664760 Wed Nov 04 14:13:27 -0800 2009 23 29 Not About Food 0 5156169 We went to, what I'd consider a rather expensive pre-theatre prefixe meal. it is close to 70-80 per head, sans the wine. While the service is fine, i'd hate to go off on the waiter, that was not there to warrant the quality of the food. What do you do if it was just not good. In my mind, a $50+ should be able to buy me a satisfying dinner, no?? should i have asked them to make me another dish? or are we supposed to politely nod and write a scathing review when we get home? 1st - pasta with tomato and basil. The pasta was over cooked and broke as soon as i tried to stab with my fork. Pasta is well dressed and seasoned, but there is not much outstanding flavor that we cannot cook at home. Too simple, kinda taste like spaghettiO's. 2nd- roasted rabbit - the legs are good but the breast are as dry as wood. i don't know what happened here. i was very disappointed. the sauce is also too tart and strong. i tasted nothing but dried meat shreds and sauce. 3rd- salad was ok. it was just greens and light vinaigrette. Dessert of creme burlee is okay. the sugar crust is too thick and i could tell it has sat our for a while already. the sugar is breaking down liquids in the edges. nothing to write home about. Wed Nov 04 14:13:28 -0800 2009 133265 jeniyo 1 5156234 Well, certainly not nod & then write a scathing review. If you do not like it, don't say you do. However, there is a difference between not liking a dish and it being a bad dish. 1) Overcooked pasta deserves a mention. The fact that it may not be seasoned to your liking does not necessarily make it bad. 2) Dried out breast meat deserves a mention. Sauce being "too strong" may be a matter of preference. 3) Sounds like a typical, ok salad. 4) Dessert was "ok", so I guess no complaints. Crust being "too thick" may be another case of personal preference. Sorry your dinner was not to your liking. If you were unhappy, you should have nicely pointed out the flaws to the server. It is not his/her fault, but if you want the problem fixed, that is where to start. If you don't want the problem fixed, don't complain, but you might mention to the manager upon leaving that the quality of food was not up to expectations. Wed Nov 04 14:32:45 -0800 2009 5156169 249405 elfcook 2 5157202 I agreed with everything you said until the end: "If you don't want the problem fixed, don't complain, but you might mention to the manager upon leaving that the quality of food was not up to expectations" Why? Just to let them know your tastes are different? I'd say if you don't want the problem fixed and didn't complain to the server about overcooked pasta and dried out meat don't say anything to the manager on the way out either. Wed Nov 04 21:30:15 -0800 2009 5156234 69044 hsk 3 5157949 complaining on the way out is basically pointless and passive-aggressive. you have now put the manager and restaurant in the position of being unable to make things right or better, or appease you in any way. if the server inquires, you have a choice. tell him you don't like it and why, then request something different, or clam up and soldier on. pre-theater generally implies a time constraint, so i don't know that i would have wanted to wait for a new dish. i don't know if the pre-fixe menu offered only those items you ordered, but if it didn't, it seems silly to order spaghetti marinara and a green salad for dinner out. not much jazz available for either. Thu Nov 05 08:19:30 -0800 2009 5157202 30273 hotoynoodle 4 5158040 we just happened to be in the theatre district and was caught in that hour. This is a pre-marathon dinner so i was trying to work some pasta in. It was either this pasta or escabeche/calamari/carpaccio.. green salad was a single listing on that course... meh~~ Thu Nov 05 08:50:51 -0800 2009 5157949 133265 jeniyo 4 5158642 I disagree that the only time you should "complain" is when you want something different. First, I don't think of it as complaining so much as giving feedback, and second, there are legitimate reasons you might not want the resto to make something else (time, energy, etc.). I think it's better to say something at the time than on the way out, but it's perfectly acceptable to tell the server that the meat was overcooked, but due to your time constraints, you don't want the dish re-fired. The server should accept the feedback and be on notice that she/he should double check in the future, etc. Just because you don't need/want it fixed for your particular meal doesn't mean that saying something won't fix the problem for other diners in future meals. Thu Nov 05 11:46:00 -0800 2009 5157949 156153 akq 5 5161427 I agree. If there is something I don't like because it's not my taste, I still will probably tell them. Maybe it's a complaint that been made before and will inspire a change to the menu. I'm not looking for a handout or a new meal, just giving feedback. Fri Nov 06 11:39:54 -0800 2009 5158642 139219 Sooeygun 3 5159360 oops, I was not very clear, and maybe did not think it through. If I did not want dinner re-fired, or replaced (due to theater tickets, timing, or whatever) but the food quality was poor (not just to my taste), I might mention that. After reading a couple of these