Ratings & Reviews Policy

We do not host a review form on this website. Reviews of The Union are posted by guests on third-party platforms such as Google, Yelp, Facebook, and Instagram, and those platforms' own policies govern them. This policy applies to how we solicit reviews, how we respond to them, and to any review or testimonial we choose to quote on this site or in our marketing.

• We may invite guests to leave a review after a visit, event, or reservation.
• We ask everyone the same way. We do not screen guests first to invite only the ones we expect to be happy.
• We do not offer discounts, free drinks, entry, or anything else of value in exchange for a review, and we do not condition any offer on the review being positive.
• We never write, buy, trade, or commission reviews, and we never ask staff, friends, or family to post reviews posing as ordinary guests.

We do not suppress, hide, or attempt to have negative reviews removed simply because they are critical. We may respond publicly, and we may ask a platform to review content that violates that platform's rules — for example content that is fake, threatening, or unrelated to an actual visit. Criticism of our prices, service, music, wait times, or door policy is fair game and stays up.

When we display a testimonial on this site or in advertising:

• It comes from a real guest and reflects their genuine experience.
• We may shorten it for length, but never in a way that changes its meaning or turns criticism into praise.
• We attribute it by first name and last initial, or as the platform displays it.
• If a testimonial describes an unusual result or one-off accommodation, we say so rather than imply it is typical.
• If we ever feature a review from someone with a material connection to us (an employee, partner, or someone who received something of value), that relationship will be disclosed clearly next to the review.

When reviewing us anywhere, please:

• Base it on your own actual experience at the venue.
• Leave out other guests' or staff members' personal information.
• Skip harassment, slurs, threats, and content that is unlawful, and do not post photos or video of other guests who have not agreed to it.
• Disclose it if you have any connection to the business or to a competitor.

If you believe a review about us is fake, or if a review contains your personal information or a photo of you, email Bar@iowacitybar.com and we will report it to the platform where it appears. We cannot remove third-party reviews ourselves — only the platform can. If you had a bad night, email us directly; we would rather fix it than argue about it in public.

Reviews from applicants or current and former staff on employment platforms are covered by those platforms. We do not retaliate against anyone for leaving honest feedback about working here.