Alas, Clementine's the classy little bistro on Passyunk Avenue has closed its
doors, May 2008!
Monday, June 30, 2008
Not one of your better reviews, Craig!
TO: Craig LaBan
Subject: Swallow
Read your Swallow review. Disappointed!
It bothers me to no end when accolades are withheld for vaguely defined or dubious reasons.
You took issue with their color scheme? Maybe it's authentic brothel?
You gave Standard Tap, great place, a free shot in the Swallow review, justifiably rhapsodizing over their duck confit. Have you ever run your finger across the woodwork or knick knacks at the Tap? Probably not. Our grungy Tap server, really nice kid, brought out our plates with a kitchen rag hanging out of his rear pocket that was a mini vomitorium of grease, gravy and stiff old stains. I was hungry and worked hard to keep my wife in her chair. If I was a health inspector, I'd have strung yellow tape across the entrance until they dipped the restaurant and the entire staff in hot soapy water.
Why would you take issue with common cheeses like Pierre Robert and Prima Donna? No more ubiquitous than Gorgonzola or Reg. They're there because they're delicious as is the honeycomb on that plate. Maybe the bleu D'Avergne and raw milk Tomme weren't ready that day. And if the frog's legs were underseasoned, fine. But they always look human with their ankles crossed. It's a wrong menu item , always has been.
You loved the crab cake but still took a shot. Bitter salad greens? Was it rocket, treviso, endive? Since when is bitter a pejorative when discussing greens? When I was young broccoli rabe was called bitter broccoli and we loved it. The trout was a "shade" overcooked? Maybe he was acceding to complaints about too moist fish and was being accommodating. And was the fish overcooked on all of your several visits? I've been served "nearly" burnt brown almonds in Paris. A bit too long in the beurre noir? I can live with that. Isn't it your job, indeed duty, to say whether it was burnt or not?
Mussels "relatively" flavorless? Flavorless or not? Tell us! Ambiguity is not a word a writer should relish unless one's writing a suspense novel.
You probably hurt these kids and not for any solid reasons and that is power poorly exerted!
I'd put them on the top of my revisit list real soon. That's a 2 bell restaurant. And Craig, when you want to grind your axe, head for the nearest Chang's or Red Lobster, and not for a couple of young restaurateurs trying desperately to make a contribution to the city and to their craft.
Subject: Swallow
Read your Swallow review. Disappointed!
It bothers me to no end when accolades are withheld for vaguely defined or dubious reasons.
You took issue with their color scheme? Maybe it's authentic brothel?
You gave Standard Tap, great place, a free shot in the Swallow review, justifiably rhapsodizing over their duck confit. Have you ever run your finger across the woodwork or knick knacks at the Tap? Probably not. Our grungy Tap server, really nice kid, brought out our plates with a kitchen rag hanging out of his rear pocket that was a mini vomitorium of grease, gravy and stiff old stains. I was hungry and worked hard to keep my wife in her chair. If I was a health inspector, I'd have strung yellow tape across the entrance until they dipped the restaurant and the entire staff in hot soapy water.
Why would you take issue with common cheeses like Pierre Robert and Prima Donna? No more ubiquitous than Gorgonzola or Reg. They're there because they're delicious as is the honeycomb on that plate. Maybe the bleu D'Avergne and raw milk Tomme weren't ready that day. And if the frog's legs were underseasoned, fine. But they always look human with their ankles crossed. It's a wrong menu item , always has been.
You loved the crab cake but still took a shot. Bitter salad greens? Was it rocket, treviso, endive? Since when is bitter a pejorative when discussing greens? When I was young broccoli rabe was called bitter broccoli and we loved it. The trout was a "shade" overcooked? Maybe he was acceding to complaints about too moist fish and was being accommodating. And was the fish overcooked on all of your several visits? I've been served "nearly" burnt brown almonds in Paris. A bit too long in the beurre noir? I can live with that. Isn't it your job, indeed duty, to say whether it was burnt or not?
Mussels "relatively" flavorless? Flavorless or not? Tell us! Ambiguity is not a word a writer should relish unless one's writing a suspense novel.
You probably hurt these kids and not for any solid reasons and that is power poorly exerted!
I'd put them on the top of my revisit list real soon. That's a 2 bell restaurant. And Craig, when you want to grind your axe, head for the nearest Chang's or Red Lobster, and not for a couple of young restaurateurs trying desperately to make a contribution to the city and to their craft.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Attention All Restaurants: You're not IBM!
Restaurant Owners,
Just an FYI, when I call for a reservation, I don't want to know that your menu
choices have changed, and I don't want to be automatically put on hold and kept
on queue for any amount of time. I want to immediately hear a cheery human voice
and I want them to tell me if they can accommodate my request so that if they cant,
I can immediately call one of the more than 11,000 other restaurants in Philly or
one of the 23,000 in NYC. I'm still waiting for a call back from SnackBar, 2 calls and
Rae not that I haven't made other plans. Where did this hubris come from? A restaurant
is not an insurance company, a bank, a hospital or any other institution from which I must suffer arrogance. You're a restaurant, regardless of the regard you or anyone else has for
your food! So, for the newcomers to this most competitive business, get a grip. Your job,
if you are to max out your chances for success must make it easy on us , not difficult.
And speaking of success in the restaurant business, call one of Danny Meyer's or Mario Batali's restaurants in Manhattan. No machine, a real cheery voice. Can't think of 2 more successful restaurateurs, Can you? Think there's a connection?
Friday, January 11, 2008
You talkin' to me?
Jones Chestnut Street Center City Philadelphia
Across the street from Aqua, the Malaysian fun food spot, is Stephen Starr's ode to American comfort food, Jones. Great breakfasts, chicken and waffles, meat loaf and honest mashed potatoes all contribute to making the concept work well. Ultra casual service far from perfect with staff giving off a subtle vibe of "hey, this is a Starr restaurant, they'll be back". Maybe not!
Given Starr's understanding of what the public wants in service, having not 1 but 2 hostesses stare blankly back from 6 feet away when being beckoned discreetly, repeat discreetly beckoned after our server disappeared, while mouthing," you speaking to me" inexplicable but cost the restaurant any chance of a return visit despite decent food.
Across the street from Aqua, the Malaysian fun food spot, is Stephen Starr's ode to American comfort food, Jones. Great breakfasts, chicken and waffles, meat loaf and honest mashed potatoes all contribute to making the concept work well. Ultra casual service far from perfect with staff giving off a subtle vibe of "hey, this is a Starr restaurant, they'll be back". Maybe not!
Given Starr's understanding of what the public wants in service, having not 1 but 2 hostesses stare blankly back from 6 feet away when being beckoned discreetly, repeat discreetly beckoned after our server disappeared, while mouthing," you speaking to me" inexplicable but cost the restaurant any chance of a return visit despite decent food.
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