Disapointing Dining Out

[pointerhaven]

Last night we met another board member for dinner in Richmond at a Resturant that had rave reviews! Well it was far from rave!

We got there a little early and sat at the Bar, asked for a Glass of Pinot Nior and a Glass of Cab, fine great flavor. The others arrived and we were seated, she asked for the Pinot he got a beer. Server Comes back, no more Pinot, she ordered another wine.

Ordered dinner, service a bit awkward, salads were finished and plates were left on table until entree's came, then they had to clear while holding entrees in hand. DH and friend orderdd another glass of wine. Sorry we're out of both of those, we get our ABC order in on Tuesdays!

Dinner was far from what we expected, My tuna, which I requested Rare, was med - rare, combiniation of flavors on plate were good, Fennel, potatoes and Grapefruit. However, Fennel was under cooked and tough. DH had Fried Oysters, wonderful, his grits were alittle undercooked. DF ordered Chicken on Polenta, WAY over salted. DFH, liked his meal of skirt steak.

Then the guys order a Port, sorry we're out of that as well....Dessert came with their meals, is was an Penna with Sorbet. He thought it was interesteing, she thought it way too sweet.

Needless to say, we will not be going there again...Are many of you as disappointed in eating out as we are, we have few really good places that I could say deserve a rave review.

Wanda

[TKay]

That's too bad that your meal was sub-par. I think what's most disappointing to me is when a restaurant is out of something. I mean, if there's a special entree only available that night and they run out, that's one thing. But to not have enough wine or port onhand? Just poor planning. I hope you enjoyed the company more than the food.

[little_bopeep]

I shouldn't admit this, but we love Boston Market. We went there last Wednesday night at 7, and they were out of cornbread. Out of cornbread??? For the rest of the night! It would have been a 5-10 minute wait for spinach and 20 minutes for chicken. Pardon me??? So we left and went to Taco Bueno for sour cream chicken chiladas. Wait...did I say Taco Bueno out loud? :eek: :D

[MISSINDI]

I shouldn't admit this, but we love Boston Market. We went there last Wednesday night at 7, and they were out of cornbread. Out of cornbread??? For the rest of the night! It would have been a 5-10 minute wait for spinach and 20 minutes for chicken. Pardon me??? So we left and went to Taco Bueno for sour cream chicken chiladas. Wait...did I say Taco Bueno out loud? :eek: :D

I believe it. I've gone to McDonald's before when they were out of burgers, go figure.

I've been on a Boston Market kick too - been craving fruits and vegetables like crazy, and love their vegetables. :D

[Hammster]

Last night we met another board member for dinner in Richmond at a Resturant that had rave reviews! Well it was far from rave!

We got there a little early and sat at the Bar, asked for a Glass of Pinot Nior and a Glass of Cab, fine great flavor. The others arrived and we were seated, she asked for the Pinot he got a beer. Server Comes back, no more Pinot, she ordered another wine.

Ordered dinner, service a bit awkward, salads were finished and plates were left on table until entree's came, then they had to clear while holding entrees in hand. DH and friend orderdd another glass of wine. Sorry we're out of both of those, we get our ABC order in on Tuesdays!

Dinner was far from what we expected, My tuna, which I requested Rare, was med - rare, combiniation of flavors on plate were good, Fennel, potatoes and Grapefruit. However, Fennel was under cooked and tough. DH had Fried Oysters, wonderful, his grits were alittle undercooked. DF ordered Chicken on Polenta, WAY over salted. DFH, liked his meal of skirt steak.

Then the guys order a Port, sorry we're out of that as well....Dessert came with their meals, is was an Penna with Sorbet. He thought it was interesteing, she thought it way too sweet.

Needless to say, we will not be going there again...Are many of you as disappointed in eating out as we are, we have few really good places that I could say deserve a rave review.

