Over the past month, a few of us have been up at Vij’s, the Indian restaurant in Vancouver BC. There were rumors about Vikram Vij scouting out locations in Seattle, so Tami Parr asked him about it. “Vij said that he felt that the market was ready and he found some great locations, but he didn’t feel he could find the Indian people to do the cooking – he said they all are too wealthy and work at Microsoft and don’t want to work in a kitchen. Vij said he talked to the guy who owns Wild Ginger and apparently that guy has the same problem with hiring cooks, he has to have his sauces made elsewhere and sent (flown?) in. Interesting. So no Vij’s in Seattle for awhile.”
I also went to Rare, also in BC, not long ago. They have an interesting menu specializing in rare wines, rare cooking techniques and rare cuts of steaks, fish, oysters and seafood; using only sustainable and wild stocks. They have several selections sous vide – (pronounced sue veed, French for “under vacuum”; also called cryopacking or cuisine en papillote sous vide) is a method of cooking that is intended to maintain the integrity of ingredients by heating them for an extended period of time at relatively low temperatures. Food is cooked, in some cases for well over 24 hours, in airtight plastic bags placed in hot water that is well below boiling point (approximately 60°C or 140°F). Anyway, this is the hot new place in Vancouver right now. My experience there was mixed. I think it has potential, but still has a way to go.
If you haven’t been recently, Vancouver is a fun food escape, and just 5 1/2 hours drive.
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Rachael Ray’s piece on Portland was entertaining, but more for the strange choices they chose to feature, and the forced delivery by Mrs. Ray. It drives me crazy when she puts something in her mouth and immediately says how good it is. No one can taste that fast!
Some of the things they covered:
Oldtown Pizza – This is the best pizza they could come up with in Pdx? I think they picked it as a segue to the underground tour, but still… geeze.
Anna Bananas Coffee -ok, a fun place.
World Cup in the Ecotrust bldg. – I’ve never been to this branch, but it looks cool.
Valentine’s – never even heard of it. Brie sandwiches. Hmm :)
Hobo’s Restaurant – I’ve always heard that was a gay place with mediocre food. Not that there is anything wrong with that; just a strange choice.
Peanut Butter & Ellies – famous with families
Ripe Family Supper – now gone
The Blue Monk – new to me
Pearl Bakery – hmm
Grolla – (the gluten-free place) has anyone been here?
Doug Fir – I like Doug Fir, but for the music; the food is pretty mediocre
Mentioned in passing: Thien Hong, Superdog, Jakes Grill.
———————————
Changes in the Pearl District
Nina’s Place has closed and subleased to a new restaurant to be called Graze. It is a cool space; it will be interesting to check out the new place.
Sweet Masterpiece (chocolate cafe) will be opening next to Sushiland.
Another Noodles franchise is going into the 10th street market space.
——————————–
Kevin Ludwig, bartender extraordinaire at Park Kitchen, has come up with a homemade tonic water. I tasted it during the development stage and was very impressed. When compared with standard bottle tonic, you’ll never go back. Highly recommended.
