Never again to Evans Prairie for us!
 

I've waited several hours to "cool off" about our experience at EP last night but feel it is an experience to share! Last year we purchased a "Buffalo Discount Card" from The Villagers cheerleaders. We weren't sure we'd use it much but thought it was a good cause to support. It offers discounts from participating restaurants and merchants for anything from free appetizer or dessert to a percentage off your bill. We have saved many times over the $10 charge for the card and it has always been enthusiastically accepted! Last night we mad e our second trip to Evans Prairie for dinner. We were sat promptly and our waiter, John, came to the table quickly with two waters. No greeting, just abruptly said, what can I get you to drink. I ordered Pinot noir and my hubby said he'd stick with the water. When he brought the wine, he said, again very abrupt, do you know what you want to eat? We ordered right away requesting our menu choices with no substitutions. He returned to our table once to ask, is your food ok and then to refill our water. We had the Buffalo card lying on the table but I tapped it and he acknowledged with a nod of his head that he saw it. When he brought the check I noticed that it did not show the 10% discount stated on the card. When I asked him about it he turned very antagonistic and muttered that the discount would be taken at the end! WHAT END? We normally pay cash, add a 20% tip and leave. When I asked him about it he snatched the check out of my hand and said he'd have to find the manager. He walked over to the manager and said something. They both shook their heads and marched back by our table to what was apparently the place where checks are created. John actually came back, slammed the adjusted check on our table without a word and the manager went off in another direction. We were stunned to say the least, paid the check and left. I wish now that I had put the manager on notice but I could tell he was disgusted with the whole thing. We eat out many times a week and, having had restaurant and serving experience, we are the first to know that everyone can have a bad day but I have NEVER had such an unprovoked altercation at a restaurant, certainly not in The Villages. If this discount that they agreed to via the Buffalo card is going to break them, perhaps they should explain it to customer rather than handling it in the way that they did! Thankfully there are many alternatives for us here!

No one can say that the manager didn't know. Our service there was below par and when manager came due to my under cooked veg. He told me I didn't understand al dente. I very politely said I understood that definition, but why were my carrots frozen. He walked away, never returned.

Poor business practice. Wonder if they are aware of totv and word of mouth in the villages? Bad move on their part

Sounds about right for Evans Prairie, you get the same obnoxious attitude at Bonifay I won't go to either one again.

I stay clear of both restaurants but sometimes the group I am going to dinner with wants the specials they offer like two for $22. I try to explain that those specials are not the regular serving you would get without the special. They think they are getting a deal and it draws them in.

Ate at EP yesterday. Usual good service And good food. We have a LoyalTee card. They bring thE check without the discount. The credit card Receipt does show the discount. We pAy with cash also. Dont understand why bUt we noW know so we plan accordingly

To the above posters, has the quality of Evans Prairie gone down recently? We went many times after we moved here with no problems and excellent meals. Have not been there for a few months for various reason, not eating out much, but that should change soon. I was looking forward to EP, what's going on?

We eat there on average twice a month. We have never had a bad Meal or experience.

Please tell me how you know how much to pay if the check doesn't show a discount but the credit card receipt does? We always pay with cash so I may be missing something here!

Yesterday we both had $9 appetizers. My husband had 3 beers at $1.50 each. He paid $23 plus the tip. When she returned the LoyalTee card, the change was there. He left the tip and we left. It took a couple if times to realize someone was getting the tip plus the difference between the $1.50 discounted amount and the amount charged. He made sure the waitress was tipped.

I don't quite understand what you said, VJ. Are you saying you were getting stiffed, or not?

The only time I have eaten there was in a group of about 10 (with reservations) a couple of weeks ago. The service was prompt, but brief. No one came back to ask if our meals were okay, and without asking if we wanted coffee or dessert, they brought the checks. Seemed odd. The place was definitely not crowded. The food was just okay.

How does the credit card receipt show the discount if you pay with cash?

I think you're taking the sentences literally.

I don't understand what I said either. We over-tipped a couple of times, but wait staff is so underpaid, it was okay.

:laugh:

I do NOT agree! Yes, most wait staff is underpaid but I'm NOT inclined to try to make up for that by over tipping for POOR and rude service! We've "overtipped" probably much more than we've under tipped! Life is confusing enough without having to guess the total amount of your check each time! From the majority of these posts I'd venture to guess that these restaurants are in trouble. Time will tell! :icon_hungry:

The point I wish to make us we have had great food and service every time we have been there. Yesterday We sat on The back porch and enjoyed being with our friends in such a beautiful place in The Villages. Pinch me. It can't be real.

Our wait staff has never been rude or short.

