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Friday, December 22, 2006
Server sabotage
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
OK, so I write the Healthy Eating Out column for the Atlanta Journal and Constitution every week and I am a registered dietitian who is supposed to be smooth and skilled at ordering just the right thing when I dine in restaurants.
But, I need to share a bad experience and perhaps we can learn from it. I was dining out at a Houston’s restaurant the other night with a friend and had the hardest time coming up with a meal that met my taste bud needs and healthy dining goals. Here’s why: the surly server sped through the fish specials as if she was in a huge hurry to just get us in and out of there. I didn’t want salmon ( we were already sharing the smoked salmon appetizer), I didnt want red snapper ( it’s always a bit mushy) and the third fish was smothered in cajun spices. Then she made a huge deal about emphasizing that entrees come with their choice of “ONE!” side dish. When I asked what the vegetable sides were today…she said ‘glazed carrots”…uh that’s a no..I wanted a green vegetable. The other veg side was “vegetable medley”…sounded promising..what’s in the medley? “Broccolini, roasted root vegetables.” Ok here we go. I ordered the Houston’s salad which I remembered was always great with a little piece of delicious cheese toast perched on the rim of the bowl. Nope..sorry..cheese toast is extra now..and it comes three pieces to an order. Ok..bring it.
My friend and I shared a great smoked salmon appetizer and for entree shared a rack of ribs with cole slaw and mashed potatoes. I ordered an extra side of the Vegetable Medley…even though she kept insisting “you can only choose one side!!!!’ It’s OK…we’ll pay for it. I have never had to fight so hard to get a plate of vegetables!
When the veg medley arrived there were two dissapointing pieces of broccolini and the rest was a mass of root vegs. This was disappointing because I already had potatoes. WHich as it turned out were substandard in taste and way too big of a serving. Why can’t we just have smaller servings of two or three sides?????
NO…that would cause a chain reaction of “NO!! we cant’ do that!!!’ Now I am fully aware that you can’t shoot the messenger and that servers are not responsible for what’s on or not on a menu…but, I do appreciate it when they work with you to find some options that fit your needs…they are the ones who know more about the menu items and what is possible in making substitutions or additions. But, this server was more interested in rollling her eyes and moving on. I was feeling less like Meg Ryan in the diner scene in When Harry Met Sally..and more like Jack Nicholson in his confrontational waitress diner scene in Five Easy Pieces…when she wouldnt let him order chicken salad because they only had chicken salad sandwhiches on the menu.
Back to the food.. The salad was a disappointment too….limp lettuce and way TOOO much bacon bits, cheese, eggs etc. I remembered these ingredients as a garnish before. And the cheese toast wasn’t the same either. So why bother?
Then….I thought…but, I have coleslaw…that’s a vegetable. But, it was SO sweet… I think Houston’s puts sugar in the recipe for everything. The BBQ sauce on the ribs was way too sweet too. So, my friend vowed NEVER to go to Houston’s with me again. But, I was frustrated and the server really could care less.
“How about dessert?” she asked. No, I’ll just finish the coleslaw.
