Fine Dining Pet Peeves!

[RockyTopCam]

The other night My wife's parents took us to a place here in Memphis called Jarrett's. I got the 14 oz Angus NY strip with bernaise sauce. It comes out almost smothered in sauce. Anyways the steak was delicious, by itself, and so was the bernaise but by the time I was done the sauce was almost revolting.

It seems to me some chefs aren't comfortable with the taste of the meat and try to overcompensate with sauces. I've always felt that sauces were supposed to enhance flavor not to be the flavor.

Is it just me or has any else noticed this.

[tebowisgay]

Sometimes dey do dat, and it is a sign of a crappy chef. Ask the server how much sauce you are going to have on the dish, and get it on the side if you feel you have to.

[GhenghisVol]

Anybody that serves bernaise sauce with a steak should be hung on the spot anyway.

[Tnphil]

When someone ask's me how I want my steak.....I say, Cut off his horn's, wipe his ass and bring the sumbitch too me......Screw abunch of sauce...

tnphil

[GhenghisVol]

I had a customer at the Jolly Ox ask for a raw steak on a hot plate....and he ate the thing.

Had a regular that had me time his steak 15 seconds on each side. Crazy peoples.

[Tnphil]

Keep my drink glass full.....and I dont want some waiter putting that napkin in my lap....it pisses me off....

tnphil

[volchef]

My biggest pet peeve is ordering a $38 steak medium rare and the waiter asking that's a warm red center is that okay? Other pet peeves include dirty dinnerware of any kind, waiters who hand you a rubber cork to smell, sticky menus, and appetizer and entrée coming within 5 minutes of each other. Oh and waiters who do their side work while they still have tables.

[VaVol]

My biggest pet peeve is bad table service. The wait staff doesn't control the kitchen, but they can at least make sure you're tended to.

And a properly-cooked good cut of steak requires absolutely nothing else. A1 and sauces are usually to hide something, most often a shitty cut of meat.

[GhenghisVol]

Thumbing the cork is my favorite part. haha

Would you believe I was a French Somelier at the Radisson downtown Memphis when I was 20 years old? My french accent was terrible, but I was very effective at upselling to local yokels that brought their dates in to impress. Funny as all hell actually.

[aadicof]

Would you believe I was a French Somelier at the Radisson downtown Memphis when I was 20 years old? My french accent was terrible, but I was very effective at upselling to local yokels that brought their dates in to impress. Funny as all hell actually.

Ha! Nice.

[aadicof]

I know dick about fine dining, grew up on Big Macs, and Applebees is the nicest place within 40 miles of here. But I was a server for about 2 months once and we used to laugh at the rednecks that came in and asked for ketchup with their steak.

[real turf fan]

In New Orleans, the French Bread crumbles. It is a fact of life. And Commander's always has a bread on the table. So there are crumbs on the tablecloth.
I hate being crumbed. It makes me feel like a slob. Crumbing at Commanders is like using a squeegee to do a picture window. Doing both well is an art. But crumbing can be done with less....flair. I'd swear at least one of the waiters there would do it with his right pinkie finger lifted as if he were taking tea with the Queen (not any generic NOLA queen.)

[GhenghisVol]

I'll put up with the excessive crumbing at Commanders long enough to get to the Bread Pudding. They should have a drive up window for that shit.

[GhenghisVol]

My best line was when these guys would order a cheap bottle of wine, (shakes head dissaprovingly, roll eyes at date) "Oh no monsieur, you must have zee Chateau La $140.99." I got 20 points on anything I sold over $50. Great gig, bad accent.

[volchef]

My best line was when these guys would order a cheap bottle of wine, (shakes head dissaprovingly, roll eyes at date) "Oh no monsieur, you must have zee Chateau La $140.99." I got 20 points on anything I sold over $50. Great gig, bad accent.

Ha! When my husband and I dined at the venerable French Laundry in Yountville, CA, their sommelier tried to snow us with that.....but madame, your wine will affect the flavor of your food. I looked at that stupid fucker and said, then why my dear sir do you have the bottle on your wine list?

[Napervol]

any sauce on a steak would be grounds for returning the steak. Adding a horseradish or blue cheese crust is ok if that is your thingy.

