J.Bookwalter Winery Review

*Updated*
The General Manager reached out to me personally and immediately through phone and email to remedy the situation. He assured me that the service we received was not acceptable and were making moves to make sure it does not happen in the future. Rex was extremely helpful, and I greatly appreciate his reaching out. J. Bookwalter winery has a great ambiance and wine selection I would be happy to continue visiting.

Food was fine but one star for service. We ordered the Chardonnay and the waitress dropped it off without a bucket of ice, I looked around to other tables on the patio just to make sure this was still available, and sure enough they all had buckets of ice for their wines. After our waitress finally made it back I then asked for a bucket of ice, which she never brought, so I asked again...and never got it. After our food arrived my girlfriend and I were confused on what she ordered and thought the kitchen mistakenly gave us somebody else's order. When the waitress came out to check, instead of kindly explaining why we may be confused, she rudely argued at my girlfriend stating "this is what you ordered". The whole situation was incredibly awkward and aggressive. As a veteran of the service industry, I know the first thing you do if a customer seems confused is to nicely walk them through what might be confusing, not aggressively argue with them until they back down. Really dissapointing service, and we only saw our waitress maybe 4-5 times in the 2.5 hours we were there.

Food was amazing. Great service, great atmosphere. Highly recommend.

Wait service was attentative at first but never checked back after meal was dropped off. Food very good tasting but over priced. Enjoyed wine: Subplot.

It is perfect!!! Very good and ideal local wine. Totally recommended. Perhaps, only to improve on the menu the plate of charcuteria and cheeses, the phenomenal cheeses, but of charcuteria a simple roasted ham.

Excellent food! Loved the bacon wrapped dates and avocado fries as appetizers and the bacon gruyere linguini with prawn as the main course. Flavors were just delicious. Soup of the day was a lamb vegetable that also had an amazing savory flavor - not your typical drab vegetable soup! Would absolutely order everything again. Service was wonderful too. Hope to be back!

I made reservations for 15-20 women 2 weeks prior to our visit. I was told the day of, that they would be moving us to "the chef's table" I was told it was more of an intimate setting and perfect for us ladies to chat and catch up with out being bothered. When we got there I thought the place was beautiful. Then the server took us to the "back chef's table". the table was directly across from the servers station and kitchen! The second we sat down I wasn't able to hear the server or anyone that wasn't sitting right next to me over the loud dishes slamming the noise from the kitchen. Our server (Aurora?) was terrible! My self and a few other girls mentioned that she was rude, slow, non accommodating, eye rolling, or just never around to take drink orders. More than half the ladies wanted to order pizza and before we could order our waitress told us they were not serving it that night. So we all ordered app's. 3 people ordered some sort of taco app and EVERY PERSON AT THE TABLE HATED THEM AFTER TRYING JUST A BITE! Right after this I found the owner (she had been drinkingbut was VERY nice) and told her how embarrassed I was of the place and service. She compt the taco's and quickly moved our party out to the covered heated patio. This area was perfect for our group. We could all hear each other and were more comfortable. The topic of the night was the waitresses poor service and the disappointment of the restaurant and food. At one point the restaurant manager (short blond haired older lady, who was also noticeably drunk) checked on us a couple times and was very nice and accommodating but like I said...a little sloppy (buzzed). After all this we decided to just leave and go to Kimo's. There we had a nice smiley waitress that was on top of food and drinks and we talked for hours! I believe Bookwalters has lost 16 customers and anyone else I told about our experience in the past couple weeks.

AMAZING wine, STUPENDOUS food, need you know more?

Since when can you say that the wine selection is "well written?" Well it is, and it tastes phenomenal.

The wine would be enough for me but when the kitchen puts out top quality AND has organic, gluten free, dairy free and vegan options I've become a fan for life.

Pretty solid...I say 4 stars, everything was what you expect for the price. Some very good Reds.

The staff were outstanding. The food was fairly good, the "friendsgiving" dinner course was decent but served to share, perfect for an intimate dinner but odd to share with a family member

Staff is always very friendly. They have a great happy hour: 50% off wine and 25% off appetizers. Get the bacon wrapped dates, they're amazing.

Outstanding. Very good food and very good wines. Service was excellent.

