Aliv Stone Suites & Spa

We were so excited to have stumbled upon this beautiful beach bar on our last day in Zakynthos. The hosts greeted us, showed us to sun lounge and bought us over some cold water. We had checked out of our hotel in the south of the island with plans to spend the whole day there before heading to the port for our evening ferry. Unfortunately the friendly service ended when we ordered lunch. The first meal arrived after half an hour. After 45 minutes, we started asking about the other meals, to which we were told "5 minutes". This went on for another 45 minutes, then 1 more meal and our starter (a trio of dip and bread). By now we were losing patience - as were many of the other tables who had been waiting as long. One waiter served everyone small glasses of liquid although when asked, he didn't know what it was. The 2nd waiter said "it's a secret" but it had been served to small children at the next table and was alcoholic. A 3rd waiter removed them from the children. It was a comedy of errors. Almost 2 hours after ordering, the last meal arrived (a caesar salad) which was lettuce with small processed cubed chicken smothered in a yellow sauce. Inedible. People at other tables were walking out, and one person refused their meal when it was finally served. I asked to speak to the manager - the first waiter said he'd get in trouble - the manager was apparently in Athens, and no-one on site managing the restaurant). I advised the host that we had waited over 2 hours for a terrible meal and they would have been better telling us they had problems in the kitchen and to stay at our sun lounge and call us when lunch was ready. The host said her parents were the owners and that they (the family) were doing their best. All staff by this stage were extremely rude and were talking over the top of me as I was trying to calmly discuss. The waiters all laughed as I left. To add to the angst, at about 3pm the music changed to crude swearing lyrics (despite all the families around) and the volume was increased significantly. It could have been so good...

Nice and very well positioned hotel with direct access to the beach. Unfortunatley the management is not in line with the perception you receive visiting the web site of the hotel. The staff is not prepared and understaffed for the standard that the hotel should provide. The family owner is continuesly interfering with the work of the staff generating confusion and discussions that customers clearly noticed. Il the hotel would be managed by horeca managers and staff it would surely a great experience to their customers