Whatever happened to class???

I’d like to speak to the manager!!!

A story shared by a server tonight…

One of my servers comes up to say that table #37 when asked if they’d like to hear about dessert said and I quote, 

“Just bring me a spoon so she can eat out my ass.”

He replied, unfortunately that’s not on the menu.  

And that my friends is class.  

Through and through.  

The power of negative thinking…

I’d like to speak to the manager!!!

We’ve had three bad reviews on Google, in the last three days.  This is not normal for us.  

I’d like to address them:

1.

First, let me say I was very excited to try this place. I had nothing but high hopes after countless recommendations. What followed was nothing short of the worst meal/experience of my life.

My wife and I ordered 2 Porterhouse steaks. Both of them to be cooked medium rare. They came out medium well. We ordered mashed potatoes (which had 2 hairs in them). When they replaced our whole meal, it came back out cold. The waitress basically threw the food down onto the table and refused to wait on us for the rest of the night. I went thirty minutes without water (I have severe acid reflux.. this could have been an emergency). I will never recommend this place to anyone. STAY AWAY IF YOU DONT WANT HAIRY FOOD AND BAD SERVICE.

How do I start?

How do I put this politely?  

BULLSHIT!!!

I call bullshit.

Why you say?

Well first, my staff knows that I want to know about every re-cook.  Whether it’s a burnt steak, or a steak that just needs to be cooked a little more I want to know.  So the odds of tables entire order being re-cooked without me knowing is very slim.  

If a server had food with a hair in it, I’m about 99.9999% sure I’d have heard about it.  I’d definitely have needed to make a table visit.  

Also, the odds of two porterhouse steaks being re-cooked and chef not knowing about it would be very, very slim.  He has no recollection of two porterhouses being over-cooked and having to make two new ones.  

The review says the waitress, basically threw the food down on the table…we have food runners.  Lots and lots of food runners.  Our servers run about .001 percent of their own food.  Of all the restaurants I’ve ever worked in, the servers run very little of their own food.  In fact, it’s highly unlikely that any server ran food that night.  

As for the acid reflux, I’m supposing that if you’d really need a glass of water in a life or death situation your wife would have spoken up.

And the post says a waitress brought their food, and so that tells me it’s not the bar, it’s not 30% of the staff.  Last night, I had about an hour till the dishwashers finished up, so I went through the last week’s orders.  All of he two tops, served by women.  And what would you know, there are no tables, with two porterhouses, served by women.  

I call bullshit!!!

2.

I made the rez about 5 weeks in advance -for a birthday dinner. I requested outside seating if the weather would be warm enough, which it totally wasn’t. The manager said that they had no inside tables. Outside seating has neither heat lamps, nor blankets to throw over guests who are freezing. One server told me bluntly “NO we don’t have any blankets”! as if I’d asked for a fur-lined coat.
If the restaurant had called earlier in the day and said that it was going to be between 54F and 60F after dark – and that we might want to bring our own blankets and such, we would have been prepared – though may have opted for elsewhere.
The server was knowledgable and friendly, and apologetic. I was so excited about the Argentinian BBQ style but was very disappointed – mostly with though meat -which soon turned very cold. The Empanadas were excellent. The listed Wine “Mirval” Rosé is misrepresented on the wine list – as its actually Studio by Mirval – a lower standard/taste. Note, The bottles of wine ordered by guests appear to be there for self-service.?? Hmmm.
We were so freezing and disappointed with the meal that we just paid and left. I wouldn’t return or recommend the restaurant. Oh… and the sign outside the front of the restaurant refers to “Pulled Pork” which my sister loves – the server advised that was from a previous restaurant 4 years ago.
There may be a lot of sizzle going on at the asado/grill in the kitchen, but the execution of the overall restaurant experience has fallen flat.

Let me break this one down for you…

He made the reservation on August 9.  Yes, about 5 weeks ago and I’m sure he had no thought of Maine in September, but their request did not say should it be warm enough.  His request said, if inclement weather, move inside.  Yesterday, was a beautiful late summer/early fall day.  Yes, it was about 60* but fun fact, you can watch the weather as easily as I can.  We had 6 tables seated on the patio after you and they all had a great time.  

