Fancy Restaurants.........love em or hate em?

[Sweats]

So, the old place we used to live was basically a backwoods, hillbilly redneck town with only about 2 restaurants in town.......and in those 2 places, you had your choice of beer, nachos, wings, burgers and more beer.

 

The new place we moved to is way upscale with a fine dining restaurant on every corner. My wife is really into that sort of thing, so i take her out to these fancy places. It's not really my thing, but she enjoys it.

The average cost for just the two of us to go to a fancy restaurant around here is about $450......that's just the two of us and we end up sitting in these places for about 4-5 hours because you go for the upscale food and the classy experience.

When i sit down to eat, i eat and i'm done.......i don't like dragging my eating out over 4-5 hours. I mean, just give me my food and i'll be on my way. I don't really care what my meal looks like, so you don't need to "wow" me with a nice presentation.

 

I actually kind of miss a restaurant that serves beer, nachos, wings, burgers, etc. and i have yet to find anything like that around here.

 

Fancy restaurants..........love em or hate em?

[Saxum]

I know of no restaurant which I would pay $225 a person - I could afford it and I spent $1000 for my team and their spouses (total of 12 people) 30 years ago but $450 just seems outrageous and not something my wife and myself would enjoy.  This is probably because we both grew up in very poor families and it seems wasteful just as people which grew up in depression are very conservative in their spending.

[Buffalo716]

What restaurant is a 5-hour experience LOL 

 

This is getting quite interesting

[US Egg]

32 minutes ago, Buffalo716 said:

What restaurant is a 5-hour experience LOL 

 

This is getting quite interesting

Including dog fighting I can see that taking 5 hours…..on a good night.

Edited November 2 by US Egg

[Mike in Horseheads]

$450 bucks for two, no wonder ya can only afford a piss stained mattress

[DrW]

Usually, we would not go to such restaurants. However, there had been one exception, a long time ago. When I was a student at the University of Hannover (Germany) we had a group of four coming together once a week to play "Doppelkopf" (a card game) for money; the money would not go to the winner but into a common pool. Once the pool had reached 600 DM ("DeutschMark", before the Euro; at the end of the 1970s, this was a lot of money), we decided to use the funds for a dinner in the only restaurant close to Hannover that had a Michelin star.

The food was excellent; my entree was a half-rack of lamb. However, even more remarkable was the attention we got from the restaurant staff. They certainly noticed that these four students were quite different from their usual clientele. During dessert even the guy in charge for that evening (I never found out if it was the owner himself; there was no google at that time) joined us, and we had an interesting conversation, mostly about the way Michelin awards its stars. On our way out, I admired their collection of truly oversized (around 2.5-5.0 gallons each) bottles of booze (empty, of course). The guy noticed it and asked me which one I liked best, and I pointed to a bottle of Asbach Uralt, a German brandy. He told me to take it, and I used it as vase for sunflowers until I moved to the US in 1990. Altogether, it was a very pleasant experience; however, the occasion was unique.

Edited November 2 by DrW

[US Egg]

24 minutes ago, Mike in Horseheads said:

$450 bucks for two, no wonder ya can only afford a piss stained mattress

You’re forgetting something. The 10% tip.

[sherpa]

I prefer the foreign restaurant experience.

In the US, there is a "flip the table" vibe.

In Europe and South America, it is customary to spend a lot more time eating, and I like that. It's kind of "your table for as long as you want."

The US' service staff are somewhat intrusive.

As they approach the table they begin talking without regard for the party/couple at the table.

In other places their service is better and far more subtle. I like that, and I really don't care what your name is, so don't bother telling me.

Glasses filled without even being noticed etc.

 

There is a far higher percentage of career servers in other countries as opposed to the college student in the US.

I used to go to South America weekly during my career and would occasionally take my wife, who is a California blonde, looking nothing like a native South American.

The service we got was noticeably different when she was with me than when it was just me an my male coworkers.

Anyway, I prefer the experience in other countries to the US.

 

 

 

[Buffalo716]

21 minutes ago, sherpa said:

I prefer the foreign restaurant experience.

In the US, there is a "flip the table" vibe.

In Europe and South America, it is customary to spend a lot more time eating, and I like that. It's kind of "your table for as long as you want."

The US' service staff are somewhat intrusive.

As they approach the table they begin talking without regard for the party/couple at the table.

In other places their service is better and far more subtle. I like that, and I really don't care what your name is, so don't bother telling me.

Glasses filled without even being noticed etc.

 

There is a far higher percentage of career servers in other countries as opposed to the college student in the US.

I used to go to South America weekly during my career and would occasionally take my wife, who is a California blonde, looking nothing like a native South American.

The service we got was noticeably different when she was with me than when it was just me an my male coworkers.

Anyway, I prefer the experience in other countries to the US.

 

 

 

Nice.. I just don't know what blonde has to do with California LOL 

 

Like all of California has a monopoly on blonde people or something...

 

California is a state not an ethnicity , there's really no such thing as a California blonde

 

Minnesota has the highest concentration of blonde women in the country and nobody says Minnesota blonde lol

Edited November 2 by Buffalo716

[BillsPride12]

Would not be my go-to dining experience but as long as the food is actually good it is fun to do an upscale dining night out once or twice a year

[4merper4mer]

On 11/1/2024 at 10:57 PM, Sweats said:

So, the old place we used to live was basically a backwoods, hillbilly redneck town with only about 2 restaurants in town.......and in those 2 places, you had your choice of beer, nachos, wings, burgers and more beer.

