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the story was on first dcnightliferaw.typepad.com/folder/2008/06/diamond-in-the.html.

This:

dcnightliferaw.typepad.com/folder/2008/07/don-rockwell-me.html

is hilarious. Some of the comments are pretty good too.

Maybe we have found a spot for the next event! :lol:

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This is funnier (from the dcnightliferaw website):

Who are we?

We're a group of seasoned District veterans with possibly the best connections to "inside information" throughout the D.C. nightlife and social scene. Meaning, if you've heard about it, we're already bored of going there. As a result, we want to tackle the "real" questions regarding D.C. nightlife, events, restaurants and happenings with a no holds bar philosophy.

But who REALLY are we?

Well, wouldn't that be nice if we actually told you? Unfortunately, our positions certain companies and/or organizations prohibit us from doing so. Plus, the sheer fact of admitting that we write a blog would be akin to social suicide. But rest assured, our need for anonymity will not prevent us from exercising the utmost journalistic integrity in the information and stories we publish.

So, if you want to know where everyone in D.C. is really going to drink after last call [Hint: it's not home to watch tivo-ed episodes of My Super Sweet 16], what new restaurateurs are covertly plotting to bring their next hot spot dining destination to the District, or where to find Ashton and his mistress when he's in town filming Cheaper by the Dozen II, drop us a line. We love to hear from you.

It sounds like they might be an excellent resource if you are having trouble deciding between Cafe Milano and Smith Point.

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This is funnier (from the dcnightliferaw website):

It sounds like they might be an excellent resource if you are having trouble deciding between Cafe Milano and Smith Point.

Given the inordinate amount of time they have spent on the subject of the now defunct Rain, I kind of take all of that pretentious BS as well just self-aggrandizing pretentious BS. But then again, I doubt that I am in their target audience.

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What concerns me is this post by Tammy Newsom:

"Interestingly enough we have a list, I am in the Business, of the names of the members and their user names. Not just for Rockwell, but for other sites. . ."

Is it possible that she has a list of our names? If so, how would she have obtained it?

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Is it possible that she has a list of our names? If so, how would she have obtained it?
It would certainly be possible to match from reservation lists, especially Open Table. I generally assume when I post about a meal I had on a particular day, including a description of the food I ordered, that it would be obvious to the restaurant who I was if they wanted to locate me in their reservation database. They also have phone numbers and/or email addresses, depending on how reservations are made. Even without reservations, if you pay with a credit card, they have a name. It would just depend on how much effort someone wanted to put into compiling a list.
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"Who are we?"

We're a group of seasoned District veterans with possibly the best connections to "inside information" throughout the D.C. nightlife and social scene. Meaning, if you've heard about it, we're already bored of going there. As a result, we want to tackle the "real" questions regarding D.C. nightlife, events, restaurants and happenings with a no holds bar philosophy.

If you have to tell everyone on the internet how cool you are... :lol: I agree with Mark, the eGullet comment shows a complete lack of understanding about what went down there. The characterization of this website as "invitation only" is crap. The descriptions of all of the members here as "overweight balding middle aged "foodies" with a lack of friends who aren't avatars," "lily-white" and "a baker’s dozen of former head gear wearers" are also crap, and so is the implication that we're all syncophantic restaurant-goers only interested in sucking up to the pros and getting freebies.

And the correct answer to the above question is: "Who cares?"

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I have feelings yes I do
I think that you have them too

Just in case you're feeling blue
I just wrote this poem for you!

Now pour yourself a cup of tea
And read this poem along with me:

Fuck you one
Fuck you two

Fuck you red
Fuck you blue

Fuck you here, fuck you there
Fuck you fuck you everywhere

Fuck you standing on a stair
Fuck you in a rocking chair

Fuck you in a bowl of rice
Fuck you on a block of ice

Fuck you once and fuck you twice
Fuck you fuck you fuck you thrice

Fuck you deep in outer space
Fuck you at a rocket's pace

Fuck you now and fuck you then
Fuck you where and fuck you when

Fuck you fuck you and fuck you again
With a dick
of inches
ten

Fuck you high and fuck you low
Fuck you fast and fuck you slow
Fuck you day and fuck you night
Fuck you left and fuck you right

Fucketh thou and fucketh thee
Fuck your blog and fuck that flea
you lost to in the spelling bee
while prepping for your G.E.D.