replies, I can see your point. I am not one to say "good" when it isn't, so I would have spoken up to the waiter right away. I do have friends who do not speak up, go home and stew about it. To me, THAT is pointless. Thu Nov 05 15:44:06 -0800 2009 5157202 249405 elfcook 1 5156255 Be honest. No reason to be rude or go off on the waiter. Just tell them that you were disappointed in the food and why. I've certainly told a server that my pasta or meat is overcooked. Preferably, you'd tell them the problem soon after you are served while they still have a chance to do something about it. If you don't have time for them to re-fire, just tell them that. Wed Nov 04 14:39:11 -0800 2009 5156169 156153 akq 1 5156338 thanks, i've always wondered how to respond to this. the hard part is to differentiate between quality and personal preference. must think twice before opening mouth... =P Wed Nov 04 15:05:56 -0800 2009 5156169 133265 jeniyo 2 5156354 Either one is fine - I've told a server that I didn't care for the dish because of X, Y, Z when there was nothing objectively "wrong" with it (not overcooked, etc.). No big deal. Sometimes they offer to make me something else, but I usually decline the offer (unless the dish was not as advertised) and if I really want something different, just order it and pay for both. For example, I once ordered a salmon cooked on a wood plank. When it came out, it had some kind of weird sugar glaze on it that had not been mentioned on the menu at all. When the server asked how everything was, I told him that I did not care for the fish because it was so sweet and the menu hadn't said anything about it being sweet. He apologized and offered something else. I agreed (I wasn't going to eat the salmon) and ordered a plain planked salmon. No big deal. Wed Nov 04 15:10:46 -0800 2009 5156338 156153 akq 1 5157908 I've done it both ways... Complaining and not complaining. I don't complain anymore because the old saying 'maybe it was an off night' thing doesn't cut it with me anymore. Either the restaurant has good, consistent service and food or it doesn't. I just don't go back again if the food isn't what I consider a good meal and I figure the restaurant doesn't deserve my return business. Recently I went to an upscale/popular Italian restaurant here in LA and ordered a dish where the entire sauce had separated before it made its way to my table. Ugh...I couldn't/wouldn't eat it and just left it there, paid, and left. Thu Nov 05 08:06:18 -0800 2009 5156169 239340 latindancer 1 5158111 if asked i usually answer honestly Thu Nov 05 09:13:44 -0800 2009 5156169 135229 thew 1 5159335 The problem with complaining and asking for something else is time. I once mentioned that my entree was cold and then watched everyone else at the table eat their dinner while I waited for my replacement. When it came, everyone was almost done (they felt bad for me as I filled up on bread & offered bites of their dinner) and then I had a whole entree to eat. On the other hand I don't want to pay for something that isn't up to standard so I don't know what the solution is. Also, sometimes the waiter doesn't come by to check until my partners are halfway done with their dinner...am I to sit there and not eat my food waiting for someone to come ask? I usually just eat it anyway although when the waiter finally comes to ask how things are if I say it wasn't good I am sure they are wondering why it is almost gone. Thu Nov 05 15:32:28 -0800 2009 5156169 1099702 sparkareno 1 5159722 My motto is don't ask me if you don't want to know the answer; if they ask me how the food is and I have a complaint, you better believe I'm going to let them know, in respectful but firm way that I'm not happy. If they ask me do I want them to re-cook the food, I usually will let them do that if it didn't take so long to get it the first time. If they haven't been to my table in the first 10 minutes after I got my food and then wait until they think I should be finished with the food then ask me how was the food, I'm going to say I'm not happy & I'm not paying. Of course, I'll have left all but the first 2 bites on the plate. Personally, I don't don't see the point of complaining later if you don't express your disappointment when the situation is happening. I know people who will just sit there, seething and not say a word but complain at home. If I'm going to spend my money, it's going to be right. Thu Nov 05 18:24:10 -0800 2009 5156169 1108638 Cherylptw 1 5160961 To honestly say I didn't like the food that much is a LOT easier to do at a mid-high end place with servers trained to be attentive and accommodating. The remarks are non-personal. It is a completely different story when you are eating at a small ma-and-pa or family owned restaurant, with super-friendly servers, and the smiling owner comes over to ask you with a warm sincerity, how was the food? Many times, I didn't like the food at all, but did not have the heart to say it. What am I gonna say, "your family recipe" sucked? "Your wife is not that good of a cook" ? What do you do in this situation? Fri Nov 06 09:11:21 -0800 2009 5156169 68634 Dio Seijuro 1 5161579 Yes, especially if it's an upper-middle to high-end venue. I like to think that the chef appreciates