Bookwalters wine keeps getting better and better. They have a variety of food options and an excellent wait staff. They price their wines aggressively. Best bet is to go during happy hour when you get a 50 percent markdown.

Plenty of staff, but they're not interested in helping brunch customers. The food is usually over seasoned, but when seasoned properly is pretty tasty. Waited about 45 minutes for food to come to the table, but one of our party waited an additional 10-15 minutes more for his food. Only received a passing apology from the waiter. Then had to request our check be delivered after waiting well past when our plates were cleared. One of our party went up front to get our cards/bills returned and was completely ignored by all staff. Very disappointed in the experience every time we go there.

Ryder was attentive and very knowledgeable about the many types of wine. Any question we had, he had a an answer. We had an amazing time and the food was incredible!!! We will definitely be back!!!

Normally the centerpiece of my visits to Washington wine country, Bookwalter has fallen from grace. I was just here in October 2017, what the hell happened?

Brought friends in from out of town, and had the worst food and service you could imagine. Hostess didn't care if we were there or not, dishes were dirty on the table (lipstick, literally unwashed glasses), service was incredibly slow (1.5 hours for 6 people), and food was dry, badly presented and in the case of a chicken sandwich, not cooked. Our driver couldn't even get served, and said the staff was rude to him.

Couldn't get wine tasting...at a winery! Incredibly disappointing. Manager offered a free appetizer at our next visit. Wow.

John, either focus on wine or fix your restaurant service. You've lost something amazing.

Every meal I have had here has been excellent with the avocado fries being my go-to appetizer. The steak tacos are delicious. They were out of veggie burgers, so the chef whipped up a tasty dish for my vegan friend.

The wine is excellent as well, if you re into bold reds. You could tell our server was new but very sweet and attentive.

If I could give a half star I would. We had a decent sized group so slow service is understandable. Myself and my girlfriend were a bit late and our group had already began the samplers so we figured we would make it easy and order a bottle to split. The price of the Riesling was 18 dollars and it was a screw top. We were also lucky enough to get a glass of water. The winery was about half full or so and there were definitely a few servers who were trying to act busy...repeatedly cleaning tables, wrapping silverware...the waiter eventually brought our bottle and unscrewed the cap (how thoughtful). After this we were never exposed to a menu, checked on, or even refilled on our water...it was ok though we had our bottle..(this was also our first drink of the day). When the bill finally arrived our total was 32.00??? Very calmly i asked the server why the 14 dollar charge? His words " because you were able to dine in with your bottle of wine at your table" dine in? Did I eat? Was I given a menu?? So...14 dollars for a screw top...did you flare up your tennis elbow when you opened the bottle?? A few other thoughts in my head which would most likely be flagged on this review. I could feel myself very irritated but stayed cool..." What would happen if I bought the bottle to go and enjoyed it In te outside seating?" His response..." It would've been 18 dollars total. Livid, upset, sick to my stomach does not begin to describe the feelings. I used to enjoy this place but they will never see me show my face again. This winery brings disgrace to all other wineries which is truly unfortunate. DO NOT GIVE THIS PLACE BUSINESS THAT IS NOT DESERVED!!!!!

Always a great experience. Inside is cozy, outside is fun. They have cool bocce courts it and a small full bar with a nice selection if wine doesn't do it for you. John and Gretchen Bookwalter are wonderful hosts!

Great food Good Appetizers the merlot was awesome. The espresso martini was Amazing

The lamb shank with pasta was a real disappointment. Lamb and pasta below par.
Prime rib over cooked and not done to specifications.
Probably will give this kitchen a long rest.

The pieces, setting and aesthetics are all present, however the younger servers are inexperienced and that also seems to bias the quality of the food and service.

I cam definitely reccomend the bacon wrapped dates, house salad, duck breast, and pots de creme. They were all delicious.

Very good outdoor seating area and is kids friendly. Wine is very good and the food is okay. Dinner menu is average and the appetizer menu is extensive and very good. The wine is excellent, especially the Syrah and Malbec blend that they have. Great place to sit outside and have a drink and some quick bites.

Food is all decent, nothing outstanding. Avocado fries and cab sav were the two best food items. Service was above average, our server had a very large section but still did a good job with out group.

