Service was so bad that we left. The other italian restaurant in this mall, Obica, is far better.
Two of us arrived for a movie about an hour early, so we walked around the mall looking for a place to get a drink and an appetizer. We settled on Toscanova because they had what looked like a decent happy hour. I was particularly interested in the infusion liquors they had, especially because there were a couple options of flavored whiskeys. Right on the menu it says that you have the option of picking one of the infusions, and then the bartender will make you a custom cocktail with that liquor. I like to let bartenders serve me whatever they recommend, so I usually go this route. We walked up to the host stand and eventually we were seated at a table at the lounge.
We waited seven minutes, and nobody approached our table. We should have left at that point. Even though we were right at the very front of the restaurant, several waiters walked right by us, the manager stood at the host desk, and nobody was coming to greet us, answer any questions, or take our drink orders. Growing impatient and feeling ignored, my boyfriend approached the host desk and asked if anyone was every coming to our table. The manager came to our table (and didn't apologize for the wait) but asked what we would like. Things continued to go downhill.
I pointed to the infusion liquors on the happy hour menu and said "he will have the Basil Vodka with whatever drink the bartender recommends, and I'll have whichever of the infused whiskeys the bartender likes best in one of the cocktails that they make with it." I also ordered two food items. The manager didn't write anything down, and had to clarify two of the things I ordered. I already knew at this point something would come out wrong because if nothing is written down and you forget what I want when you're still standing at the table, that only spells trouble.
A few minutes later, a bartender approached us with one cocktail and one whiskey neat. When she served it to me, she said "you wanted this neat, right?" I calmly said "oh no, I wanted it in one of the speciality cocktails with the infused whiskeys." She looked a little confused, so I opened the menu and pointed to where it said you could get one of the infused liquors in a cocktail that the bartender makes. She said "oh, but we don't have any whiskeys for that" She said it with a very rude tone, as if to indicate that I was incorrect and stupid. I was already getting agitated at this point since we waited forever for nobody to greet us, and I knew there would be a mistake with my order before it even came out. I pointed at the menu, right where it says they have infused flavored whiskeys. She got in a huff and walked away, so I made a comment about how if an actual waiter had come to take our order and someone had written it down, this wouldn't have happened. She took the drink back and sent her manager over. He came over and asked what the problem was, so I said that my drink came out wrong. He was already starting a fight with me and insisted that I was wrong, and that they don't offer cocktails with the infused whiskeys. Again, I pointed to RIGHT where it says they do on the menu. How do I know this place's bar menu better than the bartender who makes the drinks and the guy who manages the place? He kept arguing with me, and I realized I was never going to get through to them. I didn't want to give this place my business and money anymore, so I started gathering my things and said we were leaving.
At that point, the rude manager took this as an opportunity to puff his chest and flaunt his masculinity by trying to act like he was kicking us out. He tried to escort us from the place and remove us even quicker. We were already on our way out, so him doing this was just him trying to regain any sense of him being right, when every single thing they had done up to this point was wrong. He kept insisting that we leave when we were already walking out the door, so I turned back to the host stand to ask for a business card so that I could remember to write about his behavior. Manager - if you're reading this...YOU did not kick us out. WE left because your service sucks, and you're a complete jerk.
To recap:
-Nobody greeted us within 7 minutes of sitting down, even though at least 5 employees including a manager walked by. No apology was made for the wait.
-Our order was repeated multiple times, and still not written down.
-When our order came out wrong, we were told twice by a bartender and a manager that the drink we ordered is not sold there, even though it's printed in black and white on the menu.
So, we walked down the walkway to Obica. We were greeted within seconds, and our drinks were on our table a minute later. They were delicious. Our server was friendly and inviting. The manager came over with a huge smile on his face and we talked to him for several minutes. We made plans to return to Obica for dinner with friends. read more