The Mick says
FD et al, Next time you are up in BC you have got to try to make it to Vancouver Island and one of my favourite restaurants! If you drive up the west coast of the island (from Victoria) to a little seaside village called Sooke you will find one of the very best restaurants I have ever had the pleasure to dine at. It is called The Sooke Harbour House. It has consistently been voted one of Canada’s top 10 restaurants (but be prepared to spend a lot of money). They have about 4 acres of gardens and their menu changes daily. At 10am every morning the 3 gardeners meet with the chef to tell him what they have for the day, at which time he writes the menu. Their schtick (if you will) is that they only serve items that are grown on the island (or raised or caught). For example, being that one cannot grow lemons or limes to fruition that far north….the time I went there, I had a salmon dish with a reddish sauce that tasted like there was a touch of lemon in it. On questioning the waiter I was told that the lemon flavor which the dish evoked was actually a sauce made from simmering the petals of a flower called a tuberous begonia. Unbelievable meal. I even had a friend who went to interview there as a cook….after a stage with Marco Pierre White in England. His interview was quite unique: The first thing the chef said to him was come with me….he was led to their walk in cooler where there were 3 whole pigs hanging, the chef said, “pick a pig”, after which he had an hour to butcher it. Half an hour later the chef came back, saw how far (and well) he had got, and said,” you’re hired”! You’ve got to respect that! Back to the restaurant: if you can get there early try to find a gardener and get a tour of their amazing gardens, you won’t be sorry. If you get there after the “seaweed lady” has paid a visit, you might get to try some of their more unusual creations. One way or another I will guarantee you that at some point in your meal you will taste something that you have never tried before! I could go on raving about this place (but I wont). It has been 2 years since I was last there, but I plan on returning soon…….It is actually worth the trip solely to go dine there. It will be one of those meals that you will never forget.
Bigfoot says
Hobo’s is a gay bar and I as a gay man was offended that this was not mentioned. Yes the food has always been so-so in my visits.
Anybody else wonder how she picks these places? Is there any “product placement” going on here? I hope so. If this was really the best of PDX she could find, then she really does have lousy taste.
Daaaaave says
Blue Monk is on Belmont between Zupan’s and Belmont’s Inn. Owned by Chris Joseph (of Portland International Beerfest fame), I think it’s known mostly for its stellar beer selection and not so stellar service. The food is pretty consistent, but average. Great place for jazz and a beer though.
Joe Dixon says
FD-
Never heard of Valentine’s? I find that kind of hard to believe, especially since there was a big spread about them in the ROTY issue of The O this year. And, I gotta say, it’s a bit odd you’d dismiss one of the more interesting culinary experiments in this town because they make “brie sandwiches” and are under your radar.
Food Dude says
Joe – I’m not dismissing Valentine’s, just haven’t been there. Personally, I LIKE brie sandwiches. The “hmmm…” was a good thing, hence the smiley face.
Chris Heinonen says
Valentine’s is a very tasty spot for lunch, and they use meats from Salumi for the sandwiches, so they are good. I believe the chef used to work at Genoa, and they are open very late certain nights, but I’ve only been there for lunch since they were close to where I worked.
World Cup in the Ecotrust building was somewhere I used to go every weekend when my girlfriend lived in the apartments by the train station. It’s pretty decent coffee, has pastries from Pearl Bakery. Not the best coffee in town, but a nice place we could walk to for our weekend coffee.
pollo elastico says
Was it just me, or the guy sitting next to ebullious maximus herself at Ripe was very uncomfortable about the whole experience? Poor guy, probably just wanted a relaxing night of fine comfort food and a glass of wine or two, and instead was treated like a guinea in some bizarro social experiment.
Pork Cop says
Is somebody’s daddy selling Brie now?
Angelhair says
Daaave, RE: Blue Monk,
Get to know Chris. He’s usually the server/bartender upstairs. Talk to him about beer.
It seems like the more I go in there, the better service we get. He’ll pull out a special beer that isn’t in the list yet, and we never go thirsty.
Although once I called him waaay in advance letting him that our party of 15 would be eating and then tasting beer all night. Does he add an extra server? Nope.
Still, I love the Monk. The beer list is large, interesting, and always changing. Its pretty affordable too.
Pork Cop says
Chris is a good guy.Although he is a Red Sox fan.