Loved it. Avocado fries were wonderful. Service is spot on.

Brookwalter is the most amazing place!! Good wine and good food and ambiance!

Service was excruciatingly slow, even the manager apologized, but $65 for a steak, you've got to be kidding me! Made the mistake of ordering a rib-eye steak, without having a price listed. My bad! I about fell out of my chair when the bill showed $65 for an OK, not terrific rib-eye steak! I guess they don't want anyone to come back. Live and learn!

The tri tip chimichurri sandwich was great and the wine was delicious!

So impressed! Thank you Nathanial and Mitch for your knowledge and hospitality. As first time visitors to the area, we felt welcomed and appreciated. Food was fantastic, wine was our favorite of all the tastings we did over the weekend. You delivered on all levels! We will definitely be back!
Stacie and Mitch

Are you kidding me? Rate Bookwalter? !? 100% service, and food, try the French onion soup and short ribs. I kid you not, no disappointment here, they are spot on. I'd make reservations, cause you don't want to miss out on an experience here! Don't even try for the bar Nate, that's our spot!

Always a great place to have great wine and food. Perfect afternoon to sit on the porch and enjoy the sun on an autumn afternoon leading to a great evening.

Great atmosphere.
Great food.
Amazing wine.

Had the caesar salad and soup of the day for lunch. Both were excellent! Loved everything about this winery/tasting room/restaurant. The staff were friendly and helpful. Ryder, the tasting room guru was my favorite! His wine knowledge was impressive. Watch out, you'll end up leaving with a case of wine when you simply stopped in for a bite!!

Of all the wineries and restaurants we visited in the area.... this one was by far the best in both categories. If we lived locally, we d be back again and again.

Ryder made our tasting experience so elegant. His knowledge of the winery and vineyards added to already amazing wine!

Nice atmosphere but a little over priced for what it is and the service needs a lot of help.

Lost reservation made a week earlier. Last minute panic for party of twelve.

Amazing wine. Decent food. Way over priced. But even at the price i would recommend.

Beer tasting experience in the tri cities. The staff was friendly, knowledgeable, young and energetic. Will definitely stop in on my next tour of the wine country.

Good food good wine would like to come back for wine tasting.

Ordered takeout last night and loved everything we ordered! Top notch take out! Definitely going back while the dining in options are not available. Loved the garlic parm mac & cheese and the rice bowl was awesome as well. Thanks Bookwalter for an amazing dinner!

Thanks for letting my son work with your establishment

Ummm First time coming...not happy..I was expecting more...for my money

Food was excellent, server patient with our talkative group of 5, the enclosed patio was reasonably quiet, for two old, hard of-hearing-guys.

Despite pandemic restrictions, J Bookwalter provided us with a delicious lunch and selection of wine. We enjoyed the crab cakes and scallops while sipping on a custom-made cocktail, designed by the bartender. Wine finished our afternoon adventure, and we took some home with us as well at a great price. I can't recommend J Bookwalter enough. Don't miss out on a wonderful outing here.

We visited for Sunday brunch which had a limited menu, possibly due to COVID. The outside seating was nice with lots of room. There were not very many staff so the service was slow.

usually love this place, but today the service was terrible!!!

Really nice and tons of places to eat inside and outside. All covered in some way.

Good meeting place for friends and family. A little loud when children are present, but is family friendly. Interesting menu and plenty of beverage options.

The staff was super friendly and accommodate to us and sat us by the fireace where it was nice and warm. The bacon and date appetizer was really good. Would go there again.

Came here on a Friday night with some of my buddies from work. We were extremely disappointed in the Bookwalter staff and especially in our server, Mitch.
First of all, right when we walked in, the host could not be bothered and did not care if we were there or not. After someone else (not the host) stepped in to seat us, we were taken to a crowded table surrounded with too many loud parties. It's almost as if the Bookwalter owners care more about how many tables they can fit in for the money than the experience of their guests.
When we were greeted by our server, he was extremely rude and overly rushed, making us feel as though we were a burden to his night. When you're in the hospitality and restaurant industry, you should at least know how to pretend to be friendly. For the price of the food ($$$!), the experience was nowhere near up to par. At least the music was alright. Will not be returning and would not recommend to my worst enemies.