Have to agree with VJ. Have only eaten there 3x, last in April, but the service was polite and timely and the food excellent. We arrived with a neighborhood group of 10, no long wait and no attitudes. The manager came over just to ask us if everything was OK. Nobody was messing with a discount card, but it is hard to believe it would make much of a difference

I've always enjoyed good food and service at Evans Prairir. I took my sister in law there for lunch and the waitress said to her you're not enjoying your sandwich, are you? And brought her something else. I thought that was unusually good service.

OP, sorry to hear that the service and management of Evans Prairie were less than satisfactory during your recent visit. Besides EP and Bonifay isn't OB and BG also under the same management? The three times we Visted EP this past winter were all satisfactory.

We had a party of 8 last night at Belle Glade and the food and service was excellent.

My only complaint against EP (in case they are monitoring this) is that they did away with my favorite dish...the roasted vegetable flatbread. PLEASE bring it back!

:agree:

EP is a favorite of ours. It's always been good. Maybe John was the issue!

I am beginning to believe John may have been the problem and I'm sorry as we all have problems that could cause us to be at our worst. BUT the manager could surely see there was a problem and he could have "diffused" the situation by apologizing when he went back up front right past our table! Seems petty now considering the real problems we are faced with at this time!

We've had good experiences at Evans Prairie but then the two bad experiences this year (with manager fully informed and denying the complaint) were so bad that we decided "never again".

The real problem with that is that the same restaurant management group controls so many of the country club restaurants here in TV. A monopoly is never a good thing for the customer!

The attitude we got was "we could care less if you don't come back.....TV is flooded with people in high season, so we can do just fine without people who won't return".

We ate at EP yesterday after golf. One of my favorite places. Our server, Kim, was very pleasant and efficient. I presented her with a coupon from The Villages Golf Magazine for a free beer with lunch. She wasn't familiar with it but quickly checked with the manager. No problems what so ever with our food or the check - which included $10 off from the Loyal Tee card. I think it is important to remember to apply the tip to the total bill before discounts. The wait staff is usually working very hard to provide good service, but we all have our days I guess.

I usually give a restaurant a second chance, even after bad service and poor food. They don't get a third chance, though. However, when the manager cops an attitude, then I would be hard-pressed to come back. Servers have bad days. Some shouldn't ever serve and are usually culled quickly. Here's hoping John just was having a really bad day and that wasn't his norm. However, the manager should have been a lot more personable, explaining the billing procedure and making sure you left satisfied. He did not do his job. I doubt I would go back to a restaurant where the manager was as ungracious as what Wendy described.

You nailed the explanation. The initial bill has the full price so the tip will be calculated on the full amount not the discounted amount. Duh Joyce. Guess too many $3 martinii.

My only complaint about EP are very varying pours @ the bar, one bar person pours really short drinks, it kind of bothers me when we're drinking premium booze

We go to EP fairly often, most recently friday night. I had the friday fish special - salmon. It was a huge piece and cooked perfectly. The veggies were also cooked perfectly - very crisp, not soggy. The waitperson was around often and friendly. Everything came out quickly. It was very good and typical of our visits. I also go there frequently with a large group after golf on sundays and they are always very accommodating.

After reading many restaurant threads the past three years, I am absolutely convinced that there are several restaurant managers and servers that could use additional training on how to deal with the public. I am also aware that "we Village seniors" can be a "tough crowd" to deal with!

In come cases perhaps our expectations are too high given the price we want to pay and the service we expect.

Attitude is everything - I mean the attitude of the customers. I have seen some people be very tough on the waitstaff in The Villages for no apparent reason other than they felt entitled to do so. I have seen people ask for free stuff and then throw a hissy fit when the waitperson couldn't meet their demands. This sort of behavior will "wear down" the waitstaff and management, they are only human. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar. If you have an issue by all means talk to the management about it but pay attention to your language and attitude. I am not trying to lecture anyone here, just some friendly, well meaning advice. There are two groups of people I go out of my way to be nice to: flight attendants and waitstaff. They have very tough jobs and are in the trenches all day long.

In my opinion....this is very true. IF I had to pick one thing that I don't like about living in a "over 55" community, it is seeing the way seniors treat wait staff. They treat wait staff as if they are below them......which they aren't!!
Pay attention!!! Say thank you when you are seated, say thank you when your beverage and food are delivered. Speak to them using their name. Treat then the same as you expect to be treated.

:bigbow:

I agree one hundred percent. I have see some very rude and nasty behavior from senior citizens toward wait staff since living in the villages. I agree it some of the actions and words come out of no where without any cause. I think it's pretty much common sense to treat people like you want to be treated. I'm always especially courteous to flight attendants since they are serving my alcohol. I've seen some real jackasses on planes get cut off due to their own arrogance.:beer3:

amen!!

Many of these people need to be lectured to.............................

I see so many people, not only rude to the servers, but they expect to be comped for every little thing. That really irritates me.