Carolyn Manning says
Speaking of Brie Sandwiches, last Sunday Marshall and I walked over to the Hillsdale Farmers Market and bought a black pepper bagel from a vendor there who also does a lot of really wonderful lamb goodies, too. Spectacular stuff … esp the bagels. Anyway, we thought we had some cream cheese at home, but no. So, rather than go out again, I improvised and put brie on the bagel. Mommy! Why hasn’t anyone figured this out yet? A Noah’s bagel doesn’t deserve the brie treatment, but if you get your hands on a really REALLY good, authentic bagel, try it with brie.
cuisinebonnefemme says
R. Ray’s Portland picks seem rather odd and certainly not ones that locals would pick. Or would they?
I can understand Ripe because of all the national media attention and hype it was receiving (and actually I’ve had many a decent meal there myself) during the time she filmed it, and Valentine’s is a cute and decent casual jewel box (FD you should check it out), but the others are just off choices. I have heard very good things about Grolla and I walk by it all the time, it looks decent, very romantic, nice tables outside, and the menu looks good.
I’m working on a little travel article about Portland right now and so I was wondering if you readers wouldn’t mind helping me out:
If you were giving recommendations to someone visiting Portland or new to the area, name 10-15 or so of your top recommendations and a short sentence or so that makes the case for why they should be included, “such as Chef Hooey only uses local salmon that he hand cures himself) Please include 1 bakery, 1-2 cafes/coffee places, 2-3 fine dining, 2-3 casual dining, 1 pizza, 1-2 novelty restaurants (you know all vegan or some such nonsense), 1-2 late night/decent bar restaurants, 1 sushi place, 1-2 other ethnic, and one restaurant that you could take a multi-generational family to and everyone would be happy.
I have my list, but I’m curious what others would pick.
Merci.
Foodho says
Valentine’s is pure Portland and a cool spot. I sampled a bunch of their food at the Plazm Magazine party last week. A delicious olive tapenade, a lip-smacking egg salad, hummus, snacky delights.
The World Cup cafes all have terrible coffee from what I have experienced.
Blue Monk is a great Portland jazz venue and a popular neighborhood eating/drinking spot in Belmont Street. I’ve only had good service there (upstairs). I concur that the food is mediocre but consistent. Big portions of pastas, salads, nothing to write home about but fair for the price.
The inclusion of Ripe, if Ripe was still happening at the time of the segment’s creation, makes plenty of sense. I’ve noticed that this site is bizarrely venomous about Hebberoy ventures and about Michael Hebberoy in particular, but not everyone in Portland has that vendetta going on. Ripe provided many excellent meals in its time. To me, the idea of a “meal” includes the whole experience, and Ripe had that down.
All in all, RR’s does seem like a strange list, though.
LadyConcierge says
CBF: Will you post your list? I would love to see it!
LadyConcierge says
Re: The Blue Monk
I hate it. My best friend worked there and was treated like s**t. The owners take most of the tips and schedule themselves for the best shifts. I don’t think that’s right, even if they are working owners.
Ellie says
Bakery – Ken’s Artisan
Coffee – Busy Corner, Stumptown Downtown
Fine (ok, Portland style fine) Dining – Park Kitchen, Wildwood, Tabla, Ciao Vito
Casual – Busy Corner, Lorenzo’s, Saggitarius
Pizza – Mississippi or Bella Facia (can’t handle the wait or attitude at Scholls)
Novelty – Le Happy, Good Dog/Bad Dog
Late night – Le Happy
Ethnic/Multicultural – Pambiche, Pho Hung, Chaba Thai, Alladin Cafe, Los Tres Hermanos (taco wagon on Killingsworth and Denver)
Sushi? Haven’t found any in Portland that floats my boat.
Brian Spangler says
Ellie,
I am sorry that you feel that we have an attitude. I feel we are always doing our best, given the fact that we are overwhelmed almost every moment of the night.
If you can explain the “attitude” that you are refering to, I would be happy to correct it with my staff if we are in the wrong.
The wait? I cannot do anything about that.
Brian Spangler
Apizza Scholls
Angelhair says
Dear Brian,
Let me preface my comments by saying that I love your place, the food and the staff. I always have a good itme when I go there.
