Paul W.
Yelp
Meh. Just like all the other restaurants in Terminal C at Newark/Liberty airport, Wanderlust is run by OTG Managment, which means there's an iPad permanently bolted to the counter in front of every seat (in fact, at least most of the seats at this particular restaurant are bolted in place to the floor as well), and you use that iPad to track your departing flight, order food and drink service, pay your tab, read the news, surf the internet, etc. While the iPads seem like a novel idea, to be honest, it kind of takes away some of the fun of grabbing a stool in the airport bar and chatting with whomever happens to be seated nearby. Here at EWR, since OTG started installing the iPads a few years back, you walk into nearly every bar or restaurant they manage and all you see is people ignoring each other and staring blankly at the iPad screens..
For me, I simply wanted a glass of wine and an appetizer while I waited for my flight which was delayed by something like 45 minutes. I had a seat, entered my flight number and the iPad gave me updates on the departure time. I then perused the menu and ordered a glass of white wine which was brought to me within what seemed to be seconds by a server, and I also ordered some chicken wings, which to be frank, seemed to take forever, were too hot/spicy for my liking, and were definitely not the best I've had. I read the news while waiting for my food, and by the time my wings arrived, I'd finished my wine and wanted to get a soft drink to wash them down. I tried to order via the iPad, but for some reason it'd already logged me out (and also charged me the suggested 18% gratuity) and I had to log in again to order the beverage.
To be frank, if it hadn't logged me out, I'd have dialed back the 18% gratuity as there is "service" here meaning they bring your food or drink when it's ready, but considering they don't actually take your order, don't stay and make conversation or actually add anything to the experience, they're just basically delivery people, 18% seems a bit much. Food/beverage prices are average for a larger city..I paid I think $12 for an order of wings, wine prices start at around $11/glass.