Winetex
Austin, Texas
Master of Wine
Posts:10801
 | | 02/02/2003 4:59 PM |
| We had a strange experience at a restaurant last week. It was like the "Twilight Zone" when our wine service was absolutely perfect. My expectations re: wine service at most restaurants are pretty low.
The waiter knew the wines on the winelist and indicated that our choice would work well with the food. The wines were reasonably priced and the wine list varied and unique. The wine was presented at a perfect temperature from their temperature-controlled cellar (visible in the waiting area). The stemware was nice and there was no "overpouring" of the wine.
All I can say is "Kudos" to the Laurier Cafe here in Houston. The owners and managers of this restaurant must be wine geeks to make all of this work right. And now this restaurant has new customers!
| | | |
|
Budman
Master of Wine
Posts:11879
| | 02/02/2003 5:47 PM |
| | Well, that's one Twilight Zone restaurant out of how many...? | | | |
|
David Niederauer
Los Gatos, CA
Master Sommelier
Posts:15756
| | 02/02/2003 6:55 PM |
| This is a tough crowd here.
I'm happy with service 80% of the time. My #1 complaint is serving temperature. #2 is glasses. | | | |
|
love_cab_chard
Master of Wine
Posts:12499
| | 02/02/2003 7:00 PM |
| | #1 is Glasses. For the most part, happy with Restaurant service. | | | |
|
skwid
Wine Connoisseur
Posts:5452
| | 02/02/2003 7:02 PM |
| | Agree with LCC here. Although at alot of places in SF the standard glass seems to be the Spiegelau Vino Grande so things are looking up. | | | |
|
gus fleener
gilroy
Barrel Filler
Posts:1365
| | 02/02/2003 7:24 PM |
| i can't say that i have been happy, necessarily, with restaurant wine service. i would say that, in general, it has been acceptable. temperature & glassware are common shortcomings that i usually accept without making them an issue. perhaps i, & some others here, should raise our level of expectation if we would like to see improvement in this area. the downside, however, would be the possibility of a significant decrease in our level of enjoyment when dining out  . i did post a story awhile back about a wine service experience on the other end of the spectrum  .
questionable wine service
| | | |
|
Winetex
Austin, Texas
Master of Wine
Posts:10801
| | 02/02/2003 7:43 PM |
| gfleener - that story is amazing!
Generally I am satisfied with food and food service at restaurants but find myself drinking a single glass of wine to avoid the poor wine service and the $$ extortion wine lists (another topic entirely that we've discussed ad nauseum). | | | |
|
ChangeMe
Grape Sorter
Posts:214
| | 02/02/2003 8:33 PM |
| More and more restaurants in this neck of the woods seem to be purchasing better stemware and the wine service is consistently good. We're lucky.
But the solution bade stemware is BYOG. | | | |
|
Pool Boy
Laurl, MD (DC suburb)
Master of Wine
Posts:13711
| | 02/02/2003 9:11 PM |
| With better stems being so cheap these days (just look at that deal on Amazon Spigs!) you'd think every restaurant would load up. Stems are my biggest complaint right after inflated wine prices that is.
So far, I have stuck to my no more than $50 for a bottle of wine with dinner, and only if we can't BYOW. I am definitely going to try to stick to it.
But, when you do get great wine service, especially when it is close to home and at a restaurant that you can afford to make a 'regular' spot, it is wonderful. If only I could find that type of place around here! | |
www.roguefood.com -- www.cellartracker.com | |
|