[Cliff Fr]

Originally Posted by tsmall22204

Why are you so long winded about a subject that isn't that complicated?

I was thinking the same thing

[Luggage]

I have to say coming from a major metro area and traveling the u.s. for many years, Central Florida has some of the cheapest prices for eating out at restaurants. As an example you can get barbecue ribs here 4. $13 to $18 but many other places there 25 to 30. So called fine dining in the other squares is at least $10 cheaper an even going into Orlando or Tampa

[Two Bills]

I have never paid too much for a good meal out, but I have paid far too much for some bad ones.

[midiwiz]

Originally Posted by Koapaka

We have found ourselves eating at home much more given the cost, crowds and weather.

Tonight we decided to enjoy dining on the patio of one of our favorite places and found that while the prices have only slightly increased, it seems to be at the expense of the quality of the food. A dish that I order often and have always loved there was something I would NEVER order again if that was my first experience enjoying it at that facility. It has to be awful as businesses struggle to meet the challenges of increased pricing AND trying to make their business to remain profitable.

My question is given the unprecedented times, would you as a villager prefer to pay the cost increase and keep the quality/serving expectation consistent with "what we have know and learned to expect" when you choose to dine out, or is it more important to you to keep the price closer to what we knew it to be and willing to accept cut the quality/serving???

Personally, to me it seems most venues are more focused on keep costs a consistent as possible. We are more inclined to expect the quality and consistency in making dining choices, knowing full well prices are fluid. I can not help but believe there are more than just us that would rather eat out less, but would appreciate the ability to come away from the evening not being disappointed, even if it cost a little more.

It appears to me that most of the dining venues we have visited seem to be leaning towards trying to cut corners in order to minimize inflation, when I personally would much prefer knowing I am going to be able to expect the quality I have learned to love and enjoy the meal paying a few dollars extra for it.

I would be most interested in other perspectives. Again, we enjoy dining out, but cooking at home more these days like most I suspect. (and even THAT cost more!) But at the same time, there are few reliant on food stamps here to make ends meet, and I think a little extra for quality vs cutting a few bucks raising cost might serve those that want to come away from a nice meal feeling satisfied with the experience. I guess what I am trying to convey is that given these strange days, inflation and shortages, are there still some that prefer known quality when deciding to celebrate and evening out. Thoughts? I truly believe there could be support for both options here. We have enough variance here in TV that you can buy wine from $7.00 per bottle to $80 per bottle...

All that and you fail to mention Staff - kitchen staff that dream up dishes that make no sense, nor do they have the ability to cook properly. That is a huge factor in all this. I can switch a cut of meat on you and you will never notice that I did, some of these 'chefs' can't even make a simple dressing, sauce, or side correctly. This isn't just here, it's everywhere. With that said it will focus here quite a bit considering the demographics.

[Vermilion Villager]

Originally Posted by tsmall22204

Why are you so long winded about a subject that isn't that complicated?

Seems a little harsh
What??? your ADD/ADHD med not working today?

[Professor]

Quality over price any day.

[meme5x]

So would I… lack of help is a problem…way to much money given out previously so people don’t have to work

[Cdwright56!]

I don’t mind paying extra for quality food when I dine out. I agree the prices here are much cheaper than the metro areas. My biggest concern is that once the supply labor issue is over that the prices go back to what it used to be. That is for restaurants, gas and supermarkets. The prices in supermarkets are high everywhere. The supermarkets are my biggest concern because we don’t have to dine out, but we have to go to the supermarkets. Publix prices are good if they have a bogo item you like , but some of the food prices there are too high and not even worth it. Winn Dixie is not clean enough for me. I don’t mind shopping at Aldi’s sometimes on 301. However, this is about restaurants so yes I will pay extra if I know the quality meets my expectations.

