374865 Sun Feb 25 16:19:26 -0800 2007 5 6 Southwest 0 2328516 In a word..."eh". I went to a movie mid-day today and thought a bite before the movie would be great. I've been looking forward to trying 7th Heaven, as it seems a great option for a quick bite before the show. McCormick & Schmick and Houston's take a little while and they're not cheap if you're looking to grab something quick. Same with Deemo's & Nixon's. 7th Heaven is more family oriented with a cafeteria feel. I arrived at 12:15 and it was pretty quiet. No lunch rush here, although it looked like there must have been a breakfast rush. Table and chairs were amiss and moved around the space, there was stuff on the floor -- toast crust, crumbs, napkins, sugar packets, etc. And I noticed that there were several tables waiting to be bussed. Basically, you stand in a line, give your order to the cashier, pay, get your drink, get your utensils and a number and grab a table. The menu is on 4 large plasma screens above the counter. They serve breakfast all day, assorted burgers, sandwiches, salads, etc. I ordered the Grilled Chicken Prosciutto and subbed a green salad for fries for 97 cents. All of the meals end in a "7". 7.47, 9.97, 4.47...you get the picture. I paid and went to find a table. There were a few large parties -- over 8 people, mostly families with kids -- so I hunted down a quite corner. Most of the tables are round 2 tops. There had been alot of moving of tables to accomodate larger parties. Those tables hadn't been moved back and some hadn't been bussed. Not so great. There is also a section of high top tables in one of the corners near the bar...they serve only beer & wine. I waited about 15 minutes for my sandwich, which interestingly, was delivered by the pastry chef. Go figure. The sandwich was ok. Grilled chicken, fontina, spinach, prosciutto, pickles, roasted tomatos and spicy mayo on a 9 grain ciabatta. Actually, the sandwich was really tasty, but I didn't dig the bread...9 grain just didn't work for me with these tastes, and I normally love a grainy bread. A mismatch IMHO. The salad was tasty and fresh. Basic with romaine, cukes, carrots and tomato. The citrus vin dressing was nice. After my meal was delivered I never saw anyone. It says that drinks are free refills on the menu, but no one came to ask. I'm assuming that you have to go to the counter to get a refill? Too bad that wasn't explained when I placed the order. That would've made it a little user friendly. And, there's no self service bar with napkins, condiments, straws, etc. And with no servers, it's a little awkward if you need anything else. They do have an on staff pastry chef, and some of the sweet did look good. I was him icing some individual cakes when I was leaving, so it's a good sign that everything is fresh. I was hoping for more. Although, I think this fills a great need for families...not too formal or pricing. But the food wasn't great. I'll give it another shot. Maybe in the evening it's a different atmosphere. The menu is the same all day. Basically, it seemed like it was a little disorganized and duties not clearly assigned/defined. I saw about 6-7 different people running food, from managers to the counter help to the pastry chef. The bus boy was sweeping, then running food and making a shake behind the counter. The flow was off... I did notice that they're hosting a wine tasting dinner in March for $47, so that's kind of a twist. The place doesn't present itself as a wine tasting menu kind of joint. Sun Feb 25 16:19:26 -0800 2007 10556 geg5150 1 2328548 Thanks, Gayle. I had been wondering about this place. I think Ludwig in the New Times kind of shrugged at this as well. This is in the old Franco's location, no? Sun Feb 25 16:33:05 -0800 2007 2328516 10633 Seth Chadwick 1 2328573 http://www.seventhheaven-restaurants.com Strangely, the website shows a Stockton, CA area Fax number. Sun Feb 25 16:44:20 -0800 2007 2328516 10852 johnseberg 1 2328592 Yep, the old Franco's. John, that's not the website for this location...it's www.7th-heaveneatery.com which is a worthless, ego trip of a website for the owners/management. There is NO information on the site except the staff contacts. Sun Feb 25 16:51:49 -0800 2007 2328516 10556 geg5150 1 2328594 Oh, wait...both addresses direct to the website. Odd. Must be a chain in the making...that would make sense, unfortunately. Sun Feb 25 16:52:48 -0800 2007 2328516 10556 geg5150 1 2328704 A wine tasting dinner? Do you have to go up to the counter for each course and each wine? I might eventually try this place because of the family friendliness, but it does sound like it's pretty unfocused right now. Sun Feb 25 17:45:42 -0800 2007 2328516 26466 silverbear