Gregorys - Bethlehem

I've eaten at Gregory's before, so I was excited to enjoy their generous portions of delicious food at reasonable prices again. However, my recent experience was somewhat overshadowed by a lackluster waitress. I ordered the ribeye steak, my wife chose the salmon, and my mother went with haddock. All three dishes were cooked to perfection, and the food was excellent. We made sure to save room for dessert and opted for the apple pie à la mode, which is baked on-site and has a wonderful homemade taste. Unfortunately, our waitress Patty didn’t provide the level of service I’ve come to expect. She didn’t check on us at all after serving our meals, and we even received our leftover boxes from another server. Patty eventually returned to take our dessert order, and I paid the bill right after she brought out the pie and coffee. I noticed that the table next to us was also expressing similar concerns about the service. While the other waitstaff were attentive to their customers, which is the standard I associate with Gregory's, it was disappointing that my family had to deal with a server who seemed to be having an off night.

The manager contacted the owner, who asked my father to come to the office for a discussion. When my father returned, he looked visibly shaken. We hadn’t brought much cash, believing the gift certificate would nearly cover our bill, and were unprepared for the total. The owner even threatened to call the police if we didn’t pay, leaving us no choice but to ride it out. We kept trying to reason with the manager, and the waitress, who recognized my mother, confirmed that we hadn’t visited the previous weekend, but it seemed to make no difference. Soon after, the owner arrived and began to berate us in front of the entire restaurant, which was incredibly humiliating. He accused us of trying to use fraudulent gift certificates. Given that my father has brought significant business to Gregory’s every February, we expected the owner to handle the situation more diplomatically to preserve that relationship. Instead, he seemed determined to alienate my father, insisting that he didn’t understand how business worked, despite my father being a respected business owner for 40 years. After being shouted at for over an hour, I stepped outside for some fresh air, so I’m not entirely sure how things finally resolved (I do know my father even offered to wash dishes to settle the bill). But I can say with confidence that nothing would persuade me to return to Gregory’s. Most successful business owners understand the importance of treating loyal customers with respect, especially during an unwarranted negative experience, but that was clearly not true at Gregory’s. If you’re looking for good food, fair prices, and a respectful environment, I suggest you avoid Gregory’s Steakhouse in Allentown, PA.