If you’ve had dinner at Beast, you are probably well aware that the seating is made up of uncomfortable chairs that were banished from clarklewis many years ago. In my 2009 review, I specifically mentioned them, but they never got replaced. At one point Naomi asked if I would come back and give them another try, to which I answered, “Have you replaced the chairs yet?”
Now I don’t have any choice. Here is a bit of the latest Beast newsletter:
I guess I’m going back!
Still feel burned says
Last time I went there I had an incredible meal with 8 people. As incredible as it was, the chairs alone were enough to make me say “never again.” Frankly, the fact that they remained for so long is an insult and shows a lack of hospitality. Even though that was fixed, I’m still not going back. Why? Our party of 8 consumed a total of 10 bottles of wine — and a $30 corkage was tacked on to each and every bottle (back when $15 was the standard). While I accept corkage as a reasonable thing to pay for those who prefer to bring/share wine with friends, $300 of corkage is absurd and, again, shows a level of disdain for the customer I find unacceptable.
Calvert Helms says
Great to hear. I sat in those chairs during the early days of Clarklewis. They were so horrible I wrote my first, and thus far only, complaint email to any business noting that they were so bad that they had essentially ruined my enjoyment of the meal and that I would not return until they were replaced (and I never did). They were also the reason I never went to Beast, even though I live just a few blocks away.. While I don’t believe I suffer from Princess and the Pea syndrome, those things were astonishingly painful – they seemed to cut right into the back of ones legs no matter how much one shifted around. Kudos on the replacement.