Fuck you when the sky is clear
and fuck you when it starts to rain
Fuck you deep inside your ear
and fuck your little six-ounce brain

Fuck your sister fuck your brother
Fuck your father fuck your mother

Then go fuck a kangaroo

But most of all, my friend: Fuck you.

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If you have to tell everyone on the internet how cool you are... :lol: I agree with Mark, the eGullet comment shows a complete lack of understanding about what went down there.
Having never been to eGullet and having joined DR.com well after its inception, I gotta ask... what went down there?
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Having never been to eGullet and having joined DR.com well after its inception, I gotta ask... what went down there?

eG developed a draconian policy of not letting its members use the board for impromptu get-togethers, happy hours, restaurant invasions, or one-night stands.

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Nice to see "Orving Streete" weighing in in the comment thread over there. :lol:

And I'd love to know where "Tammy Newsom" works, so as to never make the mistake of spending my money there, since donrockwell.com members aren't welcome. And Tammy, I already use my real name, so you can go ahead and start "blacklisting" me now.

That whole line of conversation makes me sad. Sure, there are self-important a**holes on this board. They are everywhere. But, there are a lot of educated, passionate diners here. Why not welcome them, rather than tar everyone here with the same brush.

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And I'd love to know where "Tammy Newsom" works, so as to never make the mistake of spending my money there. And Tammy, I already use my real name, so you can go ahead and start "blacklisting" me now.

My inclination is to make me lean towards a Georgetown celebrity scene that is not really known for its food (rhymes with Cafe Crapano).*

William Belkin you can now include me on your list, but I don't really think I qualify as being a sheep.

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Don, I was half joking (why I didn't actually use the restaurant's name), but I have a feeling that whoever this women is (if s/he is really a women) that claims that they monitor boards to exclude people as a way to protect their investment just brings to mind the type of place that I have always found Cafe Milano to be. If indeed I am wrong (ask my wife that is not that uncommon of an event), I am sure that she actually works for someplace of the same ilk i.e. Posh, Park at 14th, or some other hipster destination. Seeing how "Tammy" is hanging out on a board dedicated to wanabe hip Manhattanites I think it is a fair guess that it is not really Derek Brown in virtual drag.

Frankly, I would love to know where “Tammy” works just so that I know that I am unwelcome at such a place, just as I know that I am not welcome a certain restaurants because of the shoes that I sometimes wear. There are plenty of other places to eat, so I highly doubt that I will be heart broken to be put on her list.

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FWIW, I hold David Bueno, the relatively new GM of Cafe Milano and ex-sommelier at Taberna del Alabardero, in the highest regard. Likewise Janya, one of the finest bartenders in town. Cafe Milano is A-OK with me, and I don't think they should be implicated in any way here.
I was just saying that I am unlikely to ever eat there - for reasons unrelated to this discussion.
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wow, tempest in a teacup here!

If Tammy thinks that allowing people who frequent this second rate social board (or whatever it was called over there) to patronize her establishment is at odds with "protecting her investment", then by all means, name the place in question. I would be more than happy to oblige by not going there since that's what ownership/management/whatever wishes.

win-win, really. I'd hate to be somewhere I'm not wanted.

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I see that our Tammy claims to have emailed:

"I have sent a email to Don Rockwell, offering to provide the details. However no response. Maybe the board is only for those they like"

C'mon lets have the details then...

I figure either her story is total BS and she's managed to back herself into a corner, or what she says is true to some degree and her employer would be none too happy to find she's bragging about it on the internet

Either way, she's not going to tell.

Or I could be wrong on all counts, but it isn't something I'm going to lose sleep over :-)

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wow, tempest in a teacup here!

If Tammy thinks that allowing people who frequent this second rate social board (or whatever it was called over there) to patronize her establishment is at odds with "protecting her investment", then by all means, name the place in question. I would be more than happy to oblige by not going there since that's what ownership/management/whatever wishes.

win-win, really. I'd hate to be somewhere I'm not wanted.