Wanda

I'm generally one to give a place a second chance unless my health is at risk.
I'd give this place a second chance. I think I'd go on a Wednesday evening, they should have a full stocked bar by then if ABC deliveries are on Tuesdays.
Service, although important, didn't sound all that lacking with the exception of not getting the salad plates cleared sooner. Perhaps an off service night for some reason? (A tip issue for sure)
Did the overcooked tuna and undercooked fennel and undercooked grits and the too salty chicken get returned and replaced?
And what is a "Penna with Sorbet"? I know what Sorbet is, but what is Penna? And I'm thinking if the dessert was good to one person and too sweet for another, that might just be a personal preference thing. Not a reason I wouldn't go back. I just wouldn't order that dessert again.
I hope that you mentioned all of these issues to your server, and possibly the manager as well. They are most likely aware of the wine issues, but service and poor food have to be pointed out usually.
It sounds like your area may not have a lot of restaurants to "rave" about, so maybe this one deserves a second chance especially if they know what your experience was like the first time?
Would you mind sharing the name of the restaurant?

As TKay said, hopefully the company was the highlight of the evening.

[rosen]

pointerhaven: I'm also in Richmond. I'd ask you to PM me the name of the place... but since we never, ever go out to eat... on second thought, I'm really nosey & want to know where you went.

Richmond is the land of chain resturants. There are nice local owned places here & there that we have been to, but we don't go back because they are either out of our price range, use too much salt in everything, or are just not worth going back out at night for once we get home. DH always looks at me over his plate & says "I bet you could do better than this". We have several friends who feel the same way we do, so we get together once in a while at one house or another & are satisfied to call that a night out. I just can't see spending a weeks' grocery budget for a meal that I could probably do better.

Lots of folks don't feel the same way & that's fine. I'd just rather stay home.

(I do read all the resturant reviews & actually know several people who own resturants around town.)

[lindrusso]

I believe it. I've gone to McDonald's before when they were out of burgers, go figure.


Are you serious? :eek: :rolleyes:

We had a very comical meal once where we ordered a bottle of red and a bottle of white for our meal. We enjoyed both bottles (perhaps I should mention that there were 7 of us at this meal, not just DH and me ;) ) and asked for one more of each. They were out of both.

On to the food..........the waitress told us that they were out of "X", but had "Y" instead. Someone ordered "Y". A few minutes later, she comes back to say that she's sorry, they are out of "Y". :confused:

Someone orders shrimp - a pretty common menu item. Well, they had shrimp, but they only had 6 left.

We just laughed and rolled our eyes................... :rolleyes:

[vbak]

Are you serious? :eek: :rolleyes:

We had a very comical meal once where we ordered a bottle of red and a bottle of white for our meal. We enjoyed both bottles (perhaps I should mention that there were 7 of us at this meal, not just DH and me ;) ) and asked for one more of each. They were out of both.

On to the food..........the waitress told us that they were out of "X", but had "Y" instead. Someone ordered "Y". A few minutes later, she comes back to say that she's sorry, they are out of "Y". :confused:

Someone orders shrimp - a pretty common menu item. Well, they had shrimp, but they only had 6 left.

We just laughed and rolled our eyes................... :rolleyes:


Kinda sounds like me when I want to make something, and I find that I don't have all of the ingredients on hand.

[Kayaksoup]

Like Hammster, I hope the bad food went back. I have sent tuna back before because it was overcooked. My opinion of the place was changed when they apologised immediately and whisked the offending tuna away, returning with a perfectly cooked piece.
Unlike Hammster, if the wine service was that spotty in a HIGHEND restaurant, I would not be inclined to forget. I can understand a mid-range restaurant with a a middling budget not being able to keep on top of their wine supply. However, these higher end restaurants have a higher budget and an obligation to keep their paying customers happy.

[Hammster]

Unlike Hammster, if the wine service was that spotty in a HIGHEND restaurant, I would not be inclined to forget. I can understand a mid-range restaurant with a a middling budget not being able to keep on top of their wine supply. However, these higher end restaurants have a higher budget and an obligation to keep their paying customers happy.

