I'm a positive kind of guy; the purpose of Every Meal A Feast certainly isn't to pan people or places. Still, if something quacks like a duck and walks like a duck... I gotta call it a duck. Case in point: Dinner Saturday night at K&L Bistro, in downtown Sebastopol. Now O.K., I get it that it's modeled after a French bistro, meaning small, tight, cramped, great 'everyday' food, and a somewhat, shall we say, indifferent attitude regarding service. And I get it that last year K&L earned a Michelin star, putting it on the map and meaning that the place is always packed and that, well, they don't really need you to come to dinner, thank you very much. Still, would it hurt to try just a little harder?
We showed up at 7:00 p.m. for our, well, 7:00 p.m. reservations. The place was packed. And no free table. So we had to wait... for a good 15-20 minutes. Plus, no one suggested we have a drink at the bar (let alone offer us a complimentary glass of something, to tied us over). After we were seated came another wait for the waitress to find us. By the time it was 7:38, and we hadn't even ordered, I had G and I on a two-minute alert: I was two minutes away from getting up and walking out. (Not that anyone would've cared.)
But the waitress did find us a minute or so later, and low and behold, we were ultimately given wine and then, later, food. And it was great. G. had the steak frites (I'm not a ribeye fan; too fatty for me), while I had the house made boudin blanc sausages. They were very good. I also had a wonderful warm chocolate torte for dessert.
So... Good food, a little cramped and loud, and indifferent, at best service -- THIS is a one-star joint? Not in my book. I realize we hit them right at the Saturday night rush. Still, I want to go where I feel welcome. K&L simply doesn't need you -- no web site; the head chef and owner, Lucas Martin, cooks in a t-shirt and jeans; the wait staff is, in my opinion, marginal at best (though she did apologize for bringing my espresso after I had finished my dessert -- gee, I am the only one who's ever ordered coffee with dessert???). Anyway, glad I went once, won't go again. (Not that they care.)
2 comments:
Aw, that's a bummer of an evening. Probably part of the reason why they lost the Michelin star this year.
I've been more than a few times an never experience poor service, and never mind how the cooking staff is dressed.
To quiet the place, it'd take too much time, effort, and money to cover that brick work. And what with restaurants having the reputation for some of the slimmest profit margins...
Maybe my expectations were too high. I actually go to LoCoco's KNOWING that it's going to be a long wait, the place will be crazy, etc. I do know it was peak-Saturday night; still, I expect places to be on their A++ game at that time, too.
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