But I take issue with your apology to Ellie. You realize that you are doing more harm than good with this one, don’t you? Never say, “I am sorry that you feel…” Instead, just say, “I am sorry.” Being passive-agressive may make you personally feel better while you ‘get the job done’ of apologizing. But you are really just putting the onus on the injured party.
It’s ironic that the very thing that you are apologizing for (additude), is so demonstratively present in your apology.
Okay, our hour is up. See you same time next week.
Brian Spangler says
Angelhair,
I never thought of it that way… but now that you have pointed it out, you are correct.
Thanks,
Brian Spangler
Apizza Scholls
dieselboi says
been to Grolla and it was fantastic. the owner or chef interview you about your preferences and food needs (i.e. veggie but eat fish) and then bring out some tasty bits. we opted for the full 5 course meal with wine pairing and it was truly amazing. each of us had something different for each course, so we could share and try 10 different dishes. it was all fresh and well prepared. i want to go back!
CBF – how do we get you our list?
Ellie says
Dear Brian –
The attitude to which I refer stems from our first and only visit to your new location. We had friends in town who were visiting with their two well-behaved daughters, aged nine and eleven. Our friends own a well-known California winery, so as a result their daughters are well traveled and have been to many of the best restaurants in the US and abroad. We also had our children with us, one of whom loves dining out, and the other who was too small at the time to be out of his carseat. When we were seated, we were given a one page list of what children may and may not do in your establishment. The entire table felt put off, especially given that the children were quiet, seated, and looking at the menus. We were embarassed to have brought our friends to a place they did not feel welcome. Their mother chose to make a joke out of the list, reading it loudly enough for our table and several others to hear and enjoy.
In my opinion, your pizza is truly the best in town – by a mile! I am sure you have had issues with ill-behaved children several times over, but please give those of us who control our children a bit of credit. I didn’t bring them to Paley’s Place (or such) for the very reason that I wanted them to feel relaxed, but if I had, I’m sure Kimberly would have been more welcoming of the children than your establishment.
I’m happy that you are busy, and I think it’s great that you would take the time to ask me to explain my experience. We own a small business where we try to make everyone feel welcome, and find it confusing when we encounter a restaurant that does not. Hence, we choose to eat less amazing pizza and give our money to someone who makes us feel at home.
Carlo says
I keep hearing great things about Apizza Scholls, but I’ve never eaten there because, alas, I also keep hearing about the long waits to get in. (A French relative of mine, from Lyon, once told me the thing he finds most bizarre about this country is how Americans are willing to wait in line to get into restaurants. No Frenchman would ever put up with that, he said. You just go somewhere else.)
Anyway, since we’re psychoanalyzing Brian Spangler’s note of apology, I’d like to say I’m a little troubled by one line of his as well, where he says: “We are always doing our best, given the fact that we are overwhelmed almost every moment of the night.”
It just seems to me that if you’re overwhelmed all the time, that’s a sign you need to do something about it. Hire more employees? Get a bigger place? Something.
grapedog says
Ellie,
Congratulations on your (and your friends’) decision to educate and guide your children such that they are well-behaved in restaurants. I believe this is such a rare occurrance in today’s world that the assumption is typically that the children will disrupt others in the restaurant.
My wife and I (married 22 years, no kids) have had our share of bad dining experiences when kids run amok or are loud and the parents simply ignore them. A few rare times, one of which in a nice Sante Fe, NM restaurant, we were so impressed by the behavior of the children sitting nearby that we complemented the parents verbally after dinner.
If Apizza Scholls has a “rules sheet” for children, they should also have one for adults. Yes, there are adults out there who talk loudly on cell phones, smell badly or otherwise cause other diners to leave with a negative impression of the meal.
I couldn’t comment on the disruptive children at Apizza Scholls because just like Carlo’s friend, I don’t wait more than 10 minutes for a table at any restaurant. This should be an entirely separate conversational thread. I am willing to commit to being at a restaurant at a given time if the restaurant is willing to have a table ready for me. I’m even willing to put my credit card on the reservation with a monetary penalty if I am very late and don’t call or I don’t show up at all.
extramsg says
I’ll play the apologist — be the bad guy.
