Enlighten me, Please

K

karennoca

Well-known member
We have a beautiful restaurant on the Sacramento River. Three chefs have failed to make a go of it. New executive chef launched his new menu today at a brunch. I chose a shaved prime rib with bbq sauce on a brioche bun and it came with house made potato chips. It was just barely warm when I got it and the bottom bun was totally soaked and falling apart. As I worked my way through the prime rib shavings I noticed that the bottom bun had been piled with a layer of spaghetti. Has anyone else seen this?

I have never seen nor heard of spaghetti on a bbq sandwich.

 
So I googled and saw there's a restaurant that has a sandwich as you describe with

prime rib, brioche and celery root slaw. Do you think someone screwed up and put on pasta instead of the slaw? I know it sounds improbable but so does spaghetti on a bbq sandwich!

 
Was it in the menu description? Did you ask the waitress? When she asked, how is everything,

what did you say? Did you speak up at the restaurant? As a former waitress, I was very serious about making your meal as perfect as it can be. I also get super disappointed when I don't get an opportunity to make it right. I'm very curious to hear what happened at the restaurant.

 
Dang, I wrote a long story telling you the history of the restaurant, why we were there

and more detail about our experience. I accidentally blew it away and am not going to retype it.
Bottom line, no I did not complain to anyone, they are struggling to get this place going and today was a training day because I could hear the chef barking orders in the kitchen..so could everyone else. We were told the chef was training and they are changing the sound system so one cannot hear the chef. We will go back in the near future and then I will, if needed, offer my concerns. Today was not the right time as we were there to support the entertainer, and all of her supporters were there too. Everyone is pulling for this place because it is a beautiful building, on a cliff above the river. I noticed the husband of the entertainer pulled the wait staff away and I think he was offering a few suggestions. One thing I did do...I noticed a elderly woman who came in alone. They brought out a single table with a chair and placed it on the patio. It was wobbly and she was having a hard time of it. Several wait staff noticed but did nothing, so I called one over and asked him to please get her set up better, which they did.

Here are a few more short complaints:

Shiny black table, water glasses left condensation marks all over, made a mess.

only forks were given, I needed to cut my brioche in half and DH needed to cut his english muffin. This was a brunch.

BBQ shaved prime rib on brioche with tan chips on the plate, nothing green, Bottom bun totally soft and falling apart. House made chips kept falling off the plate, maybe put them in a cute container of some sort.

I was just surprised by the spaghetti on the bottom half of the brioche. Is this usually done? Or was it a mistake of a sou chef being barked at by the executive chef. Most barks were to hurry up, chef was timing them, even stating that ticket 17 for Chris was at a 17 minute wait.

 
Ugh. I hate seeing that. Restaurants are a reflection of the leadership. Having a chef

who barks orders only creates an atmosphere or fear and uneasiness. And people who may ordinarily take initiative, don't.

 
Our DSIL is a restaurant consultant (currently doing a "rescue" that

is so much like Ramsey and Irvine it is scary) and is opening a restaurant now. IMO you were not correct to not tell them, particularly on the "training day". We went to one for a 5* restaurant in Vail that DSIL was overseeing opening and my rack of lamb was very undercooked--had to send it back. How else would they improve.
But there is a LOT more wrong with this restaurant, and it sounds like the chef is trying to be the front of the house manager also, and isn't going to make it. So your entertainer friend will not have a place to entertain. ;o(

 
I called the restaurant this morning and asked to speak to the restaurant manager

I very politely told him of all the wrong things that happened during our brunch yesterday and he was very nice and appreciative that I called. After I was finished I gave my good wishes to the restaurant and staff, and told them I would be back.

The interesting thing is that he told me, a lot of what I said had been noticed by some staff and mentioned by other folks eating in the restaurant. They actually had a meeting later that day, when all was quiet and much of what I said had been addressed, especially the barking chef.
I feel so much better now!

 
YAY! So glad you addressed it. The thing I've realized, is that for some reason feedback

from a guest has more power than feedback from staff. Kind of like paying attention to opinions from people outside your family....Especially when the restaurant is new and people haven't worked together. A typical restaurant dry run is 1-3x before they open to the public. It's expensive and the more cash strapped the owners, the few of them you have. Which means when you open the doors, BAM! And these days, with Eater and other online outlets, you start getting press even before you open! It's a tough situation, for sure. Especially trying to turn around a 'cursed' space.

On the upshot, I worked with a chef who had a dog of a space. He finally opened other restaurants and closed that space. Since that building was built, there's never been a successful restaurant. But the one that came in after he left? Is doing gangbusters! So it is possible to turn a space around. smileys/smile.gif

 
I sure hope so, the building was designed with the river in mind. The architecture

of the building suggests a wave.
As you walk in, there is an outside fountain, and as you enter the building, the floor is black with shimmering gold flecks, suggesting how the river looks at night with the city lights. I love it. I never did ask about the pasta on the bottom bun of the brioche, as my list was long, I decided to choose the most important, however the restaurant manager was appalled at my soggy bottom brioche bun.

It was better for me to do it this way than make a scene at the restaurant. The entertainer had her 80+ year old parents from out of town, and other family members and friends with them.
Thanks for all your suggestions and wisdom. I hope to crack the spaghetti on the bbq sandwich at some point.

 
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