This is zow za zowza place with fine dining and winery attached to the establishment. I'm way out of my league or comfort zone with this level of food and wine. For appetizers we got the Avocado fries, Popcorn chicken, and the Apple wood smoked bacon wrapped dates. Chicken was prepared with pickled peppers, garlic and some sort of sauce "black pepper aioli . The Thai chicken pizza had nice flavors with nuts sriracha and cilantro. Overall, the party members were very happy, from the children to the sophisticated connoisseurs. Yummy yummy

Wonderful Service by Philip. Delightful flight. And a sumptuous lamb burger with house salad. I also got a show with mymeal as they were processing the grapes for new wine! Exquisite!

Go during happy hour 3-6 daily where wine is half price. Outside of HH, it is overpriced. Pizzas and food are quality. Would love to see Thai Chicken pizza come back.

Before the other day I had never been to this winery or it's restaurant, but I brought my wife here as a special treat for her birthday dinner. Let me tell you, I was profoundly disappointed and disturbed by the lack of professionalism showed by Bookwalter employees and poor quality of customer service displayed by our server, Maddie. She took our wine order, and then didn't come back for 20 minutes. In addition, she was wearing sweatpants. How is that professional in any way? My wife and I were hungry and wanted to order food but she was nowhere to be seen. When I went to look for her, I could see three other employees in the back room through the window, and they were smoking!

On the front patio, it says "thank you for not smoking." You would think that would extend to the employees in the back room where it seems like a lot of the wine is aged.

Extremely disappointed. You would think that the owners of a high end winery would not allow their employees to smoke in the building, and they would get your wine to you in a timely fashion. While I do admit that the food was great, and I commend the chefs for such great meal prep, I will not be returning if this is the service that I will be promised.

Was extremely disappointed in the quality of customer service displayed by our server, Mitch. My husband and I understand that we are not the only table being served by our server, however when he is so rushed that he doesn't even take our full order then we have a problem. On top of this, we wanted to order more wine but he spent a good half hour before even returning to our table. Extremely disappointing and we will not be returning. We have gotten better service at a McDonalds.

Best pizza in town! Surprised to discover such great pizza. The sliders were spicy and perfectly cooked. The 2014 cab was nice and smooth without being sweet or jammy (like so many WA wines). Happy hour pricing made this a fun way to spend a datenight. 5 starts if they d had a changing table available in the bathroom...).

The wine and food are always good here. Service is generally slow but it seems to be a Washington thing. We came late and ordered a couple of bottles but ended up leaving early due to the owner and his friends swearing loudly, cranking up music, and just generally being bad drunks.

Great take out service. Very friendly and nice and clean. They have drink mixes and wine to l go. Great selection.

Wonderful atmosphere great wine good food. Be careful ordering your food read the menu very carefully. Moderate pricing.

Dinner was a bit disappointing. Five of us dined on a Friday night. The two steaks were served lukewarm but tasted good. The two duck breasts were only warm but the fat was cooked until it was really chewy. The risotto with chicken breast was disappointing as well. Salads & desserts were enjoyable, so overall not terrible, but not what I'd like to spend my next $300 on.

It s always a pleasure when i go to J Bookwalter Winery and Fiction Restaurant. The wine is extraordinary, and the food pairs wonderfully! Staff is friendly, attentive and always a pleasure. I come back everyday of the week to enjoy the atmosphere and culture of J Bookwalter winery. *extra star for the assistant winemaker

The wine, avocado fries and bacon wrapped dates were amazing! Staff was very attentive and knowledgable. Atmosphere on the patio was perfect! Great lunch spot on a summer afternoon.

Happy hour was a blast, hot women tripping over each other and delicious food. Get a case of wine and cougar cheese

Great Happy hour! Very nice and attentive staff. Live music!

I'm not a huge fan of the wine here, but the food is top notch. Don't get me wrong, the wine is good, I'm just super picky about my wine. I have really liked all of the food I have ever had here. They also have some good beer on tap and a full bar available.

Unbelievable place to hang out on a calm evening! So many classy outdoor seating areas. We played bocce ball, drank rose, and ate a ton of appetizers. Super fun!