I disagree, Angelhair. He only had a few options:
1) To say nothing.
2) To say what he did.
3) To say “I’m sorry” without adding any context.
4) To say “I’m sorry about our attitude”.
First of all, attitude is either an intentional state or a perceived state. Either the person giving the attitude intends to treat the other poorly or the person perceives that they are being treated poorly. But note that the intentional part is the most important. I know people who always perceive attitude from anyone dressed in expensive clothes or who drive expensive cars. People perceive stupidity just because of southern accents and haughtiness just because of English ones. Of course, we have to be careful in how we’re perceived if we’re going to get around in the world, but we also have to be damned careful in jumping to conclusions about how we’re perceiving people. (And I say this, sure, to some extent because I’m perceived as much more of an a-hole than I intend to be.)
I think it would have been wrong for Brian to admit to attitude, to essentially say that yes his staff perhaps were jerks. That’d be a lack of loyalty to them before ever knowing the circumstances. I’d be pissed if I was an employee. Instead he took a neutral position saying that he was sorry she was offended, essentially, and asked what it was they she found offensive, saying that he would look into it. (The only bit that was a mistake, rhetorically, were the scare quotes which have come to imply that you don’t believe what’s being said.)
The option you suggest is to just say he was sorry, without context. I guess that would be fine. I’m not sure what it would imply, though. It’s fine because it’s just so vague. It makes no effort to investigate a possible problem. It doesn’t really admit to anything. It’s just a quick bit of rather meaningless sympathy.
I think Ellie perceived something that wasn’t intended, she made a mistake about the attitude, she took offense where none was meant. I think Brian explained the whole genesis of the card on PortlandFood.org once. As I remember it, kids were throwing rocks and generally running around pestering people and parents weren’t taking care of it. Instead of having to go reprimade parents and truly embarass them, they decided to quietly let people know their concerns ahead of time on a card. Maybe it can be handled a bit more tactfully, but it sounds like there’s as much an issue with Ellie misperceiving Scholls’s intentions as there is with Scholls not being more careful in how they handle their dilemma.
Carlo, did you read what you wrote? Just open another restaurant? If you think it’s that easy, maybe you could come volunteer for me.
Brian Spangler says
Ellie,
I apologize for making you and your guests uncomfortable. That was not our intention with the handout, but we realized that some customers took it that way and we removed the handout after only one week.
The handout was a reaction to a horrible week prior to the handout’s creation. We had one child throw a rock at a customers head, several children ran into our servers while carrying scorching hot pizzas which one ended up on a diner, who was luckily not seriously injured as well as one child who climbed our cement water fountain, slipped and hurt themself on the way down while the parents watched and did nothing. Anyone of these events could have spelled a lawsuit against my business and fortunately none did.
Again, I apologize for making you and your friends uncomfortable at our restaurant.
Carlo,
The reason that we are overwhelmed is do to the fact that we get hit all at once. On a common night, we fill every seat within 2-3 minutes. Each server has six tables, which is ideal for good service, but when everyone wants to order at once, it can get a little stressful when you have impatient customers. When everyone orderes at once, the kitchen gets hit hard… we will se almost all orders for the entire restaurant within 15 minutes after opening the doors. Again, people have to be patient, but some are not. Adding more seats by moving to a larger space would only make the problem worse. We decided on our space as we figured the maximum volume that we could do with the quality that we wanted to produce. We are there… completely maxed out on capacity. We will not sacrifice the quality of the product to make money or shorten the wait. If I did choose to cut corners to meet more demand Kim and I would loose our interest in owning the restaurant, the pizza would go down hill in quality and many customers would move on.
