Restaurant Week - Summer 2007

[beezy]

OK Kids, I'm about to cancel that Equinox reservation. So, anyone want that 7:30 Tuesday spot...dive in!

[KeithA]

Sadly, just had to cancel a reservation at New Heights for tonight at 7:30pm for 2 people. Go and get it.

On a different note, had a great RW meal last night at Ardeo. They were a little hectic when we arrive at 8:00 and had to wait 15 min for our table, but once seated everything was smooth and delicious.

[brettashley01]

Just gave up my 10:15pm Friday night at Vidalia res for 2. Jump on it!

[Ohitzig]

Just want all to know... Mark and Orlando's is still taking reservations for Restaurant week for Friday and Saturday.... Pretty much open book.... We are offering a full menu for both Lunch and Dinner and look forward to seeing any and all new or old faces there...

-Orlando Hitzig

Chef/Owner

Mark and Orlando's

[Ferhat Yalcin]

I have a table booked this evening at Corduroy. it just feels weird.

[deangold]

I have a table booked this evening at Corduroy. it just feels weird.

A few helpful hints....

Do not go to the table next to you and recommend the Littorai Pinot or any other wines off the list.

Do feel the need to go into the kitchen and make sure table 17's steak is done just the way they like it.

Do not present anyone's dinner to their table with a flourish.

In other words.. sit there and enjoy your dinner!

[mhberk]

If anyone is looking for something to do with 3 of their closest friends on Friday night, I have a reservation at Bobby Van's Steakhouse for 4 at 6:30 that I won't be able to keep. It looks like they are offering several nice options for entrees.

PM me if you're interested. I will be cancel the reservation late Thursday afternoon if no one is interested.

(This is the 15th St location)

[Ferhat Yalcin]

A few helpful hints....

Do not go to the table next to you and recommend the Littorai Pinot or any other wines off the list.

Do feel the need to go into the kitchen and make sure table 17's steak is done just the way they like it.

Do not present anyone's dinner to their table with a flourish.

In other words.. sit there and enjoy your dinner!

I dont know what is good , what should I have ? this is my first restaurant week dinner at Corduroy.(this is serious, first time)

[JimRice]

I dont know what is good , what should I have ? this is my first restaurant week dinner at Corduroy.(this is serious, first time)

I believe you recommended the bluefish to me

[Pat]

I have a table booked this evening at Corduroy. it just feels weird.

The first time I ever went to Corduroy was for RW several years ago. I had the seared tuna with sushi rice and hijiki and was hooked. That's still my favorite dish there, if it's on the RW menu.

[reverbbrad]

(Also, Tyler Cowen likes PS7's and correctly called their RW strategy! Click)

Oddly, after suggesting you pick restaurants with reputations to protect, two of his four rec's are there because he thinks the restaurant's reputation needs to be established. I suspect you will do better if you choose as he does, not as he says, and go for places with something to prove. (I do like the thought about going for a particularly unmalleable style of restaurant such as Fogo de Chao, but I've yet to try something like that).

All that said, though, RW is always going to be a mixed bag, and I think the restaurants that do really well tend to be quite customer focused to begin with and keep their RW offering in close line with their regular menu, even if the number of options is limited. I think places that place far more emphasis on food than experience are the ones likely to really fall down -- the kitchen has to manage a different approach, and the service may slide further.

My best RW memories from prior years: Corduroy, Dino, and Colvin Run Tavern, which I used to visit for lunch when I worked in Tyson's Corner. I'm very hopeful for a nice dinner at Indigo Landing tonight.

[Mark Slater]

(Also, Tyler Cowen likes PS7's and correctly called their RW strategy! Click)

Just for yucks, after reading the article, click "view comments" at the end of the online edition. You can even leave one there yourself!

[DonRocks]

The following posts have been moved to separate threads:

Oval Room (Saycheese)

Ardeo (mhberk)

PS7 (AlexC)

Vidalia (Melissa LaV)

Circle Bistro (rbh)

Oval Room (demvtr)

Equinox (nashman1975)

Bombay Club (brettashley01)

[Scott Johnston]

What no review????? How was the food? the service? Did it taste different sitting down?

come on spill....

I have a table booked this evening at Corduroy. it just feels weird.

[Elias Hengst]

As I talk to guests and with other owners/chefs, I get the impression that many are growing a little weary of Restaurant Week.

It seems like the dining pros - Rockwellians among them - are starting to avoid Restaurant Week like a New Yorker avoids Times Square on New Years Eve.

Has RW run its course? Or do the discounts outweigh the anguish and chaos?