It was actually not a server who told him, NO we don’t have any blankets.  It was a host, who he’d already asked several times about blankets as if she was going to pull one out of thin air for him.  

The list wine, Mirval Rose is misrepresented on the wine list- as it’s actually Studio by Mirval.   It’s misrepresented by the menu by listing it as Rose, Miraval Studio, FR.  If by misrepresentation you mean by listing it as it actually is then by all means it’s misrepresented.  

The sign you mention, is food items that are frequently served in chef’s area of the world.  It is a sign on the side of a building.  It is not intended to be a menu. And I didn’t ask but I’m sure your server never said it was from another restaurant 4 years ago.  It was a graphic design placed on the front of the building when we opened 4 years ago.   

To sum it up nicely, you were mad that you made a reservation 5 weeks ago, during the hot summer months and didn’t change it to inside, after the weather turned.  So, you made up other things to be mad about.  

3. 

Please be careful about deciding to spend your money here. Especially if you arrive alone. Apparently there is a policy that the bar is a reservation-onlyat dinner time. Unusual but fine; not posted anywhere that I saw. I had been here a month ago and the hostesses said that while there were no tables available, I could sit at the bar to have dinner. I did, and really enjoyed it.

Fast forward to tonight. I assumed the bar was always first come first served for dinner as it appeared to be on my last visit. A front desk manager (a man who was not present on my last visit), hastened over to tell me that all bar seats were reserved/reservation only- very sorry. I got up, but shared with him that I hadn’t known that because the last time, the hostesses welcomed me to sit at the bar. Period. End of story. When I told the young man this, he told me THAT DIDN’T HAPPEN. Accused me of lying then said “I’m not having this encounter with you here.”
I’m furious to have been treated so high-handedly. To be accused of lying? In what world. For shame.

I’ll start by saying, I had a conversation if you can call it that with this person while they were in the restaurant, she left a message on our voicemail, and a review.  My response will be combining the three sources. 

I’m always amazed at people, who think any restaurant takes pleasure in turning away guests.  Yes, my bonus at the end of the year, isn’t based on revenue and financials at all, it’s based purely on the number of people I turn away at the door.  

The fact that you were single has no bearing in this story.  None at all.  

Our bar is not reservation only – only at dinner time.  We are not open for lunch.  And it’s not reservation only. However, we do take reservations, so if it is fully reserved as it was for the first turn tonight, I’ll have no stools for you to sit on.  And all of your protestations won’t fix that, because if I allow you to stay at the bar, what will I tell the people who do have reservations.  Also, had you not stormed out I could have offered you a table which I’d have had.   And yes, we don’t post a sign at the door that says we take reservations at the bar.  I don’t know any restaurant that does that. 

Yes, a month ago, you might have been told you could sit at the bar to have dinner, done so and enjoyed it.  However, what you said in the moment and what you said on your voicemail are simply not true.  In the 15+ months I’ve been employed here, at no time has anyone told a guest, they could just seat themselves at the bar.  Not even on a Wednesday in January.  Also, as you said on your voicemail there were two girls at the host stand on August 14th, when you came in alone for your birthday.  Simply not true.  We have this thing called a schedule, that I double checked tonight and we had one host scheduled for the evening and she was outside.  Guess what that means.  Yours truly would have been on the door and would have never told you that you could sit anywhere.  PS. You told me in person, and on the phone that I was not here the night you were here.  And guess what again, I’ve missed one shift in 7 months and it was two days ago….

You probably were welcomed to sit at the bar.  In a seat assigned by us.  Last time you checked in with the host.  Tonight, you did not. You pushed your way through the lobby and sat yourself, then told me that you were told to seat yourself in August.  Which as I told you tonight, I can assure you did not happen. 

I did not accuse you of lying, I said that I know for a fact that you were never told to sit anywhere you like.  And I’m pretty sure, I said I’m not having this conversation with you, as you were looking for a fight, I didn’t have time to have.  

I also did not treat you as trash as you suggested on the phone.  I simply told you that you could not sit at the bar and you immediately pushed back.  The only way, I’d have been seen as not rude tonight would have been to allow you to keep your seats and tell the people who’d made reservations, sorry, she got here first, when they arrived.  

Three reviews.