Brian Spangler
Apizza Scholls
Dave J. says
I’ll say this about the “rules for kids” card–for every parent who is offended, there will be 10 other people who thanks the heavens they’ve found a restaurant that refuses to accomodate people who let their kids run amok. I’ve had dinners ruined by kids “playing” nearby, the type whose parents have the “oh, he’s so creative” approach to parenting, and I just don’t go to those places anymore.
Second, why be insulted/offended by the card displaying the rules? Our society is governed by rules. Am I offended that I have to read a laundry list of prohibitions every time I enter the airport? Do I scream and yell when my DMV application has page after page about the evils of drunk driving, believing that the state of Oregon believes me to be a drunk? No–I recognize that these rules were put in place because people in the past have acted badly, and I act accordingly.
It’s no different with the list about kids. If you read “kids cannot do W, X, Y, and Z here,” then figure out that the restauarant has had a problem with that, and don’t do it. If your kids are not the type to misbehave, then that should be the last you even think about it. To dwell and stew about this after the fact seems extrememly silly to me.
sgj says
Hey Brian I just want you to know that I have never been to your restaurant, and now having read what you have written, I am now going to make a point of going. And I will bring a book for the wait! Sharon
Carlo says
Brian: It’s certainly admirable that you take all these comments so seriously and, of course, that you’re committed to making high-quality pizzas. I’d really really love to try one sometime. But a restaurant where every seat fills immediately and nearly every order is placed within 15 minutes of opening?? That’s not just overwhelming for you; it’s far too chaotic for a wanna-be customer like me. I wonder how much other potential business gets turned off as well.
I don’t know what the answer is (contrary to what ExtraMSG wrote, I never suggested that you ought to open ANOTHER place). But it seems to me what you’ve got there, in a business sense, is a recipe for disaster: All your business gets bunched up at opening, you’re overwhelmed, and eventually patrons will tire of the ordeal and/or you’ll burn out. Maybe the answer is longer hours to spread out the business? Maybe you should take reservations? Or maybe someone with better business acumen than me has the answer. It seems from these comments — again, I haven’t eaten there, so I have no first-hand info — that your place has a reputation for (1) great pizza and (2) hassles. That can’t be a good thing in the long run.
Carlo says
Regarding unruly kids, one of my favorite restaurants (in another city) handles the issue particularly well, I think. At the bottom of their menu, along with their disclaimers about smoking and tipping, they print one simple line: “No cry babies, please.” Once we dined there with friends who brought along a couple of their toddlers. When they asked the restaurant owner if she could supply booster seats for the kids, she simply responded, “No,” and smiled. Our friends were aghast (while the rest of us cheered silently in our hearts).
I don’t think our friends ever went back, and I suppose that over time a restaurant like that gets a reputation as a place that’s not kid-friendly. But its always full. There are a lot of diners out there who really appreciate a kid-free environment at dinnertime.
Brian Spangler says
Carlo,
You are right, we do turn away business and I am sure we will never see those customers again. I am not sure I would say that we have a reputation for hassles, so much as we have a reputation for being very busy. I have regular customers who never wait more than 10 minutes for a table. I think the perception of a long wait when people are waiting outside is the most damaging to our business. This is the reason that everyone lines up early before we open our doors and hence, fill every seat in the first 15 minutes. People see a line and make a decision to either put their name in the cue or eat elsewhere. A line doesn’t mean you will wait long, it just means that we are busy. Once we get past the first turn, I think we are very good about getting the line moving and not leave people waiting too long. Our magic number for a large group is 6… any more than that can make for a long wait do to the size of the space, and maybe that also contributes to the rumors of extremely long waits.
I know of a lot of restaurants around the country that have the same issues as we do and they have been around a long time.I personally will wait for good food because it is important to me and obviously others will to. We all pick and choose our priorities and to some, waiting for food is not one of them which is just as justified as those who don’t mind waiting.
Food Dude says
Wow… I go away for a day and all hell breaks loose!
