Blue Nile Ethiopian Restaurant

10/12/11

Absurd Fee for Traditional Seating

by irresistiblue at Citysearch

Food was decently good, though I've had better. More importantly though I was charged 2.50 to sit at the traditional seating instead of regular tables, which was not told in advance. While I don't understand why they would charge for "traditional" seating as customers have to sit either on a stool or a regular chair, I do think that if they are going to charge this absurd fee they should let their customers know in advance. Due to this poor experience, I will not go back.

11/13/10

Great food, warm welcoming family atmosphere.

by mpno at Citysearch

The owners are not scammers, they are a kind, Christian family trying to stay afloat in a tough economy, all businesses in the area took a huge hit over the last couple of years as a result of the rebuilding of high street. The prices are on the cheap side compared to most Columbus restaurants, and the charge for the seating is listed right on the menu. They have to have these tables shipped in from Ethiopia for gods sake... I've never been to an ethnic restaurant where extra bread is free, you may get Naan with your curry but I would expect to pay for extra bread, this ain't Spaghetti Warehouse. And the owner really is a busy man, with a family of five plus extended family to look after, a restaurant to run, and being an active person in his church and community. We have been going there for over 15 years and they have always treated us with a kindness and graciousness and even given us free extras because we are nice to them. Sure, you may wait for your drink refill a little longer than at some corporate restaurant, but have a little humility. I have never ever heard the owner be rude to anybody in hundreds of visits there, one time he even had a hard time asking a woman to put out her cigarette. He practically falls over backward greeting customers with a smile. They also never fail to greet our children and ask how they are doing. And the food is awesome, the eggplant in particular is a family recipe from the owner's wife.

04/03/10

SCAMMERS

by foodiefolife at Citysearch

I had a very negative experience recently at the Blue Nile. The food was very average, yet extremely expensive. What really got me was that when the bill came they had tacked on extra charges such as $1.25/person for traditional seating. They made no mention of this when seating us. They also charged us for the extra bread which they offered to us during our meal. Typically bread is free, especially when it is offered to you. We were not aware of this charge until the bill came. When I attempted to speak with the manager I was told he was "busy" although the restaurant was nearly empty and I saw him walking around. I finally managed to catch him on my way out and he was extremely rude. I recommend avoiding the blue nile at all costs!. They also told us, like in the review posted already that nobody ever complains about it. DONT GO- it's about principle

• Cons: over prices, exta charges

09/07/08

Terrible Service

by Jamila914 at Citysearch

I was visiting from out of town. I decided to try Columbus' Blue Nile, because the ones in Michigan are fantastic. However, when my party came in, we weren't even greeted. We were told we could sit wherever, so we chose the traditional style seating. I had ordered tea, but the food came first. When I asked about it our waitress was like "Yes, it's coming", with an attitude. She didn't even check on us one time!

The manager came by and I told him we were done. The food wasn't that great, it was pretty bland. I've had much better Ethiopian food at the Blue Nile in Michigan. The food was also way overpriced. I was with two other people and our bill came to $55! All we ordered was the vegetarian plate, and a few sambusas and tea. Plus, when they brought us the check it was so messy we could hardly read the handwriting on it.

But we did make out the word "table" and next to it it said $3.75. I asked the waitress what the table charge was for and she told me that there's an extra charge for traditional style seating. But she didn't tell us that when we came in! She was just like "It's in the menu". So, I asked to talk to the manager, she's like, "You can talk to him on your way out". I was like, "Well, he needs to come over here". So he comes and he was just like "The extra charge is on the menu" and he refused to take it off!

I asked where it said that on the menu and he didn't even know himself, he flips through the menu then he finally finds it on the last page in fine print! I was like, "Who is supposed to see that?!" He was just like "That's to help support the business". But we just spent over $50 on vegetables! He was just like "We never had a problem with this before". Then our waitress mumbles under her breathe "No one else complains about it!" Needless to say we left NO TIP, and vowed never to go back!

Beware, they sneak an extra charge on the bill in messy handwriting! It's $1.25 extra per person for the traditional style table!

• Pros: Nice Ambience
• Cons: Bad Service!

09/25/07

love this place

by biketour2007 at Citysearch

pyroburns:

i do not know you but you sound like an arrogant jacka$$. if you really can make better ethiopian food than blue nile, why don't you stay home, eat your own food, and don't run down a restaurant that the rest of us enjoy.

for everyone else reading this:

give the blue nile a try. i think you will find it to be a place with the feel of a family-run kitchen, spicy food, and great music. the owners are friendly and personable. i live nearby and eat there at least every couple of weeks. the blue nile is a gem!