[CountryFox]

In my opinion the quality of food wasn't that great prior to the pandemic most country clubs and restaurants serve what we classify as "bar" food. As was before the pandemic and still is now, we cook at home. We won't pay for lower quality food. I think a true farm to table restaurant could do well in this area.

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by CountryFox

In my opinion the quality of food wasn't that great prior to the pandemic most country clubs and restaurants serve what we classify as "bar" food. As was before the pandemic and still is now, we cook at home. We won't pay for lower quality food. I think a true farm to table restaurant could do well in this area.

Interesting how we all have such different opinions about the restaurants around here.

Think the food is generally good but service not so good especially when items come to the table at room temps.

[frank1975]

......and healthier!!!!!

[frank1975]

WOW!!!!! Where have you been eating?????

[Boomer]

Warning: I am seeing a few posters here who think they are entitled to critique the length of others’ posts in this thread. So, for those who have the attention span of a gnat, please do not read any further because my posts are often column length with digressions and a story or two. I write them because I feel like writing something and for the handful who might read them.

And now, on with it. . .

Originally Posted by banjobob

Having owned and operated restaurants for years , I find that quality of the food plus the consistency of the food ,that it is the same every time, plus service are the factors that people expect. The price according to The National Restaurant Association ranks way down the list as to why people go to a restaurant.

Your post caught my attention.

I have not been a server since I was 19 and worked at a golf course clubhouse. I still have flashbacks.

To this day, I am curious about what goes on behind the scenes that makes a restaurant a success. . .

I don’t know anything about running a restaurant but that does not keep me from having a theory. . .

Supply chain, inflation, etc., are things that cannot really be controlled by management. . .

But there is one thing that is totally under management control — — how is the staff treated?

Is team-building a priority?

Is the staff encouraged to take pride in the place — as in, “Ya got time to lean, ya got time to clean.” (Are the restrooms checked for supplies, etc., more than once a day (yuck)? Are the fingerprints cleaned off the front door? How does the entrance look in general — any litterers been there? Is management keeping an eye on this and acknowledging those who keep up with the place as a whole, maybe with a simple, reinforcing thank you here and there. Not overdone, not effusive, but acknowledgment once in a while of a job well done — even though, yeah, it is supposed to be their job.

Is the manager willing to pitch in when things are falling behind? (I have seen managers hanging out like some kind of overlord, watching servers knock themselves out trying to keep up. . .I once told a self-important manager that I did not like his attitude toward his servers. . .teachable moment, could not resist. . .but that’s my personal curse — or gift???)

Several years ago, there was a book called Waiter Rant. The writer was in a higher end restaurant in a big city, as I recall. . .

When I read that book, I thought it would be interesting to go undercover as a server in TV and then write a book about it, specific to TV. But I am not doing that. . .or am I?

Boomer

PS: That job I had at a golf course clubhouse when I was 19. . .we had to take our orders and then go into the little kitchen and cook our own burgers.

Well, the manager kept stealing my burgers while I was out front, making HER customers very happy.

Also, we had to share tips in a jar in back AND I suspected and finally figured out she was stealing from the tip jar. (I made sure I was right about the money.)

And soooooo, I waited until the place was packed and the dirty dishes were piled high. And I said, “You have been stealing my burgers and my tips. I quit!”

She shouted at me, “You’ll never work here again.”

(So I had to go be an English teacher.)

[Mrprez]

We celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary at Bluefin on Friday night with two other couples. We had reservations and were seated within minutes of our arrival and before our actual time. The server was attentive and brought our drinks and water right away. We ordered our dinners and that was all brought our right away and was tasty and hot. We had no issues with the meal, drinks, or dessert. The price was fine as well. A generous tip was left for the server for doing such a fine job. We did not inform the restaurant of the special occasion.

There are other places that I won’t mention where we ate and will not return due to the poor quality of the food and or service.

[westernrider75]

Also to consider is there might have been a turnover in the kitchen which is causing quality to suffer as new staff is trained. Everyplace is hurting for employees.