The Bryant Food and Drink Co. — Restaurant in West Lafayette

I made a reservation for a work party and was told they do not like to book reservations on Friday nights, especially for parties larger than 12. That was right around what I was expecting; although, I may have had a few more. I made sure to get RSVPs from folks so I could pivot to a different location and cancel, if necessary. We ended up having 11 folks total in our party, so it worked out. They sent me a text the day before the reservation to ask that we keep the reservation limited to 2 hours or less (this would have been nice to know when I had booked ~3 weeks prior).

Move to the day of: I got there around 20 minutes early thinking they could seat me at the table if it was ready or at least seat me right at 6 pm, since that was the time the reservation was for. The hostess informed me that they would not seat me until at least half of my party was there; so, I went to the bar area and had a drink while I waited for other folks to arrive. The bar staff was friendly and prompt. I closed out my tab for the one drink and moved back to the hostess area around 5:50, when I expected other folks to start arriving. I sat on the couch, and the first few folks started trickling in. I informed them of what I was told, and we waited until there were 7 of us there before I approached and told the hostess that over half of us were present (around 5:59). There was another woman at the hostess stand, whom I'm assuming was a manger with the way she was moving about the establishmen, who asked me when I expected the rest of our party to arrive. I told her I expected everyone there within a few minutes. She informed me that they would start getting waters on the table and then they would seat us. I found this a little odd; but, it wasn't a deal breaker.

We ended up being seated about 10 minutes after our reservation was scheduled for. Again, I am flexible and understand that plans might need adjustments from time to time. Maybe they hadn't put the tables together yet for all I knew.

We got seated and the waitress got our drink and appetizer orders in. The waitress did a good job taking care of the large party and did what I needed her to with the bill (splitting it into two bills). Our food was delicious and the drinks were good. She was observant and was quick to get boxes for us as meals were finished. There were a couple desserts ordered: they arrived quickly and were delicious. Plates were being cleared around 7:50. A few folks may have wanted to order another drink or two; however, the lady manager proceeded to stop at our table around 7:53 to tell us they had another reservation at 8 and we needed to leave. Had they not delayed seating us and gave us a full 2 hours, I likely would not be leaving this review. I found the management rude for the amount of money that they were making in the hour and 45 minutes that we were there (over $550 was spent). In my opinion, kicking customers out of a dining establishment is not a good way to keep business. Although the wait staff and food was overall good, I do not intend on booking another group event at The Bryant: nor can I recommend it to anyone looking to book larger...

Wow and double wow on the food! The wild mushroom risotto was super-crazy fantastic. I can't remember the last time I asked everyone at my table to try some. Most did and I'm sure the were jealous they didnt order the risotto. My wife asked me to trade dishes when I was about 3/4 complete. I actually told her no, and then thought I'd better not make her mad. Reluctantly, I did trade. She had the spaghetti and giant meatballs. That dish to was excellent but, I'd rather have been able to finish the risotto. The table ordered beet salad and bam-bam shrimp for appetizers (forgive me, I really can't remember the proper names of these appetizers, once the risotto was tasted I lost my ability to recall the names of the other items). I resume back to the appetizer discussion...both fantastic. Everyone raved about both the salad and the shrimp. We all had some but, I bet a small fortune every wanted the last bit of the shrimp and were to polite to take it until I asked my daughter and her husband (who were just married earlier in the day) to finish them off. The risotto came with a salad or soup, I opted for the salad with vinaigrette on the side. Nice favor to the dressing, the salad had nice looking and tasty greens a small amount of tasty cheese to liven up the dish and two cherry tomatoes that were nice and solid. Seven of us in the party, no alcoholic beverages, three sandwiches (lamb burger, (2) fried chickens) a Mexican Street corn salad w/ shrimp and a Walnut pear Quinoa (that the look of it when placed in front of my mother so happy another table looked over to see why she was making joyous sounds). All this for around $120. Not a bad price in my opinion. Oh and the server was very attentive but not...

My friend and I, both Asians, chose to dine at The Bryant to celebrate completing our first semester in the United States. Unfortunately, our experience was marred by what I can only describe as discriminatory behavior from the female receptionist.

Upon arrival, we lined up to be seated. The group in front of us was not standing directly in line, so I politely greeted the blonde receptionist with a simple “hello.” To my surprise, she completely ignored me, turned away, and addressed the other group, saying “this side came first.” I did not intend to cut in line, so I waited patiently.

When it was finally our turn, she led us to the worst table in the restaurant—a dark corner, right against the wall, next to both the kitchen. The restaurant was nearly empty at that time, with plenty of open, well-lit tables available. I politely requested to change to a seat by the window, repeating myself several times. At first, she had her back turned to us, and though I spoke clearly in a quiet restaurant, she pretended not to hear or deliberately ignored me.

The most upsetting moment came as we left. At most American restaurants, the staff typically offer a courteous farewell like “have a nice day.” Instead, the receptionist glared at me, rolled her eyes from head to toe. It was so rude, dismissive, and completely uncalled for!!

This restaurant is far from cheap, and for the price, I expect basic courtesy and fair treatment. Having to tip after such a degrading experience only made it worse. Discrimination has no place in hospitality or anywhere else. I will not be returning, and I hope management takes immediate action to address such...