Last night was my first time in. I was looking for a quick bite and, since it was early evening and the parking lot looked encouragingly bereft of vehicles, I thought to chance it.
The place has a weird setup, at least to my eyes. A loose group of people, probably eight or so, was standing around the server's entrance through the low bar that reminds me of a lunch counter. They seemed to be in various stages of ordering, paying, drinking and demanding alternate programming on the flat-screen televisions scattered around the place. Perhaps six additional guests were seated or standing elsewhere.
Despite being observed entering and sitting at the bar, it was more than five minutes before I was spoken to. This was evidenced by the play clock on the football game with which I was killing time.
At various times throughout my experience, I saw and heard people wonder about unfulfilled drink orders and complain about inaccurate service. One guest stood at the bar, correcting the bartender as she attempted his order. After a couple half-glasses drawn from the wrong taps, she got it right. Maybe the server was new?
I was finally approached and I asked to see a menu. The place bills itself as a pub & grub, so I was a little disappointed in the menu choices. While not as sparse as some establishments, it held little more than typical bar food. The prices were reasonable, however. Plus, I had a great seat near one of those t.v.'s so I decided to hang with it.
I ordered a bacon bleu cheeseburger and fries. The wait for my food was not over-long and about what I expected given the number of patrons.
When my food arrived, the kitchen employee just sort of shoved my plate in front of me and walked off. I stopped her and asked if they had fry sauce. She said no and turned to walk away without offering an alternate suggestion. I stopped her again, asking if they had 1000 Island. She said yes and walked off. I hoped that meant she was retrieving some.
I picked at my fries while waiting. They were nothing special. I really needed that Thousand.
The burger though...man, that was a good burger. The patty was cooked to order, the bun was nice, the condiments and veggies were fresh and tasty and the whole sloppy thing was loaded with bacon and bleu. Best one I've had in some time.
My burger server returned with a side of Thousand, for which I expressed gratitude. She told me I was welcome but clearly seemed put out. And I sort of understood. The kitchen is clear on the other side of the place. I bet she racks up some miles each night.
A bottle of ketchup had appeared in front of me. Besides that, no napkins, no salt/pepper, and no silverware other than the streak knife on the plate. I got salt & pepper from the couple to my left who had finished their meal.
I spotted some cocktail napkins and used about a dozen of those.
My bartender went off shift which was no big loss. The new bartender did check on me once, but I was so far into the sloppy burger with a happy mouthful, all I could really do was nod.
I usually eat all my fries and take half the burger home. Cold fries suck, so this process usually serves me well. I ate only half these fries and tackled the whole burger since the fries were really not so good. Did I say that already?
I pulled out my debit card and waved it at the bartender a time or two when I was ready to leave. He either didn't see it (though he seemed to) or chose to continue his side work. He wasn't serving guests at that time.
I finally stood and went to that strange place in front of the bar to which people seem magically attracted. I now understood. This was really the best, and perhaps only, way to get attention.
After some confusion about what I had ordered (the guy asked me if I was Rob, which I am not), we got the bill squared away. I did choose to include a gratuity; poor service usually means I do not tip.
Overall, great burger, average fries, decent price, awful service. Maybe I'll call ahead for takeout on that awesome burger next time. And get...
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