22.1.2010
To whom it may concern,
I have been a regular patron at Bar Giora Restaurant and Bar since I first moved to Israel in 2004 at the age of 19 from Vancouver, Canada.
I have always felt at home there and I regularly choose to sit down there for a couple of drinks, or a good meal, and enjoy the pleasant, festive, atmosphere.
Because of my positive impressions of the place, I have also chosen Bar Giora as the venue for which to celebrate important occasions in my life, including my release from the IDF in March 2007 when I was 22.
Yesterday night (21.1.2010) I held my 25th birthday celebration there and was expecting another great time. I expected to enjoy a few drinks, and spend the night chatting away with good friends and dancing to awesome Israeli music.
Unfortunately, I was intensely disappointed. I was not treated to the quality service I expected from an establishment which had just recently celebrated ten years since its founding – an event which I had also attended.
Instead, I had to spend a large amount of my time arguing with management to let in many of my friends who were in between the ages of 18-23. At first I was informed that 18 year olds were not allowed to enter because they are by the fact that anyone under the age of 24 wouldn’t be allowed in without identification.
A week before, when I had made reservations, I had told management that I was turning 25, but that I had friends from diverse age ranges. The youngest person I invited was 18. The oldest 33. I was not informed that age would be an issue. The legal drinking age is 18 in Israel. But it is a well known practice that many bars and clubs bar entry to those under a certain age – 21, 23, 25, 27. I had never encountered any problems entering Bar Giora previously.
When I persisted that my friends be allowed to enter, I was spoken to as if I was a trespasser, not a regular patron for the past five years. The conversation was reminiscent of discussions with my drill sergeant when I was a private in basic training. I was appalled and disgusted.
I was stuck in an unenviable situation with about 25 or so friends downstairs partying, a group of about 30 people congregating outside (many of whom would not be allowed to enter), and a few close friends and I inside trying to decide what to do.
My three primary complaints stem from:
1. The arbitrariness of Bar Giora’s age requirements.
2. The rude treatment I received by the management (even though I was quasi-apologized to afterwards).
3. The complete denial of a businesses best interest by leaving 30 or so potential customers outside a bar that was far from full.
At the advice of a close friend, I decided to stay put. Though I am still unsure as to whether that was the right decision.
I have to acknowledge that I received a few drinks on the house and a chocolate soufflé with a scoop of vanilla ice cream as a birthday gift. I also found our waitresses service to be excellent.
However, I also received a complaint from a friend that he had given the waitress a 100 shekel note to pay for his drinks and afterwards that the waitress claimed he had only given her a 50 shekel not.
All in all, I was utterly disappointed with the efforts of Bar Giora’s management to make my birthday celebration sail smoothly. At the moment I am not inclined to continue to frequent or recommend the centrally located establishment as a nightlife destination.