Or, go the other route. I'm envisioning a recreation of the scene in the Chez Paul in The Blues Brothers - "Sell me your children!"

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I figure either her story is total BS and she's managed to back herself into a corner, or what she says is true to some degree and her employer would be none too happy to find she's bragging about it on the internet
After reading through the comments over there I remembered a scene in that Jeff Bridges/Tommy Lee Jones movie Blown Away. I don't know if anyone but me remembers it but they go on for awhile about the moment you realize you stepped on a mine. You hear the click of the trigger engaging and you know as soon as you move your foot it will blow up and you are frozen because you know as soon as you do anything you are dead. In the movie Jeff Bridges went so far as to demonstrate it on Forest Whitaker in a bomb squad class room. I have to imagine a similar sensation went through that Tammy chicks head right after she posted the comment about people being open and using real names. Realllllly don't think she gave any thought to were that string of logic ended up.

The second thing I think both her and the authors of that story failed to realize is just how much industry particpates on here. I originally started lurking on this board not as a diner but as an industry professional. For someone in the industry this really is the best place I know of to keep up with openings, closings, trends, wine finds, new cocktails and just plain old networking. That is why I doubt Tammy is an industry "professional" at least in my mind. Maybe she is a hostess, a waitress or maybe even a manager but if she can't see the value of this site than I don't know what to tell you.

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I figure either her story is total BS and she's managed to back herself into a corner, or what she says is true to some degree and her employer would be none too happy to find she's bragging about it on the internet
But it would explain why I am greeted at every restaurant with gold slippers, half-naked studs who fan me with feathers and feed me peeled grape as a procession of still writhing, mooing, clucking protein is marched before me for my examination. :lol:
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But it would explain why I am greeted at every restaurant with gold slippers, half-naked studs who fan me with feathers and feed me peeled grape as a procession of still writhing, mooing, clucking protein is marched before me for my examination. :lol:
You, too, huh? I thought it was just me getting that treatment. ;)
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I figure either her story is total BS and she's managed to back herself into a corner, or what she says is true to some degree and her employer would be none too happy to find she's bragging about it on the internet

I suspect that what she is saying, and her claims of what she is, are somewhere between 90% and 100% BS.

That said, I'm sure that every restaurant has to constantly deal with idiots who walk in and claim they are "reviewers" for Rockwell, Chowhound, whatever (and may never even post in those places), or that they are Tom Sietsema, etc. etc. I'm also sure it grows very tiresome. We live in an age where this whole foodie/restaurant thing has, IMO, gotten out of hand, and exchanges like this one seem to me to be symptomatic of that situation. Of course, all of us are Exhibit A for why things have come to this. What to do about it? Should we even be concerned? I don't know.

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We live in an age where this whole foodie/restaurant thing has, IMO, gotten out of hand, and exchanges like this one seem to me to be symptomatic of that situation. Of course, all of us are Exhibit A for why things have come to this. What to do about it? Should we even be concerned? I don't know.
We are? I don't think most of the regular posters here are doing any of the things you mention. If anything, it's more likely that we are being played by savvy chefs and restauranteurs in order to boost happy talk on this site.

And define "out of hand?" More people are interested in good food and are willing to buy it and talk about it on the web, thereby building up and supporting an industry and making good food available to more people. Is that not desirable in your world? Because it is in mine.

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That said, I'm sure that every restaurant has to constantly deal with idiots who walk in and claim they are "reviewers" for Rockwell, Chowhound, whatever (and may never even post in those places), or that they are Tom Sietsema, etc. etc.
Funny story I worked at a place that didn't take reservations and probably wouldn't be tops on Sietsema's to-do list anyways. Someone called in one time demanding a reservation claiming to be Tom. I just happened to be talking to the hostess at the time and overheard her end of the conversation. The funniest part was that the hostess was from El Salvador, a high school senior and most importantly didn't have a freaking clue who Tom Sietsema was. Partway through she muted it and and asked me what to do the guy said he was somebody important, "Tom Ssssma? Tom Steema?". After hearing her butcher it a few times I figured out it out and said Sietsema? And she said yeah. I told her not to worry about.
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We are? I don't think most of the regular posters here are doing any of that.