 

The new place we moved to is way upscale with a fine dining restaurant on every corner. My wife is really into that sort of thing, so i take her out to these fancy places. It's not really my thing, but she enjoys it.

The average cost for just the two of us to go to a fancy restaurant around here is about $450......that's just the two of us and we end up sitting in these places for about 4-5 hours because you go for the upscale food and the classy experience.

When i sit down to eat, i eat and i'm done.......i don't like dragging my eating out over 4-5 hours. I mean, just give me my food and i'll be on my way. I don't really care what my meal looks like, so you don't need to "wow" me with a nice presentation.

 

I actually kind of miss a restaurant that serves beer, nachos, wings, burgers, etc. and i have yet to find anything like that around here.

 

Fancy restaurants..........love em or hate em?

Now that your TGI Fridays has closed, you won’t have to worry about it anymore.

Edited November 5 by 4merper4mer

[Miyagi-Do Karate]

I am a bit of a foodie, and i have found a lot of fine dining restaurants to just not have very good food (or service). And if I am paying a ton of money, the food has to be perfect. 
 

I prefer the more mom and pop authentic restaurants. 

[Fleezoid]

I love those places. They really let you just be yourself!

 

 

[Sweats]

So, what started this thread is that me and my wife went to another fancy place last night........sat down at 5pm, got out of there around 10:30 pm.

There were 5 courses, so that's about 1 hour per course.

It kills me having to sit anywhere or any place for 5 hours, let alone for food. The food was good (i had the Wagyu steak), but that's a long time to be just sitting there for food.

 

Also, me and my wife will polish off about 2 bottles of wine.......that's $50 a bottle, so $100 of our actual $450 bill last night was for 2 bottles of wine alone.

 

I really don't know how i feel about this.

[Augie]

9 minutes ago, Fleezoid said:

I love those places. They really let you just be yourself!

 

 

 

For $450 you should get the kids and the wife. 

 

We are not strangers to fine dining, but the only way to get near $450 for the two of us would be with a lot of expensive wine unless you are going to the French Laundry or something. More time and better service, that’s real. One of the top restaurants in Atlanta happens to be my wife’s favorite place. The food is very good, but the service is noticeably superior to other dining experiences. 

[Sweats]

7 hours ago, sherpa said:

I prefer the foreign restaurant experience.

In the US, there is a "flip the table" vibe.

In Europe and South America, it is customary to spend a lot more time eating, and I like that. It's kind of "your table for as long as you want."

The US' service staff are somewhat intrusive.

As they approach the table they begin talking without regard for the party/couple at the table.

In other places their service is better and far more subtle. I like that, and I really don't care what your name is, so don't bother telling me.

Glasses filled without even being noticed etc.

 

There is a far higher percentage of career servers in other countries as opposed to the college student in the US.

I used to go to South America weekly during my career and would occasionally take my wife, who is a California blonde, looking nothing like a native South American.

The service we got was noticeably different when she was with me than when it was just me an my male coworkers.

Anyway, I prefer the experience in other countries to the US.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is exactly it.

People in NA don't understand the European dining experience......It's not just about getting in, getting your food and getting the hell out. It's about the actual dining experience, where you sit down and enjoy the ambience, the decor, the atmosphere, the food presentation, etc........(my wife loves it, i don't understand it).

[Another Fan]

I don't mind visiting moderately upscale places once in a while just to see what the deal is so to speak.  

 

 

My fave places to eat are a Donut/Lunchette shop and a Coney Island Hot Dog Restaurant.  Both in the Hispanic parts of the city by me but you get the best bang for your dollar in terms of quality of food.  Plus no pretentious types eat there.  

7 minutes ago, Sweats said:

So, what started this thread is that me and my wife went to another fancy place last night........sat down at 5pm, got out of there around 10:30 pm.

There were 5 courses, so that's about 1 hour per course.

It kills me having to sit anywhere or any place for 5 hours, let alone for food. The food was good (i had the Wagyu steak), but that's a long time to be just sitting there for food.

 

Also, me and my wife will polish off about 2 bottles of wine.......that's $50 a bottle, so $100 of our actual $450 bill last night was for 2 bottles of wine alone.

 

I really don't know how i feel about this.

5 courses?

 

I feel bloated just reading that.  And look who my avatar is 🤣

Edited November 2 by Another Fan

[Augie]

3 minutes ago, Sweats said:

 

 

 

This is exactly it.

People in NA don't understand the European dining experience......It's not just about getting in, getting your food and getting the hell out. It's about the actual dining experience, where you sit down and enjoy the ambience, the decor, the atmosphere, the food presentation, etc........(my wife loves it, i don't understand it).

 

This is where Keon gets confused…..does he prefer the ambiance or the decor??? 

[Sweats]

8 minutes ago, Another Fan said:

I don't mind visiting moderately upscale places once in a while just to see what the deal is so to speak.  

 

 

My fave places to eat are a Donut/Lunchette shop and a Coney Island Hot Dog Restaurant.  Both in the Hispanic parts of the city by me but you get the best bang for your dollar in terms of quality of food.  Plus no pretentious types eat there.  

5 courses?

 

I feel bloated just reading that.  And look who my avatar is 🤣

 

 

 

Trust me, the 5 courses are not much more than one bite and often times, we have had to stop at McDonalds on the way home.......last night was a full meal though.

[Fleezoid]

The place I go for 5 hours is a 12 course meal.

 

A side salad, plate of wings and 10 beers. Sunday afternoon football!