It has now been 7 years of marriage. I decided to take my wife out for dinner to the supposed trendy/fancy Vesta Dipping Grill - 1822 Blake Street, Denver Colorado.
They specialize in a variety of meat or vegetarian dishes with your choice (from about 60) different dipping sauces. I made our reservation for New Year's Eve later in the evening - 10:30 PM. My wife and I arrived at 10:30 and proceeded to check with the maitre'd - a 20-something blond girl with a Bondo-thick layer of beige makeup. "We're setting up your table. Have a seat in the bar and we'll call you when it's ready", she said. We aptly complied. After sitting in the noisy bar for 15 minutes staring at my Movado watch, I decided to inquire about my table. "We're still setting it up". I sat back down in the bar, and grumbled to my wife about how the hostess probably just fed me some line about the table being ready.
After about 3 more minutes a different hostess sat my wife and I at the best table in the house - right next the the freezing glass window and noisy front door! I'm glad I made a reservation! Better yet, the hostess pointed out that for our comfort and convenience, the staff has placed a space heater under our table, and if we were too hot or too cold we could simply adjust it. Wait a minute, you expect me to pay $35 per entree and $4.50 for a Coors Light, and I have to deal with the worst table in the whole restaurant that I called ahead with a reservation?!
So we sat down, hoping to try a new dish. I put my napkin on my lap after pulling off the napkin ring - wait, that's not a napkin ring it is a copper plumbing coupler. You're so clever Vesta Dipping Grill. Why don't you also use the plastic ring that is leftover from scotch tape? And for chairs - milkcrates, and patrons should be given newspaper and a few logs so that they can start their own fire next to their table in a 55-gallon barrel!
Needless to say we left. We waited and waited and waited. No waiter came to our table in the 10 minutes we were sitting there. My wife told the hostess that we were leaving. I explained about the inability to keep the reservation, the terrible table, the lack of service completly. Maybe they should consider a buffet or cafeteria-style cuisine.
On the bright side, it is good to see that their are recession-proof businesses out there that can power through - turning away customers left and right without batting an eye. "Sorry sir, but we've made too much money and we have no use for additional customers."
Vesta Dipping Grill - 0 out of 5 stars for poor service and bitchy hostess. ? out of 5 stars for food, because we'll never know.
well, now I know to never eat there (and shake a fist if I drive by). . .is it just me, or do people have no work ethic anymore? those people should be embarrassed! where's Tom Martino when you need him? jerks
ReplyDeletethat's so New York. You go into a restaurant and they seat you next to the bathroom. If you complain they move you to a table near the kitchen. If you complain again they finally move you to a descent table.
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ReplyDeleteI kind of wish you had stayed through dinner JUST so I could hear you rant about that! Also - I'm curious to see if the waiter brought your food on a upturned trashcan lid.
ReplyDeleteThis could possibly be the worst and most irrelevant review ever posted by an insecure and more than slightly, full of himself, douche. First of all your 10:30 reservation was because your thoughtlessness or unpreparedness for your special day left no other alternatives than a 10:30 reservation on a busy holiday in downtown. Your first complaint is a personal attack on the hostess and her make-up, seriously, maybe you should have called ahead and asked for a host that was more to your liking. Your lack of understanding and compassion lead me to believe you are an only child and spoiled at that. It is understandable to expect to have a nice evening out with your wife on an anniversary, say something, ask for a special table, mention you are celebrating because you know what, it’s NYE, everyone is celebrating. To then try and draw attention to your Movado watch and complain about paying $4.50 for your Coors Light is priceless. If you don’t like where you are sitting ask to move, you might have to wait a few more minutes for a table to open up but no one is making you stay where you don’t want to sit. You can always go back to the bar and gaze into your wife’s eyes and drink another Coors Light. You are the reason industry people call NYE and Valentines Day “amateur night”. Get over yourself, have some fun I’m sure you will be writing another review after Valentines Day.
ReplyDeleteI'm p.o.'d FOR you! I'm never going there. so there.
ReplyDeleteI think that "anonymous person" is a douche. Being someone who has totally worked "the industry" (by the way - you're a waiter. Who are we kidding.) I can say that on busy nights the last thing I'm going to do is cater to simple requests. Well . . . maybe I will, but you're getting spitters. hehe. Oh! And in your defense - Movado watch - worth the thousand bucks. Coors Light? Barely worth 2. I'm on your side Matty :)
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ReplyDeleteWhile I have been to Vestas a few times (both receiving good and bad service)... This is all I have to say (both as a former bartender and now someone who has enough money to spend on nights out and simply expect the best)...
ReplyDeleteDear "Anonymous",
Clearly you are someone who either works for the place and or has nothing to do but search out peoples OPINIONS and rip on them.
Jesus! It is not as though Matt is a food critic for the times (or the Denver equivalent the Post, haha), and if he were, Vestas F'ed up with the wrong person.
Now if you are in "the industry" you should know that every guest should be treated in a way which would make them want to return again and again, and even better, tell a friend to become a patron as well. If you don't get this, it leads me to believe you are one of the common "industry" coke heads that just wants to push your table through the meal so you can scamper off and do your next line. As a hint, when the guests leave, so do your tips, and thus your next high...
"You say hello, I say goodbye..."
dear anonymous,
ReplyDeleteit's too bad you're not confident enough in your disagreements with the blogger to own up to your identity. And if you continue to read this blog just so you can disagree and comment your woes, I'm terribly sorry you're that bored. And as for personally attacking the blogger for posting his opinions (or venting, lets face it, you would do the same thing!) I would like to kindly ask you to sit on it jerk.