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Grupo Lounge

Grupo Lounge

The Grupo Lounge 8 Canford Ln, Bristol, BS9 3DH, Bristol, City of, United Kingdom

Cafe • Vegan • Western • Vegetarian


"I have been frequenting the Grupo Lounge for many years, in fact I used to go there when it was a Blockbuster! What always appealed was the relaxed atmosphere and the quality staff that up until covid really were excellent! Sadly these days it seems to be a shadow of its former self! They have kept the same licensing hours but I can only assume they only pay staff till 11 these days because when it comes to closing they are (frankly) very rude! I 'm sorry to say but as a regular you can tell there are problems as you never see the same bar staff twice which frankly is very telling! Tonight for example I have ordered a drink when the bar shut at 11 'o clock then by 11:10 have had a member of staff tell me that I have to walk home with my pint in a plastic cup?! It wouldn 't be so bad but in doing so he told me it was because of 'their license ' clearly showing a complete lack of knowledge as all their license says is about when they can sell drinks until! Here 's an idea, if you want people to leave by 11:10 maybe don 't sell them a full pint right up until 11pm?! All I read about pubs online is woeful tails about how pubs are going out of business, well guess what this is why! Make a choice, either close early (10:45pm) and don 't make it about the money or accept that people need time to drink a pint of alcohol and serve till 11pm with kicking out being 11:30 (which it always had been for years before)! It wouldn 't have been so bad but some random new starter on the bar then said we were being rude for (calmly) pointing out their misunderstanding around licensing laws! As a local this was always one of my favourite bars but as a local I can safely say that if they don 't sort out their customer service they will no longer have any customers to rudely kick out!"

Il Gusto

Il Gusto

11 Craven Rd, London, W23BP, W2 3BP, United Kingdom

Bars • Pizza • Pasta • Italian


"We were a group of friends meeting up after 45 years of being Facebook friends and simply chose Il Gusto bc of its proximity to Paddington station. Online reviews seemed okay but boy, how wrong we were to book a reservation in this restaurant! Normally Italian restaurants are known for their friendliness and good service. Not here. I was the first to arrive, 20 minutes early bc my trains only run hourly. It was pouring with rain and so I was surprised that the waiter told me that I should return in 20 minutes. He was standing in a nearly empty restaurant with a few people already tucking into their lunch. I suggested I waited on the booked table, he said no table had been allocated. So I ordered a glass of wine and olives while I waited for my friends. To be fair there was a waitress who was friendly and seemed embarrassed by her colleagues offhandedness. When my friends arrived the service did not improve. Really, trying to take away plates when we’re still eating is the height of rudeness. The restaurant wasn’t busy, there were other people eating but the staff weren’t rushed off their feet. My family work in hospitality so I know a group of well mannered friends are normally welcomed, not least bc it’s very easy to upsell to a happy group. The starters were fine, but the mains were disappointing. Not awful just nothing to distinguish them. A further point- are the staff trained to deal with nut allergy sufferers? I’ve never has such a disinterested response from a waiter for years, even when I took out my epipen to empathise my point. So, in summary staff training is needed bc if it wasn’t for the fact we’d planned this meeting for some time we would have walked out to find another more welcoming restaurant. By the way I was so shocked by the trashed toilet door I took a photo."