11/06/09

Terrible Customer Service

by sk09

I tried to make a reservation for a group of 12 people for brunch here for my husband's birthday. When I called, the manager said they don't usually take reservations for brunch, and they couldn't take us at 11am, but they could take us at 10am (when they first open). I called everyone in my group, rearranged all our plans, and called back the next day, only to be told that the manager had "talked to the owner," and they could not accommodate us after all.

I'm a food editor and a former waitress, and I know large parties can be harder for restaurants to handle. But I always tip extremely well because I know this. And I'm appalled at the idea of a restaurant simply refusing to accept someone's business because they don't want to deal with a large party. This is just bad business, and sends a message that they don't care about their clientele. I've been to this restaurant before, and they definitely have the space to seat 12 people.

The food here is quite good, but there are other places with equally good food that understand how to treat their customers.

• Pros: food is good
• Cons: terrible attitude toward their customers

02/08/09

Keep Walking...

by justrobnj

My fiancee and I had Sunday brunch here recently. We were attracted by the menu and the crowds outside. Little did we know that this was due to the problems with seating. We arrived at 12:10 pm and told it would be half an hour. At 12:45, we were told we would be seated shortly. We were finally seated at 1:10. An honest answer up front would have gone a long way.

The restaurant itself was pretty and well decorated. However, once seated, it took nearly ten minutes for anyone to come to get our drink order. Fortunately, we already knew what we wanted to eat and placed our order then. It took fifteen minutes for our drinks to arrive, and at least forty-five minutes for our meals (omelet w/ fruit, omelet w/ veal hash, bacon & sausage). This was rather ironic, since there were at least five people working the kitchen, which was one cook for every two tables.

The meal itself was mixed. The applewood bacon and maple fennel sausage were good, as was the orange bellini. It's tough to mess up scrambled eggs. The biscuit was decent, but nothing to write home about. The grits were good, but >very< buttery. The veal hash would have been decent, had it not been burned in the pan. There were several burn pieces and the dish was overwhelmed a burnt taste. Poor showing.

Service continued to be incredibly slow. Our water was filled once over an hour after we were seated, despite the fact that I drank my water in the first fifteen minutes. No one asked whether we wanted another round of drinks until we were ready to leave.

Adding insult to injury was the tab, which came to $50 for two. Far too much for so little. As for our server, there was a reason you only got a $6 tip.

• Pros: Sausage & Bacon
• Cons: Poor service and slow kitchen

12/16/08

Go Elsewhere

by BrooklynLocal

While I have never written a review online before, and when in a restaurant I will eat almost anything instead of sending it back, my experiences at Applewood recently have changed my behavior on both counts. Applewood was at one time a neighborhood favorite of mine, perfect for special dates and family visits. My last three visits have been progressively bad. The first was a less then stellar brunch with coffee that never came, undercooked eggs and requested substitutions (salad instead of potatoes, nothing crazy)that never materialized. Next, a romantic dinner where I was forced to send back my entree because it was not cooked, literally raw. While the waiter tried to convince me that seared pork is all the rage, I explained that I prefer it cooked. I think this was a huge misstep on their parts and nothing was comped. In fact, they didn't remake my dish, they simply threw the meat back on the grill, which as we all know doesn't work well for pork (the result is dry, chewing and gross). But, as a diehard fan of the restaurant, or a gluten for punishment, I went back, this time with my husband and father. Despite being on time for our reservation it took them 15 minutes to seat us at 9 on a Wednesday. The subsequent meal was fine, taste-wise, but the service was so slow and terrible, every stage (including taking our orders and getting us water) took forever. By the end of the night, we were one of only three occupied tables, we had to stand up and follow the waiter in order to get our check. We walked out at midnight. That's right, THREE hours after we walked in, not three leisurely, decadent hours, but three grueling torturous, often starving hours. I will never go back. I urge you to go elsewhere. 12th Street Bar and grill has a lovely and much less expensive brunch (but don't bother to go there for dinner, unless you go for the upscale burgers), and for dinner Covivium Osteria will give you a far more unique dining experience.

• Pros: when they cook it and serve it to you in a timely fashion the food is good
• Cons: Terrible service, inconsistent food