I don't know that pointer indicated that the place they went is a High End restaurant. (Could be a chain, could be a mom and pop place) Just that it received rave reviews. Also, no indication of what night they went out. My thought regarding them running out of certain wines was maybe they had a busier than normal week and wine demand was higher than usual. And if they only get one delivery a week, it can be hard to predict wine usage (and the inventory required) to ensure a large enough supply without carrying too much. In my industry, keeping inventories of anything to a minimum is required. It may not be much different in the restaurant business in that regard. (Especially if it's a chain)
I completely agree that they have an obligation to keep their customers happy. However if they have too much inventory on hand it can be a problem as well. A real balancing act I think.

[Kayaksoup]

I completely agree that they have an obligation to keep their customers happy. However if they have too much inventory on hand it can be a problem as well. A real balancing act I think.
I jumped to the conclusion that it was high end; possibly because I don't expect much from mid range restaurants myself.
The restaurant industry is similar to most in that keeping the food cost down (inventory) is key. However, by the same token, most restaurants I know keep their alcohol well stocked; if they are out of a wine, they let you know when you sit down ( just a note, the blahblabla has been extremely popular and we are out/have a very limited supply). Those are just my expectations though ~ I have never eaten at a place that was out of the beverage I wanted.

It is funny how I am willing to forgive food errors, but not wine; must be the chef in me:D

[pointerhaven]

Well they thought they were!!! The total bill for four people was $146.00

[Gilgamesh37]

There's so much variation regionally that it's hard (I think) to compare solely on the basis of $ per head. $146 for 4 is just over $36/head, which for my area would be considered pretty mid-range, especially if it included alcohol. (for comparison, our recruitment guidelines at my job for dinner with alcohol is $55 per head). In NYC, $40/head is probably chain restaurant territory, if that. I'm sorry you had a disappointing experience though, no matter what the bill was---when you go out, it should be fun and enjoyable!

[Hammster]

Well they thought they were!!! The total bill for four people was $146.00

Now that is very disappointing. I think I'd still go once more just to satisfy my curiosity that maybe it was an off night. Talk with your server when you are seated to find out what may be missing from the bar, the last time salad plates sat until entree's came out, food wasn't cooked as ordered. Etc. Luckily, nothing was bad or unsafe, just off.
Or, if there are other "special occasion" places to go to, give one of them a try. (I'm thinking at $36.50 per person, that visit was a special occasion.)


Oh yeah, what is a Penna with sorbet?

[barbara-cook]

This happens to us often when we go out. Well, more to my husband than to me. And it's usually his own fault. He'll order seafood at a steak place, a steak at a pasta place, etc., and then ends up being disappointed. And then I order something that fits with the place and I'm delighted. Then he'll say we won't be going back and if I point out what he did, then he might change his mind. But we have gone out a few times and run into the "we're out of that" line, and it just makes us kinda wonder if we really want to eat there. I don't think we've ever encountered a place being out of the requested beverage. But my husband ordered a steak salad for lunch at a steak house (he was on target this time!) and was told they were out of steak.

I can't believe McDonald's would ever be out of hamburgers!

[mkc]

Now, we had a bit of the inverse experience. The food was phenomenal and the service lovely, however the woman in the couple seated closest to us spent 75% of the dinner on the phone with casual, social calls.

On Valentines Day!!!

They were clearly a couple, yet finished their entire meal before our entree was served, and they were seated after us. She took no less than 4 phones calls of which none of the discussions were more than "no, I'm not doing anything, what are you up to?", and made a call herself during dessert. I threw a couple of glances her way, but boy did I feel sorry for her date. Clearly, her priorities were totally screwed up. I actually had a difficult time hearing my husband, seated across the table from me, over her phone conversations.

Pathetic.

[shscharles]

We dropped by a Bob Evans here in Southern Maryland for a quick breakfast lately and they were out of sausage...Excuse me? We laughed about that for weeks!

[petitechef]

D.H. and I have kind of spoiled ourselves by learning to cook at home. We rarely go out to dinner anymore...it's way more fun and cheaper to buy the ingredients and cook something ourselves.