If menu does not specifically say choice or prime, they probably need to put a sauce on that piece of horsemeat.

Real pet peeve would be not replacing a fork after you have used one. Simple things like handling the table correctly can enhance a diners meal. Rarely done anymore or done correctly. We don't need a whole new service set, just the one that was used etc. And no, fook no, if I put the fork on the plate to be picked up- do not put in down on the table when you take the plate (unless we are at Applebee's or Chili's), and in that case- who cares.

[tebowisgay]

When you hear this you and your credit card will be getting a Ruth's Chris class ass rapin tonight.

[volchef]

When you hear this you and your credit card will be getting a Ruth's Chris class ass rapin tonight.

Yeah on the Ruth's Chris, but sorry Tig, booo on the water. Good Sparkling water is gooood stuff (not that perrier shit, but the Voss and other non french European sparkling water with little bubbles is awesome. However, I do know I'm a picky ass bitch. I can't drink water unless it's in a glass with a lime because if I smell dish detergent it makes me wanna puke. Not that the unclean mexican salmonella infected lime really makes me feel better...

[Chatta Vol]

Couple off the top of my head.

Service: obviously had bad service but on the same hand, hate someone that's all up in ur grill all night trying way to hard to take care of you. A good waiter/tress is like a ref.ump in a ball game, the best ones are the ones that you don't even know are there.

I f'in HATE dropping huge coin on a meal for me and the wife and some table next to us are getting loud and cutting up and laughing and shit like they're at chucky cheese! I politely ask them to STFU.

[RockyTopCam]

I have a friend who eats ketchup on all things meat. He went to Folks Folly here in Memphis and asked for Ketchup. He said the guy scowled and then went and got it for him. I told him just save 30 dollars and get a burger with no bun.

Also has anyone been to the Stockyard in Nashville? They have the bet Pork chops I've ever tasted. Steak was pretty good but the Pork Chops were as close to perfect as any I've ever eaten.

[Tnphil]

I have a friend who eats ketchup on all things meat. He went to Folks Folly here in Memphis and asked for Ketchup. He said the guy scowled and then went and got it for him. I told him just save 30 dollars and get a burger with no bun.

Also has anyone been to the Stockyard in Nashville? They have the bet Pork chops I've ever tasted. Steak was pretty good but the Pork Chops were as close to perfect as any I've ever eaten.

I have eaten there a few time's....good place...never had the Pork Chops, but I will try next time...

[volchef]

At culinary school we jokingly referred to ketchup as Sauce Americane.

Never been to the restaurant in Nashville, but so many places cook pork chops wrong that I'm impressed by anyone who orders them out. I'll try them next time I'm there. Sounds good. Grilled pork should be cooked medium. Trichinosis is very very rare, our pork supply is relatively safe....not to mention undercooked pork is about the only way to get them juicy anymore.

[SoftballVol]

I had a customer at the Jolly Ox ask for a raw steak on a hot plate....and he ate the thing.

Had a regular that had me time his steak 15 seconds on each side. Crazy peoples.
When I worked at the Jolly Ox if a customer ordered a steak well-done a manager had to come to his table first to try to talk him out of it. If he insisted the manager would tell him that the restaurant would not guarantee it and that he couldn't send it back if he didn't like it.

[GhenghisVol]

Oh yeah, where did you work, and when? I worked in Knoxville waiting tables then bartending my last 3 years from 73-78. Loved that place. It was mostly SAE's, ATO's, and
Lambda Chis there with some hotass hotass womerns, one of whom bore me 3 children.

I lived in the age of well done. Had a guy one night that sent his steak back 3 times, hell it was burnt when I took it too him to start with but Mark the cook took the thing, spit on it, wiped it through the grease pit, set it on fire, then nuked it for 5 minutes and sent it back out. He ate the thing. Kentucky fan.

Oh yeah I forgot.....he threw it on the floor and stomped on it before spitting.

Never send a steak back in a steak house. Just eat the fucking thing.

[BillVol]

Foams, fusion -- bullshit like that. Foie gras milkshakes. Just put some good food on the table.

[volchef]

Foams, fusion -- bullshit like that. Foie gras milkshakes. Just put some good food on the table.