I’ve been reading this thread with interest. Kudos to Brian from coming on and really listening to what people have to say. It is interesting to hear both sides, and I think his responses are well thought out.
I understand his issuing cards about children’s behaviour, as I have had some meals ruined by little ones running all over the restaurant and throwing food, while their parents sat by completely oblivious. Maybe the answer would be to give the cards to people that obviously do not pay attention to common etiquette (or maybe less subtly box their pizza to go).
As far as the wait at APS, I think as long as they keep making the best pizza in Portland, there will always be people willing to wait. The idea of increasing size of the restaurant scares me – artisan pizza is an art.
Nagrom says
Carlo,
In response to the “no crybabys” restaurant. I had to read the post twice before I noticed it was in a different city. I’d be pretty surprised if a Portland restaurant, busy or not, would be so unfriendly to their youngest customers. There are so many young people with young kids in Portland I don’t see why a restaurant here would want to be so rude. No one likes unruly kids. That’s a given, but it’s the parents who should have a rule card. Unfortunately the kids get labeled and singled out when it’s the parents who need behavior lessons.
cuisinebonnefemme says
Ellie, thanks for the restaurant suggestions. Wow, what a lively discussion it started. Had no idea the polarization between owners and diners with kids was that huge. Although from dining experiences lately, I could have guessed. Congrads to you Brian for addressing the issue, although I probably wouldn’t have chosen your method. I like FDs suggestion above or personally I would probably go more for the direct confrontation/public humiliation route: “excuse me but your children are disruptive and dangerous and if you can not control them then we can box up your food and you can enjoy it at home, thank you very much.”
DieselBoi: I was kind of hoping folks would just post their fav suggestions here, but if you want to e-mail them you can send them to cuisinebonne@yahoo.com
choux says
I have been to Apizza Scholls once before and this is a reminder that I must return. I went on a weeknight and was there shortly after they opened. No onerous wait. I brought my two (well-behaved) children and they still seated me! Seriously, it was great pizza and I felt comfortable there with my kids.
Had I received one of the kid behavior guideline cards I might have been a little perplexed but understand better given the context of the owner’s experience. Some adults could use a reminder about steering clear of hot pizza, too. More than in other places I have lived, I have noticed the “let’s talk about your feelings” approach to parenting in Portland. A restaurant is not the place for adults or children to discuss feelings if one of them is screaming. I do not understand why parents let their kids run around a restaurant. Besides lacking consideration for other diners, it is simply dangerous with hot soup, coffee, pizza, glass, etc.
To the couple who complimented a family on the children’s behavior — thank you! We had that happen a few nights ago and I love to hear it but it means even more to my kids. Proves our point about being respectful to other people.
ps– love the site, FD. Keep up the good work. Hugs and kisses.
Brian Spangler says
Nagrom,
You hit the nail on the head with your quote “but it’s the parents who should have a rule card.” The “rule card”, if you will, stated the issues that we had just encountered the week previous to it’s creation. It then asked parents to not allow there children to roam unattended or do anything that could harm them or other customers and employees. It was only intended as a reminder for the parents that seem to think our restaurant is a playground for their children. Many parents did love the card and thanked us for it, but it also alienated those that thought we were directing the card at them or their children in particular. For that reason, we threw them away after one week and we have never used them since. In the last year, after the cards came and went, we have not had a single incident with children and we have developed great relationships with many a family.
Word spread fast throughout town, that we were not children friendly, but I would rather say that we are not found of irresponsible parents.
Brian Spangler
Apizza Scholls
Angelhair says
ExtraMSG–
Really, my comment has nothing to do with the situation between Ellie and Brian. It\’s more of an etiquette thing.
When a person says something akin to \”I am sorry that you feel that way,\” they aren\’t actually apologizing. One should always use \”I\” statements when apologizing, never \”you\”. It\’s antagonistic otherwise.
Mea Culpa means \’my fault\’ or \”my own fault\”.