constructive criticism (and they usually do). I'm even more likely to point out obvious failings (like your dry-as-a-bone rabbit - been there, tried to eat that in NH a couple of weeks ago) if either the place opened recently or the dish is a special of the day. In both those cases the chef is trying something new and needs feedback to know how it's coming across to you, the audience. Fri Nov 06 12:24:07 -0800 2009 5156169 14386 BobB 1 5161640 it depends... jfood cannot tell ou how many crappy dishes he has endured while out with friends. it is rare he will send something back unless at least one other person takes a look at the dish and actually laughs. it is usually suck it up, go home and have a PB sandwich. There is the order it one way - receive another. Steak is the perfect example. Order Medium rare arrives raw or well done...please re-fire. same with raw chicken or fish. But overcooked pasta, not so much. now when it is just m&m jfood and they are out for a leisurely night, AND the dish is bad then jfood will send it back. Now bad does not mean he just did not like it, but so badly prepared that a reasonable man would know it. BTW - rare that a great meal can be found for pre-theatre and 70-80pp, way more than jfood spends and heis good for 5 shows a year. Fri Nov 06 12:44:12 -0800 2009 5156169 11290 jfood 1 5162622 Based on my experiences with pre-theatre meals there is little if any time to do anything but replace it with something different (that hopefully will be acceptable), if there is anything acceptable that is still available once everyone is served. I have expressed my displeasure before, but ate or didn't eat what I was given based on how little time there is usually alloted or, not wanting to cause anyone else to feel uncomfortable. Why not try and get through it and enjoy the play? You can always express formal and specific displeasure later which might include a request for compensation if it was all that bad. Sound like yours could have qualified for some kind of credit. I/we have not spent the kind of money you are talking about on a theatre meal. Not so much that I wanted to have it corrected then and there. I have asked for a different entree once I found I didn't like what I had. That turned out to not be a big deal. Fri Nov 06 20:27:43 -0800 2009 5156169 137946 Scargod 2 5163397 the op clarified they were not going to theater, were just in the neighborhood. so no time constraint. i'm wondering if i might have thought twice that a place in that area at that time would be able to accommodate walk-ins? if it wasn't busy, perhaps we now know the reason? Sat Nov 07 10:37:05 -0800 2009 5162622 30273 hotoynoodle 3 5165419 jfood did not pick up that nuance either. why subject yourself to the PT if not going to the theatre. Sun Nov 08 13:48:18 -0800 2009 5163397 11290 jfood 3 5166197 Thanks for pointing that out. Buyer beware :) Apropos of theatre, we've found it's better (fo us) to go to a matinee and then have an early dinner afterwards. No stress. Sun Nov 08 20:54:35 -0800 2009 5163397 131001 c oliver 4 5168470 lessons learned, and always the hard way- like my mom and very many of my friends: "girl, you gotta stand up and just say it!" I will do that next time around. Because I simply deserve better food at that price. especially when silverware is actually SILVER. Generally, i am just utterly disappointed because food establishments does not treat their food correctly anymore... back in the day, my prom date posse would take up to macaroni grill and we'd have a good time, sans the sodium poisoning... (what happened? people don't taste their food anymore?) my husbands and my friend's plates were "okay." Though we feel that we would of been better off if we picked up some produce and made our own dinner. I think we use our experiences to judge and guage, and we have certainly build up quite a repertoire. ironically, after having the dry rabbit, i was NO rabbit in the marathon. Better luck next time. 1. speak up and speak quickly, even get someone's attn. 2. do homework, do not put reservations in the hands of a pimple faced concierge. 3. when in doubt, do some more homework. Read the menu, get reviews. 4. get an iphone and don't look lost. 5. no pre-theatre. rather bring picnic items and hang out on a park bench. 6. consider this a public service for the next patron. Mon Nov 09 16:21:53 -0800 2009 5166197 133265 jeniyo 1 5166381 If I'm someone's guest for dinner out, I keep complaints down to the *bare minimum*. If it's hubby and I, or I've gone out with friends "dutch treat", then I will be completely honest with the server. You could very well be doing the owners and, yes, ultimately the servers, a favor by being honest about food that is not prepared correctly. If it were my establishment, I'd rather know directly from patrons that perhaps my chef and his/her staff are not up to snuff, than to find out when business dwindles down to nothing. And as for the servers, I'm sure it's not easy for them to be on the frontline fielding diners' dissatisfaction. If there's a problem in the kitchen that needs to be addressed, it's easy for the servers if they have specific feedback to pass along (I should think). Mon Nov 09 00:26:54 -0800 2009 5156169 1104013 Normandie