Same Great Food, Same Lousy Service

Remember last May when we had dinner at 51 Lincoln with Barbara and Jerry, and the food was outstanding but the service ... well, not so much? Same thing just happened again tonight. It was surprisingly busy for a Monday night, but even that couldn't excuse the service. We waited far too long to order, to receive each course, and—always worst of all—to pay and get out of there. We didn't even have time for Andy to order the freshly baked cookies for dessert, because we'd been there over 2 hours already and had to get home to put the kids to bed.

All I ask is for a waiter to stop by the table and say, "Your entrees will be out in just a moment; I apologize for the delay" or "Here are your dessert menus; I promise I'll be back in a minute to take your order." But he just ignored us, as if somehow we might forget how long we'd been waiting if he didn't show his face. He also totally blew it on the vodka front. In case you're not familiar with the history of my vodka preferences, go read this and then come back. OK, ready? So I order my Absolut Citron and the waiter says they have only Svedka Citron. I say "No, that won't do," and he rolls his eyes at me without actually rolling his eyes and says snippily, "They're exactly the same." WRONG! They are so very much not the same that I drink far too much of one and yet can't even bear a tiny sip of the other, even when I don't know that's what's in my glass.

In this case, I'm afraid, two strikes and they're out. Next May we will seek out somewhere else to splurge on delicious food—served with a smile.

Comments

[sheila]

So funny that you wrote this today... I was going to email you to ask you if you had any suggestions for restaurants as we are coming to Boston this summer for a week. Guess it won't be 51 Lincoln, huh?

[Tammy (BFW)]

Bummer. I had a really good experience at 51 Lincoln. But, it could have been b/c they knew I was a food blogger. Hard to say.
I think it was totally out of control that the waiter had the gall to say "They are exactly the same". What a big no-no. Very bad customer service...

This is the first that I've stumbled upon your blog... saw your post on Universal Hub. Funny stuff. I'm also not familiar with any of your "daily fixes", so thanks for the insight! Check out my blog sometime when you have chance.

[Karen]

A restaurant should treat every customer as a food blogger. I got mediocre service, and they got a bad write-up from me. Did you follow the link to my experience there last year? That waiter was downright surly, not just "not great." I'll take my wallet and my appetite elsewhere!

[karl]

Karen I hope you informed Jeff Fournier after your first and now second poor experience. Every chef busts his ass in the kitchen and would be appalled to hear actions like this are running counter to his goals.

[TwoBusy]

Hey -- sorry to hear it. That's really disappointing. We've had a great experience both times we've gone, but I don't blame you for not going back.

[john ferriter]

Jeff Fournier is a stand up guy. I am sure he will remedy the situation if you speak to him. The rudeness part by the waiter is unforgivable, and he should be fired. I go to restaurants for the food and hope the service is adequate.

[Joel]

No restaurant ever sets out to provide substandard service, but two instances with service issues points to a cavalier (or at least lackadaisical)approach to front-of-the-house quality. Glad to hear from other posters that the chef should be receptive to the feedback. Should the waiter be fired? Not necessarily. However, a good coaching for the staff overall is probably in order.