I have been to Brother Jimmy’s on 31st and 8th before and enjoyed the food and atmosphere, but this weekend I ventured back on a whim with my boyfriend only to have, what may have been, the most frustrating experience possible.
We arrived around 5pm and waiting for the hostess as she dealt with some unsavory guests who were waiting for a large table. When it was our turn we said, “two please” to which she replied, “It’ll be about five minutes.” “Not a problem,” we responded. Five minutes turned into ten and then fifteen. Another couple entered, muttered something to her and were escorted upstairs. “Weird,” we thought but assumed they were meeting a party or had another excuse for getting a table ahead of us. Then a second couple entered and this time we heard, “Two please,” and the hostess escorted immediately directed them up the stairs. My boyfriend politely asked her, “Excuse me, we’ve been waiting a while and I notice you seated two couples before us who arrived after us.” “Oh,” she replied, “I thought you were waiting for more people.” No. And no apology. She directed upstairs to the second hostess.
At the top of the stairs the second hostess greeted us, confirmed there were two of us and walked us through the half-empty dining room to a table that was occupied by coats, glasses and half-eaten plates of wings and ribs. “Excuse me ladies,” she said to an older couple who were seated directly next to this table. “I need this table for these men.” And she began moving these women’s belongings and ushering us to take our seats. “Could we possibly sit in one of the many empty tables so we don’t disturb these lovely ladies?” Matt suggested. “No,” the second hostess replied, “These are all reserved.” Eyebrows raised quizzically, we looked at each other and whispered, “Really?”
The older women seated, literally elbow-to-elbow with us, were pleasant but also shared our surprise at the squeezing of two parties together when there were plenty of seats at empty tables elsewhere. “Seems a little absurd doesn’t it,” laughed one of the two women.
We sat, frustrated by the unnecessary wait and by the unnecessary squeeze and disruption we had been forced to place upon these older women. As the four of us tried to maneuver in our seats the women knocked over their rack of barbecue sauce, spilling the brown liquid on the floor. “I’m so sorry,” said one. “It was bound to happen,” we replied.
Our server was pleasant so no complaint there but overall the experience was absurd. Being skipped over by the first hostess when in plain sight then being mashed into an uncomfortable seating scenario and all with no apology all made for an unpleasant dining experience. The food was fine but the lack of care left a bad taste in our mouths.
Tommy Karr 