It doesn\’t really matter who is right or wrong. If you are going to go to the effort of apologizing, you should actually say I\’m sorry (period). Otherwise, you just make matters worse. Particulars don\’t matter.
It\’s irrelevant what happened and it\’s irrelevant who\’s right. If a proprietor is going to take the step to apologize, then just apologize. He can, of course, explain what happened. But one should never put the burden or the responsibility on the person who they apologizing to. It\’s just civil.
It\’s a difficult thing to do, but when done simply, it can make a world of difference in the way people think of you and the way you think of yourself. By taking the responsibility, you take the higher ground. And it costs you nothing but the foolish pride of always having to be right.
Okay, that\’ll be $45.
Angelhair says
BTW, I am sorry for typing in bold (apology).
I didn’t realize that I had typed in that key (explanation).
Wow, that was easy!
Ellie says
Thanks for the explanation, Brian. I agree with FD that there are diners of all ages who don’t seem to grasp the concept of common courtesy. We’ve been lucky in that one of our children is a food freak like us. With our younger child, however, we’ve quickly realized that he needs to stay at home with a sitter. I’ll be the first to agree that not every parent cares about the tables around them, or realizes the impact that their less-than-perfect child might have on a restaurant’s business. That being said, it’s hard when you feel a chill descend on you because you’ve just walked through the door with a child in tow. Hey, all of you were young once, and I bet a whole lot of you were as excited about food as my five-year-old. I’m not willing to discourage her love of food by leaving her behind. FD’s going to need an heir to this site one day…
I appreciate and admire restaurants who approach a situation such as this with humor rather than a list of rules. Russell Street BBQ has a sign in plain view of the front door that reads “Wandering children will be given a double espresso and a puppy to take home.” If that doesn’t get the point across, I don’t know what will.
Marie says
For all the brie sandwich fans out there, I have a favorite. Capitol Coffeehouse and Bistro in Hillsdale has a great Grilled Brie Panini. It has been a fave of mine for years. Gooey brie with carmeilized onions and olive tapenade.mmmmm
Marshall Manning says
I like the idea of a behavior card for adults. Some suggestions:
1) Please refrain from wearing too much perfume, cologne, or patchouli (especially applicable on Hawthorne!). If only you can smell it, it’s just right. If WE can smell it, it’s too much.
2) I don’t care how important you feel you are, do not take a cell phone call at the table. If you must leave it on, go outside immediately when it rings.
3) A restaurant is not the place to train your children. Train them at home and then bring them to the restaurant when they can behave without bothering other diners. You may think they are “cute”, but we don’t. Not every restaurant is Chuckie Cheese…parents and children need to learn the difference.
4) Please speak in a voice that is appropriate for your table size ONLY. Customers at the next table don’t care about your problems at work, your trouble finding pants that fit or your latest colonoscopy results.
Thank you,
Management Everywhere
Carolyn Manning says
Brian,
Of course, you know Marshall and I love your pizza. Best in the city … probably the state … and maybe this side of the New York City city limits. (Yes, readers, it is just that good).
Do the math, people … if the restaurant begins filling up instantly upon opening, it will be full for an hour. Walk in, put your name on the list, indicate the time you’ll be back, and come back in an hour. Go have a cocktail or glass of wine somewhere else, and when you come back, you can probably just walk right in.
Brian, it would help with the wait if you had a comfortable waiting room. If you could snag a little place next door and set it up like a Dr.’s waiting room (lots of comfy seats with magazines, cards, and maybe someone to fetch a soda, beer or glass of wine for those waiting), no one would mind the wait.
Right now, there is NOWHERE to wait. If it isn’t too cold or rainy outside, you can stand around on the sidewalk out front (ala Portland Rescue Mission). But if it’s cold and rainy, you end up standing packed like sardines in the center of the dining room, feeling uncomfortable and in-the-way.
If you can’t get space next door, consider expanding UP … build a nice waiting space on a second floor.