Maybe I’m just universally loveable? But I typically get great service in LA. I am not entirely sure what people are talking about.
Especially if we mean Jon & Vinny’s and Bestia… I can hardly think of places I get better service than Bestia. They removed an entire bottle of wine from my bill because I didn’t care for the taste after pouring 3 glasses and just let us have the three glasses for my party for free while they opened a different bottle for me… they refire dishes on my most subtle critiques. I feel like I want for nothing there.
I found service far worse in New York, where everyone in every restaurant seemed convinced that they worked in the best restaurant in the world, and treated me like I was lucky to be dining there.
SF/PDX/Seattle have all treated me super well.
I am also a little lost on the casualness ranking, though. Sotto, Kali, Chi Spacca seem exactly as casual as Bestia, Jon & Vinny’s to me…I’ve eaten in a hoodie in all of them.
I would’ve thought maybe citing a place like N/Naka (or Providence) would be the go-to for elevated service or something.
I have never really noticed service in LA either unless it was below average (like my visit to Kismet), but after thinking about it more, I think it comes down to attentiveness. The “style” in LA seems to be about being around but not overbearing…let the diners enjoy, stay out of the way. What I experienced in Miami I thought was unusual because (1) the waiters actually knew a lot more about the dishes than usual, (2) seemed to actually enjoy being there, (3) seemed more interested in making us feel welcome, perhaps because we were obviously from out of town, and (4) paid a lot more visits to our table than what I find normal in LA. This last one may not always be a welcome trait, particularly for a restaurant you frequent often.
When I said $200, I mean for 2 persons, sorry! Also, when you are at Bestia, do you sit at the bar? Maybe that explains some of it, but since you said “party” you must be referring to a table. Also, are you a regular? I know get amazing service at Shibumi, but it was not always the case and I wonder if being a regular is part of that or not.
Re the casualness ranking. Of course in LA you can eat in a hoodie almost anywhere. But Jon & Vinnys is decidedly a more casual restaurant than the others I mentioned in my mind. I always see a lot of kids there and they serve you soft serve in a paper cut with a wooden spoon. Yet it’s not that hard to spend almost $200 for lunch with a few drinks. That is the LA paradox for you.
Anyway, I don’t mean to say service at Jon & Vinnys is bad, it just felt a bit below average compared to my Miami experience. Miami is not a place I expected service to be so high, so maybe it was just the places I went on this particular weekend. Especially since I never noticed this when travelling to SF or NYC.
Of course, it is possible that my regularity at places colors my experiences.
I like to be taken care of, but not necessarily henpecked so (4) is definitely not necessarily better for me. But I do like people to be accessible; actually it’s more important to me to be able to send things back that I don’t like over anything else hah.
I would peg Shibumi as a place giving great service to everyone. They have recruited talent from the top ranks of the restaurant world’s FOH operations from around LA. Shibumi is also really small and intimate, though.
However, the idea of knowing about the dishes is interesting. Sometimes it does seem like people employed in LA restaurants really don’t know that much about the food they are serving as they should… I’ve encountered that even at Bestia with new hires. Shibumi is, again, an incredible exception to this as everyone on the small staff seems to be an expert in something. That is for sure not the norm in LA, or anywhere else as far as I can tell.
To clarify, what is an example of how the waiters knew more about the dishes in Miami? Like knowing precise saucing components, and farm sourcing for specific ingredients?
The waiters just knew what was in the dish before we ordered it, which helped us along, and were a lot more helpful helping us order in general. One of the best service experiences we had was at Bazaar Mar, basically the seafood version of Bazaar. Maybe the restaurant was just new, so that staff was more energized, but it was very much above what I’ve experienced at Bazaar at the SLS in Beverly Hills. Wait staff also extremely enthusiastic and knowledgeable at 27, the restaurant in the Freehand hotel (which is basically a hostel, but oddly has one of the best cocktail bars in Miami as well).
PS: There is a Freehand Hotel opening in DTLA, so keep an eye out, since you will definitely enjoy the cocktails:
Bazaar Mar and Alter still appear to be the top 2 places in Miami in 2018. Sadly, I’ve come down with a strep throat so I’ll have to postpone my fine-dining plans for a few days.
Lung Yai Thai Tapas is rather hilariously named, and they have a fairly conservative view of “thai spicy”, but they make a pretty good khao soi and northern larb that at least partly helps clear the sinuses!
This is my first time in Miami. Are there any local/regional specialties I should try while here? Things that you cannot really get in LA for example?
If you don’t like the 3% service charge, because, what’s next, a 5% charge for electricity…don’t ruin your evening arguing with the manager or the waiter. Simply decide what percent you would ordinarily have tipped, and reduce it by 3%.
Really? So you think the server is responsible for the service charge and you should take it off the tip? I doubt management will get the message unless they’re told why you’re doing it.
Split? Sorry. I guess I’d need to read all the above posts to know what you mean by that. There’s a difference in the way service charges are handled vs. gratuities.
As this thread has been resurrected again I offer a paean to great service in LA; when my wife goes out with friends I often take my dog to the Blue Dog Beer Tavern. This is a gastropub with a great beer selection and really good burgers. You and your dog are more than welcome on the deck. Its not a high end restaurant by any means, but its very good at what it does. I go there maybe twice a month. The head waitress remembers both my name and my dog’s. I once arrived five minutes before happy hour ended. She rushed out and asked me if I wanted my usual IPA before happy hour prices ended. She then said I should order two (I usually do) as that would entitle me to free fries, and she would bring out the second when I was ready. Knowing I usually order a burger she suggested I order it then at the happy hour price. I did. Bottom line I spent something like $18 instead of the usual $40. I tipped her the savings on top of the normal 20%. This is not a career waitress; she is a pretty young woman who is probably an aspiring actress, but she is great at what she does. She is the best there, but there are many other really good servers in a mid-range establishment.
I so rarely get poor service anywhere in the world. We’ve occasionally gotten something like yours. So wonderful. And I make sure to seek out the owner/manager to praise the praise-worthy person. (Maybe not elaborate that she was ‘giving away the store’ - lol. Just high praise.)
I have mentioned both her and many of the other staff there to the manager before. Judging by his response to a table next to me having a mistake and his comping the meal I am pretty sure he is more interested in repeat business than one time profits. Good business model in my opinion.
We had a similar experience - minor problem - that was dealt with so well. We actually ran into the owner/chef who’s a buddy. Having already praised the server and local manager, we sang all sorts of praises to our guy. When you take a problem and handle it very well, it’s better than the meal itself. IMneverHO of course
i’ll mention an observation made by roy choi of kogi fame to help explain why he was able to be successful; LA’s roots are not european based. as a result, european based culinary traditions which would include great service just don’t have much traction out here.
