4. Emiliano's Café

Poor service and food
We wrote the following letter to the Owners of Emilianos, We would like to bring to your attention the treatment we received at your restaurant in downtown Gainesville. After hearing good things about Emiliano's, we decided to spend our anniversary dinner at your restaurant. We got there at about 9pm on a Tuesday, excited to try the Paella and enjoy ourselves for an hour there on the patio. After serving our drinks, our server informed us that the restaurant would be closing in 5 minutes due to the slow night. We explained that we were out for our anniversary and excited to be there - her reply was that they'd be cleaning up around us and would prefer if we didn't stay all night. There was no hint of flexibility in her manner, such as I'll ask the manager, or congratulations - please enjoy your meal - we'll be here for awhile anyway to clean up. She made it clear to us we were not welcome that evening. We tried to make the best of it and ordered Emiliano's Paella - it came out only slightly luke warm and the meat was quite dry. The rice lacking the usually zest of this dish. This was especially disappointing when we paid $36 for this. The waitress did not return to ask how it was nor offer additional drinks or dessert, only to leave the tab and then watch to see when we paid. There were others still there when we left, ordering dessert with another server. If the key to success in the restaurant business is word of mouth, we just want to let you know we will not be returning to Emilianos nor offering recommendations. When I was younger, I worked in several restaurants. Even if a client walked in right at closing time, we were taught to be polite and give good service. We did not find that the case at Emiliano's. We were treated as an annoyance and as a result did not enjoy our anniversary dinner. Just thought you'd like to know, in hopes that you can make a change and avoid other unhappy customers.

Emiliano's is a wonderful restaurant. Great flavors and a great atmosphere!