Walla

Ate there two times now. The food is great but both times the service was bad. Only one person working front of house. First time waited like 15 mins before they cleaned off our table, and then had to ask for menus. We had to sit outside because tables inside were still covered with dishes from previous people and were told we had to sit outside. Waited longer before being asked if we were going to be leaving, but told staff we haven't even ordered yet. If I was the owner and just opening a restaurant, it's always good when you have either the owner or a manager to be onsite to make sure things are running smoothly. I don't think it's the workers fault, if they had more staff working would have probably went better. The food was good, but service made the experience not that great. Never checked on after we got our food, had to ask for multiple things. We came back a second time just for the wings, and try something else on the menu, and to see if the service was gonna be any better. Once again, one person was greeting people as they came in, taking orders and cleaning the tables. Short staffed. Not very professional. It's unfortunate because I feel like the food is great, but with the service being so poor, it may not last...

Reserved a table for a birthday. Miscommunication between the two servers on a dinner shift meant we waited over 15 mins to order food and drinks, and another 45 to get the food. Starter salad came after main was set on table. No check ins, I was not asked if I would like another drink, we were not offered dessert menus (BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION, ahem. I REALLY wanted to try the cinnamon roll bread pudding). I do not blame the staff. I blame to ownership. They are clearly cutting costs to pad their pockets, to the detriment of the servers capacity and the guests' enjoyment. There was no support for the two servers. C'mon, a bartender, a busser, anything would have helped. There appeared to be limited training for the servers. They played spotify with ads (another cost cut?) and had an 18 year old NBA all star game on the TV. Basic service quality wasn't present. Invest in this business and you will get results. Otherwise it will fail. I know the ladies seated next to me (who were seated after, but ordered before) will not be back. In a small town like this, reputation is everything. Word of mouth is powerful. You've been open a month and a half and there are already four reviews with similar comments to...

I really wanted to love this place; I’m willing to consider that maybe we went on an off-day. Or that they’re new and just need to clock some miles on their belt.

PROS: Excellent cauliflower starter Husband loved his “Pack Mule” cocktail Great location Crème Brûlée was lovely. Prices were fair for the location

CONS: -Server seemed very inexperienced and while just two people handled the whole restaurant and bar, they clearly needed a third. Some inattention was there. Maybe someone called out or Tuesdays aren’t normally as full as they were… so staffing was off? I’m pretty sure my Whiskey Sour was just whiskey and orange juice. 👀 Weird. Not tasty. -I asked for fries to be extra crispy, they were normal. -My salmon burger and his tucannon burger both needed more sauce we thought… Ambient music either stopped midway through dinner or wasn’t there to begin with but both of us found ourselves noticing the lack of mood music as we ate. Felt odd.

Anyway… I hope they improve because all the ingredients are there for this to be a great place. Just needs...