I am both utterly repulsed and impressed at the same time. Thus you see the internal fucked upness of the creative mind. California French is some of the most beautiful fusion in the world. My culinary school on the other hand just won a very prestigious industry award based mostly on the concoction they call, French Bread ice cream. :img59:

[SoftballVol]

Oh yeah, where did you work, and when? I worked in Knoxville waiting tables then bartending my last 3 years from 73-78. Loved that place. It was mostly SAE'ss, ATO's, and
Lambda Chis there with somehotassshotassswomernss, one of whom bore me 3 children.

I lived in the age of well done. Had a guy one night that sent his steak back 3 times, hell it was burnt when I took it too him to start with but Mark the cook took the thing, spit on it, wiped it through the grease pit, set it on fire, then nuked it for 5 minutes and sent it back out. He ate the thing. Kentucky fan.

Oh yeah I forgot.....he threw it on the floor and stomped on it before spitting.

Never send a steak back in a steak house. Just eat the fucking thing.
I worked at the Chattanooga Jolly Ox in the mid-70s to help pay my way through school. I only worked there during summers and Xmas; I worked at the Shelbourne Towers Deli and the Deli Downstairs with Naper while in Knoxville. Made tons of cash, easy money at the Jolly Ox. I think I was the only non-college graduate among the waiters although I was in college at the time. The others all had degrees in things like English. Back then Jolly Ox had a dress code for patrons. No sneakers, no T-shirts, no jeans except designer jeans. Waiters had to have short hair but they made an exception for the best one of the bunch. He had blond hair down to the middle of his back and would wear a ridiculous black wig with that blond hair poking out all over. Customers would wait two hours in the bar just to get him as their waiter. He could handle twice as many tables as the next-best waiter on the staff and the amount of money he made must have been outrageous, even in Chattanooga.

It was thanks to the Jolly Ox that I learned to appreciate mushrooms. OTOH, I still can't stand the thought of eating a Kensington Club sautéed steak. A steak that tastes sweet? Ugh.

[GhenghisVol]

haha Did you have to wear those knickers and buckles on your shoes?

Hey, did you know Steve Bearden and the Tasman boys?

I love that club, best thing I ever ate. The marinade has been duly perfected and posted somewhere on this board. I used to love the rednecks that would come in and order something like a "Henry the Vil and a bottle of Chattanooga du Pop" haw haw

[SoftballVol]

haha Did you have to wear those knickers and buckles on your shoes?

Hey, did you know Steve Bearden and the Tasman boys?

I love that club, best thing I ever ate. The marinade has been duly perfected and posted somewhere on this board. I used to love the rednecks that would come in and order something like a "Henry the Vil and a bottle of Chattanooga du Pop" haw haw
Yes on the knickers and buckles on the shoes and yes also on the pirate shirt. I felt ridiculous but the money was so good considering how little effort and time was required that I put up with it. I previously had summer jobs at places like the Gilman Paint Co. factory that were death-traps. Work my ass off all day long for minimum wage, come close to getting killed several times a day, ruin several sets of clothing due to the chemicals (and no telling what damage I was doing to my lungs breathing that stuff), and go home utterly exhausted. Then I found the Jolly Ox job and it was heaven by comparison. No risk of death, no lung-destroying chemical fumes, maybe 6 hours/day at most, and giant freakin wads of cash to carry out every night, most of which was untaxed. People don't realize just how lucrative a waiter job can be at a so-called nice restaurant.

I don't recall those names you mentioned.

[Napervol]

At culinary school we jokingly referred to ketchup as Sauce Americane.

Never been to the restaurant in Nashville, but so many places cook pork chops wrong that I'm impressed by anyone who orders them out. I'll try them next time I'm there. Sounds good. Grilled pork should be cooked medium. Trichinosis is very very rare, our pork supply is relatively safe....not to mention undercooked pork is about the only way to get them juicy anymore.

our pork supply is absolutely safe. If the animal is USDA inspected..i.e, you did not raise it yourself and let it roam all around the woods eating anything and everything- there is no possiblity of trichnosis. A pork chop medium is absolutely ok. But cook the hell out of your chicken.

[VaVol]

Most places overcook everything, especially fish and pork. Try to find a good piece of fish that's not overcooked at any restaurant these days.