I hate to drag this place down, but the service and food I got just weren't up to par. It seems everyone else who reviewed this place had a great experience. Did I enter the restaurant with a rain cloud over my head?
This restaurant is like a movie that looks really good in the trailers, but once you get in the theater and start watching, you can't wait for the end credits to roll. Or maybe it's like that guy whom you'd imagined was a great lover, but then you find yourself faking an orgasm, hoping it'll hurry him up so it'll be over sooner.
I drove down 1431 between Bell and 183 three times before I finally found the place. I'm not blaming them for this, but it still hacked me. But I assumed, based on other reviews, that the food would be good, so I took a deep breath and went in with high hopes. Sat at the counter and watched as a server futzed around behind the bar, completely ignoring me. I figured he was busy, so I waited a few minutes. Five minutes went by, but no one said said anything to me. I saw the waiter come out of the kitchen and I thought he saw me, and I started to raise my hand and say something, but he immediately disappeared into the kitchen again. If I hadn't gone to such pains to find this place, I would have just left at this point, but I sat there and hoped for the best. It only took another minute or so for the waiter to reappear, and he actually came over and asked what I wanted. Imagine that!
He wasn't the nicest guy (he never once smiled the entire time I was there, and he acted as if my presence was a complete inconvenience), but I went ahead and ordered a shrimp po' boy and an iced tea anyway. Waiter gave me a basket of chips that were actually quite good, so I happily munched on those and gulped from my incredibly large iced tea glass.
The shrimp po' boy was barely passable. I was expecting something much better. The bread was fine, and the tartar sauce was good, but the shrimp weren't fresh. That's when I noticed the waiter's work shirt: "If it ain't fresh, it's bait." Okay, so I should expect fresh seafood here. I know we're not on the coast, but I figure if Quality Seafood can give me fresh shrimp, CR should be able to do the same, especially if their shirts suggest it.
I ate most of the po' boy, but only because I'd driven around so much and because I wanted to get my money's worth. Well, despite eating most of the sammich, I still don't think I got my money's worth. The shrimp was a bit tough besides not tasting fresh. I've gotten fresher shrimp at Long John Silver's. It certainly wasn't the worst po' boy I've ever had, but it was incredibly far from the best. 'Twas mediocre, I'd say.
The waiter didn't check on me once to see if I needed anything (I needed fresher food and a better server, but I doubt he could have provided me with that). I managed to get his attention and ask for my check. My bill was $10.50. I plopped down a twenty and finished eating. The waiter was quick to take my money and put it in the drawer, but he failed to give me any change. I waited a tick because I thought, I dunno, maybe he needed to get more change from the safe in the back, or something, but he sat down behind the counter and started watching the TV.
Me: Hey, where's my change?
Dumb-ass: You wanted change from that?
Me: You did see it was a twenty, didn't you?
Dumb-ass: Yeah.
Me: [impatiently] Do you seriously think I meant to give you a 90% tip? You could have at least asked if I wanted change.
He didn't even deserve a 15% tip, but I left him two bucks anyway.
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