The other night we had filet mignon with spinach risotto and steamed brocoli for about $10 each. He picked up the meat at the store and I had all the other stuff at home. We shared a bottle of wine and enjoyed every bite on our fine china!

The only thing we really go out to eat for is something we can't make like really good bbq ribs or sushi, and both are very rare occasions.


There is NOTHING worse than going out to eat with high expectations and being disappointed, especially when it costs you a good amount of money.

sorry you had a bad time...

[slknight]

I believe it. I've gone to McDonald's before when they were out of burgers, go figure.



I went to Subway several years ago and they were out of bread!:rolleyes:

[Goldie]

If I'm reading the dates right, this was a Monday night. Monday (and sometimes Sunday) are the nights that the main kitchen crew isn't working.

My husband was in the restaurant biz for years and if we have an off meal on a Sunday or Monday, that's what we chalk it up to.

It's not uncommon (when we have a group) to order another bottle of the same wine, only to find that it was the last one. Good waiters will usually tell you when they bring the first one, that it was also the last one. Not a big deal as far as I'm concerned.

That's my perspective anyway.

[Beth Y]

I must say that some of our favorite restaurants often run out of dishes. To me this is a sign of a restaurant that has fresh food and wants to serve it fresh, but doesn't want to lose money. They make a certain number of specials a night and when they are gone, they are gone. Unlike chains or many mega-restuarants, they are not going to just pull it out of the freezer for you, they have spent the day preparing fresh dishes and only have so many of certain ones. We find this to be particularly true with seasonal dishes, ones the chef has chosen based on what he can get really fresh that day. I am disappointed, but certainly understand. I don't want to eat leftover yesterdays food when I am at a restuarant.

Now that is not the same as going to our favorite local independant pizza place and being told that they couldn't give us pizza cause they were out of dough. THAT is a management problem. Of course, I had a soft place in my heart for that manager, given the one time we were there and he jumped up on the bar, hushed the crowd and yelled at all of us for not eating our pizza crusts, after he had gone to the trouble of using local flour high in wheat glutens so that it was very good for us..."So, EAT YOUR CRUST PEOPLE!". Hey....he cared!

[Grace]

I once went to Robinson's #1 Ribs here in Chicago, and yep, you guessed it, they were out of RIBS. That one floored me and I'm still astounded by it, all these years later!

[Rae]

I had an interesting dining experience Saturday night that didn't bother me that much, but the people I was out with were upset. We went to a higher-end restaurant in town, called to make reservations and were told they didn't take reservations on Saturday nights. OK, so we show up and they ask if we have reservations. :confused: Turns out they'll do "call ahead seating" where you can call and put your name on a list. Hmmmm... would have been nice to know but they had a nice bar, so we headed into it.

Fast forward an hour and a half later and we were still sitting in the bar. We had ordered a great cheese plate, had some wine; it was a long wait but the ambiance was nice. So, they finally seat us, take our orders, bring some very nice salads, etc. By now thought, it's after 9pm and everyone is starving and we noticed we didn't get bread. We asked our server, who acted surprised that she forgot to bring it to us. Seems reasonable except the people at the table next to us leaned over and jokingly asked how we managed to get the bread basket because they didn't get one.

So, we were kind of joking with the people at the next table about how long we waited, how we were favored getting bread, etc. As we were getting our entrees, their bills arrived and it was obvious that they were surprised. Well, three of the people at their table had ordered one of the "specials", a beef Wellington, that was about twice as much as any other entree on the menu. Most of the entrees were in the $20-25 range and the beef Wellington was over $40. They were very surprised. I don't know, I guess the argument could be made that it was their responsibility to find out how much the item was, but I was surprised myself to find out how much it was. I felt bad for them, obviously two young couples, who had probably hired babysitters to go out and found themselves stuck with much higher bills than expected. It just seems that if one of the "specials" is signicantly more expensive then other items on the menu, it should be mentioned. I've been to plenty of nice restaurants where they rattle off the prices, along with the description. I should say too, the other table rebounded quickly and made light of it, but I thought it was bad form, on the restaurants part.

And after all of that, my entree was superb.