Amazing winery and restaurant! The avocado fries are to die for and their wines are spectacular. After supper, grab a glass and stroll the grounds

TLDR: Excellent service. Portions and quality of food were good. Loud and crowded on a Friday night. Also, pricey. Parking could be a challenge.

Servers and host were all smiles and very helpful. Wine suggestions were great. Live music is a bonus. Menu has an abundant selection, but food and wine are expensive (And I don't mind the price if it matches the overall experience). If you're not interested in some live music I'd probably recommend elsewhere - overall it felt kind of meh for an experience priced at Wow!

The place was quite loud even before the music started.

Like many other places these days, the steak was undercooked, but I've tried to adjust since I hate sending food back to the kitchen. I prefer medium rare, so I usually order medium and here that wasn't quite enough. Bacon wrapped dates were top notch.

Would I visit again? Yes, for the right live music or if meeting friends already here or attending an event that had decided on this venue.

Pork tenderloin and sides were very good, server's kids running around was extremely tacky and inexcusable for a place of this potential. '06 foreshadow was thin, and wine was overpriced when looking at taste compared to price.

My daughter and I had lunch at Bookwalters and thoroughly enjoyed it. Who would have thought of avocado fries?! They were delicious. My husband and I are going back today to eat there again. I don't drink wine, but my daughter and husband do, so they will enjoy that, as well. Service was great and the atmosphere was lovely. It's relaxing and friendly. We'll return again and again.

The service and wine here are always wonderful! If you can, get a nice seat outside in the shade for an extra special experience. I love how they name their wines after different genres. The wine and the food are always good, and the happy hour from 3-6 is one of my favorites in the Tri-Cities!

Great wine, good food, superb wait staff. Had the steelhead cakes on a wedge salad, and was a little disappointed with the amount of filler in the cakes.

There wine was great, friendly environment and there customer service was far from great! Took 30 minutes to get a bottle of wine served, can only imagine how long it would have took to get food service!

Three semi-spry old ladies were treated like attractive much younger women,, by a busy but attentive server It was a lovely gift for a birthday dinner. Between us we had duck breast, steelhead salad and lamb burger. All super delicious. The semmillon, an unlloked for treat, was perfect.

Over priced and slow service. Ordered a cheese plate, asked the waitress what kind of cheese was on it...her answer was I don't know. It had a few thin strips of apple and a few almonds and a small sampling of some kind of cheese. The wine was good. Will not go back again anytime soon.

Nice wine, good food, really nice decor. Romantic, or at least a good place to chill.

Wait staff was friendly and helpful. Definitely felt a teamwork atmosphere!! Chef Justin Webb prepared some amazingly tantalizing delicacies and we were most definitely not disappointed!! The menu was interesting and offered something for everyone. Happy hour prices are also reasonable!

Great food, service, wine and atmosphere especially if you seat outside to enjoy the weather too.They have often special prices for wine when you buy a case, but good prices also when you get there for happy hour.

We went here for dinner with friends and did not even order wine. I did have a beer. The menu is upscale with Waygu beef, etc., so expect to spend real money here. Burgers are $17. I had a Tenpin Snake Eye Stout and it was good. My wife ordered the Smoked Gouda Burger, which she liked. I had the Snake River Wagyu Bavette Steak and added a Caesar Salad. The salad was great, the steak was very good. We had dessert, an Apple Galette and Double Chocolate Pots de Creme. The Galette was very good, while the Pots de Creme was more like a chocolate mousse with 3 blueberries and was a bit disappointing. Service was uneven, which was sad for such an upscale place. Expectations are high at a place with these prices so having some of the food be only 3 star and the service only 3 star was a disappointment.

Welcomed like family. The food is aw some . The wine is awesome aslo

Came for a glass of wine, instead became extremely educated while developing a higher appreciation for scotch whiskey by Ross. Very impressed. Will be coming here again. Nice work Ross.

Rider was very knowledgeable and I learned SO much about wines. If you're looking for an experience? This is the winery to go to!!! Thank you Bookwalter for your awesome experience and knowledge!!

Amazing service! Super popular place, glad I made a RESERVATION. Good lunch menu, but the dinner was worth the wait. Had a delicious rib-eye steak paired with there 2016 Suspense. Definitely a most go for Washington wine country. Bravo!