Pagliacci Ristorante

04/18/07

Unless you want a miserable experience, avoid this place

by berkshirepat at Citysearch

We made reservations for 6pm on the nite of a concert. We were aware of the shorter menu, which I find disappointing, but tried anyway. We arrrived early and were seated right away. THe "manager" came over told us he would be our server, and that he was short staffed. At the time, there were one or 2 other occupied tables. OUr order was taken about 5;25. We told the waiter that we would understand if things were a little slower, we had time before the 8pm show. We got our drinks around 6. The antipasti was mostly lettuce, a few cucumbers, 2 tomatoes, 4 olives, pickled carrots and celery that tasted stale, and 4 rolls of cheese and salami with sparse dressing.

At 6:15 we were told our order was "up". To me, that means ready to come out. Around us people who did not have the "manager" were getting their food. We never received any bread. At 6:45, I asked where my order was, was yelled at by the manager-who said if you are that unhappy, pay your bill and leave-I told you when you came in that we were short staffed, and I have been yelled at in the kitchen. We finally got our meals at 7:10 after I had left the table in tears. On top of this, my husband was charged for 2 meals and the manager reluctantly revised the bill. There were no apologies for the service or lateness of the meals. SAfter all that, my fish was overcooked and soggy with no visible shrimp in the stuffing< We wil NEVER go back to this place!!!

• Pros: near venue
• Cons: miserable employees marginal food

12/24/06

We will never go there again!

by loisbrando at Citysearch

This is my first time visiting your site - and so my first time reviewing. I feel a responsibility to pass along just how bad our experience was with this restaurant.

I guess the owner or manager of this place is relying on the location to keep the business coming in the door. The service was terrible! We had reservations and arrived and ordered before others. . .and they ate long before we did. I guess we should not feel singled out. Some of the other tables seemed to be having the same problem. Waitresses blamed it on the cooks. Manager blamed it on the large amount of business that night. Excuse me??? You are located across from the Knickerbocker Arena (sorry - that is what it will always be!) and it was Friday night. Any competent manager should be hiring enough staff to properly service the customers.

One of our group was a young lady who is slightly hypoglycemic. With the timing of our arrival she would have been fine if the service had been anywhere near adequate. As it was we waited so long for our dinners she became ill and spent much of the second hour we were there in the ladies room.

Although most members of our party thought the food, when it finally did come, was below standard I think the seafood pasta dish I ordered was very good. At least what I ate, gulping it down quickly before we had to run out the door. My stomach was upset later on because of the long wait and then hasty eating.

We took a poll of our group and the tables on either side of us. No one at any of the three tables will ever go back to this place.

• Pros: Location
• Cons: Bad service, long wait for food, snippy waitresses, lip service from manager.

12/23/06

AVOID THIS PLACE!!!

by mhodges at Citysearch

Wow, what an unbelievable experience dining was here. Party of 9 with 2 1/2 hours to sit, eat and get to a concert across the street and we were almost late due to the lack of speed in service and cooking. We waited 40 minutes from time of appetizer/dinner order before asking waitress as to delay. We were greeted by a nasty comment. We waited 10 more minutes and one member went to the manager who managed to get appetizers out within 10 minutes....even though the waitress forgot(?) one. Dinners started coming out shorty after 1 1/2 hour wait..but only 2 dishes at a time!! (waitress must have been very tired I guess) Meals were POOR quality to say the least...sauce tasted like it was enhanced with 1/10 can of tomato paste into one can 16oz or tomato sauce from a can. NO TASTE. I had Chicken Parm and the cheese on top was burned, and the chicken breasts must have come from a chick not a full sized chicken. For a party of 9 with 2 1/2 hours to sit and eat and get to a concert..I felt we should have been offered one or tow comp'ed meals for all our trouble. This is one restaurant (?) I can easily recommend to anyone who wants a very BAD experience in dining. Expect long waits between drinks and in meal service....and very bad quality food. Water glasses couldn't even be refilled without a long dry wait.

• Pros: Good place to avoid
• Cons: Walk through the door and you'll be disappointed