I never said you were--read the whole sentence. Specifically, I agree with you when you say "most of the regular posters [aren't] doing any of that" In fact, maybe none do (define "regular poster"). I don't know. Do you? The fact remains that lots of people do walk into restaurants and do that, and whether any of them also are "regular posters" on this board is beside the point.

And define "out of hand?" More people are interested in good food and are willing to buy it and talk about it on the web, thereby building up and supporting an industry and making good food available to more people. Is that not desirable in your world? Because it is in mine.

I agree with what you say. The problem that I see, and to which I clearly made reference, is exchanges such as this (between the nightlife blog and this board) when it gets into the area of sniping and backbiting. That has nothing to do with "supporting an industry and making good food available to more people." To me, it amounts to grown people acting in an uncivilized way, like spoiled brats, same as the idiots who walk into restaurants and make extravagant claims in a bid to get better food/service than others. That, in my world, is "out of hand." But it's only my opinion. If you don't share it, fine.

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I agree with what you say. The problem that I see, and to which I clearly made reference, is exchanges such as this (between the nightlife blog and this board) when it gets into the area of sniping and backbiting. That has nothing to do with "supporting an industry and making good food available to more people." To me, it amounts to grown people acting in an uncivilized way, like spoiled brats, same as the idiots who walk into restaurants and make extravagant claims in a bid to get better food/service than others. That, in my world, is "out of hand." But it's only my opinion. If you don't share it, fine.
So some anonymous person with a blog says some (unprovoked) shitty things about the membership here, publishes ad hominem attacks (my favorite kind - "former headgear wearers" :lol:) . The members here notice and comment on it. That makes all of us uncivilized spoiled brats?
I never said you were--read the whole sentence. Specifically, I agree with you when you say "most of the regular posters [aren't] doing any of that" In fact, maybe none do (define "regular poster"). I don't know. Do you?
My mistake. And no, I don't. You said "all of us are Exhibit A for why things have come to this." I disagree.
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On 7/14/2008 at 8:04 AM, DonRocks said:

I have feelings yes I do

I think that you have them too

Just in case you're feeling blue

I just wrote this poem for you!

Now pour yourself a cup of tea

And read this poem along with me:

Fuck you one

Fuck you two

Fuck you red

Fuck you blue

Fuck you here, fuck you there

Fuck you fuck you everywhere

Fuck you standing on a stair

Fuck you in a rocking chair

Fuck you in a bowl of rice

Fuck you on a block of ice

Fuck you once and fuck you twice

Fuck you fuck you fuck you thrice

Fuck you deep in outer space

Fuck you at a rocket's pace

Fuck you now and fuck you then

Fuck you where and fuck you when

Fuck you fuck you and fuck you again

With a dick

of inches

ten

Fuck you high and fuck you low

Fuck you fast and fuck you slow

Fuck you day and fuck you night

Fuck you left and fuck you right

Fucketh thou and fucketh thee

Fuck your blog and fuck that flea

you lost to in the spelling bee

while prepping for your G.E.D.

Fuck you when the sky is clear

and fuck you when it starts to rain

Fuck you deep inside your ear

and fuck your little six-ounce brain

Fuck your sister fuck your brother

Fuck your father fuck your mother

Fuck your friend in Timbuktu

But most of all, my friend: Fuck you.

Admit it, Jon Karl ... busted! B)

I expect to be mentioned in your memoirs as having had "a significant influence" on your writing style.

---

"In his 1995 memoir “Dreams of My Father,” Obama writes about smoking pot almost like Dr. Seuss wrote about eating green eggs and ham. As a high school kid, Obama wrote, he would smoke “in a white classmate’s sparkling new van,” he would smoke “in the dorm room of some brother” and he would smoke “on the beach with a couple of Hawaiian kids.”

He would smoke it here and there. He would smoke it anywhere."

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