yolo restaurant + lounge

we have been going toyolofor about 21/2 yrs. we have taken friends and enjoy the food and people. our last 3 anniversaries it's been great. justin and mike go out of their way to make you feel at home. i understand service everywhere can be bad at times but have only had 1 time here it was slow.

dinner with friends. i recently had dinner atyolowith some lady friends of mine. most of us have never been here before and one of the ladies has been a few times so this is why we ate here because she said it was very good. the biggest complaint was the service. our waiter was terrible very unattentive wondering at times where he was and hardly came to our table. he seemed to have disappeared. the food was good had the $25.00 dollar special. we were just very disappointed in the service. we liked for the host when we were leaving but was nowhere to be found.

party time!!!!!. if anyone is looking for an outstanding place to throw a party,yolois it!!! the restauranteur, justin, is truly a class act. he worked with us from start to finish to help plan the food and specialty drinks menu, he accommodated our last minute changes, and had a wait staff that was out of this world. our guests all agreed that the food and drink was incredible and that party was among the best in years. if we were to do it all over again we wouldn't change a thing!

the food is okay, but the service is the slowest in wny. i have been toyolotwice. both times the place was empty, but it took over an hour to get the food. all we ordered were sandwiches or brunch food, nothing complex. the staff acted like it was normal to take an hour plus to get the food out. poor execution. not worth the wait.

another visit, another home run!. a great experience for sure. we took our friends out for dinner atyoloas they had never been. we frequently go for drinks and appetizers at the bar/lounge area and have always enjoyed the upscale atmosphere and great food. the dining experience with our friends was just as excellent. our waiter david was very attentive and helpful. the dinner selections were delicious. we started with the stuffed mushrooms, crab cakes, and calamari diavolo. i can’t speak for the others (although they were happy with their choices), but my main course of vegetable risotto with scallops was superb along with everything else!yolois a must try while in the ne buffalo area in east amherst.

if only they paid attention to their customers. appealing atmosphere / decor. cold beer. good music. seemingly pleasant wait staff. tasty food (regardless of the small portions). unbelievably poor service (one of the dinners in our party was not delivered until most of us were finished with our main course). complete lack of customer focus. owner / manager was far more interested in what was going on at his bar, than he was in addressing our concerns.yololost 13 customers last night.


-----11 aug, 2012-----

dissapointing. appealing atmosphere / decor. cold beer. good music. seemingly pleasant wait staff. tasty food (regardless of the small portions). unbelievably poor service (one of the dinners in our party was not delivered until most of us were finished with our main course). complete lack of customer focus. owner / manager was far more interested in what was going on at his bar, than he was on addressing our concerns.yololost 13 customers last night.

my bf and i were really excited to try the newyolotonight since we love the one in ft lauderdale. we were sooo disappointed when we got there. the waitstaff was very nice and personal and prices were decent...on the positive. the atmosphere and food were the negative. the place is painted like a roller rink or aquarium and the dining area is very loud. theyolosalad was great but the entree was horrible. medium filet was tough and had a good amount of fat in it. i thought i was given strip steak on accident it was so flat and fatty. the sides were clearly frozen at one point and just warmed up. i was so bummed since i was looking for a great meal made from great chefs. the wine list was pretty unexciting as well. thank god i had good company to make the night more successful but i don't think i'll be reccomending thisyoloanytime soon like i do the one down south. very sad since i'd rather support buffalo

disappointing. i understand, when it's a friday night (especially when it's a new restaurant), at 6:30 pm, the place will be packed and you'll need to come armed with patience. our party had reservations and we were seated, right away. the tip-off should have been when the hostess (very friendly, i might add), boasted about their signature drinks. then, you'll notice the expansive bar, which takes up half the restaurant. the bar and the signature drinks are this restaurant's main attraction. this isn't a far cry from whenyolowas called pietro's. the interior is about the same. it's classy. within a few minutes, our server greeted us and presented our menus. their selections and prices are very reasonable. one person in our party had the fish fry (highly recommended).
now for the criticism: the wait was absolutely ridiculous. i don't recall any bread at our table. not even our cocktails could hold us over, for our entrees. yes, we could have ordered appetizers; however, i don't think we would have received those any sooner. i can't place all blame on our server, although, he seemed to be avoiding us. he just wasn't very attentive and probably inexperienced. you need to ask, "what is going on in that kitchen" after about a 45 minutes, when our server finally surfaced (to see if we needed to refresh our drinks), we had asked about our meals. he assured us, it would be a few more minutes. that seemed realistic. once again, he disappeared.
it had now been over an hour, since we sat down and placed our orders. at that time, one of us had gone to the bar, to order drinks. that had taken a total of 3 minutes - amazing! finally, our meals arrived … well, some of them. about 5 minutes later, two other meals arrived. perhaps, 5 minutes after that, the last meal arrived and it was the wrong order. of course, the server apologized and said he'd correct the problem immediately. we had to wait about 20 minutes for that correction … for a sandwich. as we were waiting, someone who i would assume is the manager (or, even the owner) had come to the table, to ask how we were doing. he apologized profusely and rushed to the kitchen, to check on the order. additionally, each person was missing something from their order (side of fries, sides of dressing, or general things that were included in the menu's description). that is most certainly the server's inattention to detail. i would rather chalk it up to inexperience, rather than lack of concern.
the whole experience was truly disappointing. i had really hoped otherwise, since it is a good location, the menu has something for everyone, and the prices are fair. i'll be interested to see future reviews. i wish they'd get their act together, as a restaurant, not just a martini bar. this place has a lot of potential and someday i would like to give it another chance. my family has lived in that area for many years. we're tired of the same old chain restaurants. we always enjoy local or family-owned eateries.

have been there twice and will go again!. i have been toyolotwice this month and have enjoyed it both times. the strawberry and pecan salad was fresh and delicious. i have never been a fan balsamic vinegrette, but it was also great. i get it on the side because i am not a big fan of a lot of salad dressing. if you get the chicken on the salad it is a great meal. the hot pepper appetizer was very good. a ruben was also ordered at our table and a spinach mushroom burger. both were great, the rueben could have a little more corned beef but that is a personal preference.
i travel and dine out often and i thinkyolois off to a great start! keep consistent and fresh ingredients and you can't loose. maybe offer a couple of specials each night. the bar is huge and always packed. they have big screen tv's so if there is a sporting event you can even see it from your table.
a cosmopolitan type atmosphere which is refreshing.
and no, i am not a family member or friend. the manager visited our table, as well as the owner to see how our dining experience was. that is very refreshing!

fantastic. as a new restaurant, i expected there to be a few growing pains when i went toyolofor the first time. everything actually went pretty well. good beer selection, fair priced pretty extensive menu, great service. i will definitely be back again!

remark from ashley. i like yolo, it is different from the typical east amherst/ williamsville restaurants and has a new vibe about it. service was great for being a new restaurant and we liked the food, had a cool twist. i think the comment from "ashley" sounds jilted! why shouldn't friends and family comment, it is called being supportive. from what i am to understand about the owners, they openedyolocompletely on their own, with no help from their "restaurant" family. it takes any restaurant a good 6 months just to work out the kinks, makes no difference who you are or how long you have been in the restaurant business. i can name a list of restaurants that had issues when they first opened and their service and food was horrible, but are still going strong today and rated in the top 20 restaurants in this area.

so i giveyolo2 thumbs up and unlike "ashley" hope they are around for a long long time! this area needs something different, young and fun and is not located downtown!