[rappahannock]

Though not every account of Restaurant Week experiences are negative, it seems the bulk are. I think it's time to put a fork in it... Either that or maybe lower your expectations a little when you eat "expensive for cheap".

Then again, I'm just a country bumpkin.

[jparrott]

Or do the discounts outweigh the anguish and chaos?

I believe that you are best-placed to do this calculation, Eli . Or at least to provide the bulk of the raw data. Any professional value-stream mappers out there to help us out?

[Pat]

It seems like the dining pros - Rockwellians among them - are starting to avoid Restaurant Week like a New Yorker avoids Times Square on New Years Eve.

We didn't do RW this time because we went to Komi for our anniversary during the week and that blew the dining out budget sufficiently that we weren't going anywhere else.

I like RW for trying places I haven't been to and usually give a significant benefit of the doubt on service issues during those meals. That also extends to food that is not as hot as it should be, etc. If people are going to be demanding perfection under exacting conditions like that, I can see how everyone is going to get frustrated. It's not a food tv "challenge."

If RW is for the restaurants to be giving something (sampling of their food at bargain prices) and the customers to be giving something (patience), I can see it working. Some places will do better than others, and on any given day the same restaurant's quality may vary from any other day. Within some parameters this gives a read of the restaurant's typical competence, but it's an artificial scenario.

I don't see the point of it if it's putting restaurant staff through an endurance marathon. Wasn't it designed to fill seats during slow times? As that, it seems to work just fine. As David Letterman says: "It's an exhibition, not a competition. Please, no wagering."

[Mark Slater]

As I talk to guests and with other owners/chefs, I get the impression that many are growing a little weary of Restaurant Week.

It seems like the dining pros - Rockwellians among them - are starting to avoid Restaurant Week like a New Yorker avoids Times Square on New Years Eve.

Has RW run its course? Or do the discounts outweigh the anguish and chaos?

I think it depends on how much the restaurateur needs the money.

[dmwine]

As I talk to guests and with other owners/chefs, I get the impression that many are growing a little weary of Restaurant Week.

It seems like the dining pros - Rockwellians among them - are starting to avoid Restaurant Week like a New Yorker avoids Times Square on New Years Eve.

Has RW run its course? Or do the discounts outweigh the anguish and chaos?

This is another example of the "dining pros" such as "Rockwellians" thinking the world revolves around them, and only them. There are many people, including some who would gladly call themselves "foodies," who look forward to Restaurant Week for the chance to explore new restaurants they might otherwise not try because of the prices.

I'm going to shut up now before Don PM's me ...

ETA: OK, I'm calmer now. I just looked back (should have done so before shooting my mouth off) to see Eli is in the trade - so I'll say this: A lot of customers go to restuarants during RW who may not otherwise go - it promotes experimentation. Just because we jaded palates may avoid it, doesn't mean don't do it. Now, if your restaurant doesn't see any benefit from it, then that's another issue ...

[deangold]

There are pros and cons to the week, but on the whole I continue to see it as a major plus. It produices a week where you do not see a lot of regulars and where you see a lot of new customers. That makes for a different feel to the restaurant, but it also makes us take note of how many regulars we have and how mush they contribute to the feel of Dino. But so many of the new customers say on their way outthat they will be back and I am sure a good proportion of them will become regulars. I can think of a table or two who I doubt will be back.

Yes its a lot of work, yes its exhausting and yes there are a lot of people who come in just for the bargain and try to take advantage of every angle. But that is true all the time, its just a matter of proportions. Restaruatn Week is also a bonding experience for the staff as well. We came out of it really feeling like we accomplished a lot given some real challenges going into it.

At this point in time, I find it a cost effective way to reach a new audience and to build my business. I will continue it.

[jiveturk21]

I have taken advantage of Restaurant Week, both in January and August, for years now. One week, several years ago, we went to dinner on Monday through Friday and brunch on Saturday and Sunday (not recommended!). I would conservatively say that I have been to 50+ different restaurants during these weeks. Now, unlike others, I don't save any money at all during Restaurant Week, I seem to spend as much or more because I suck. And, you do have to temper your expectations somewhat on service, although I do NOT think that we should have to temper expectation on the quality of the food.

With all that being said, why on Earth would I ever go somewhere during Restaurant Week?

Not everyone is like me. Not everyone has a lot of disposable income and not everyone likes to spend that disposable income on food. So, I take advantage of Restaurant Week to get my friends to go to places that they may not otherwise go to. I take the responsibility to ensure that they don't spend their lives eating at chain restaurants on their "date night" or during special occassions.

So, I say let Restaurant Week live for as long as it can last, if you don't want to go, don't go.

[mdt]

I wonder what percentage of diners (non-regular customers) return after an initial RW visit.

[rappahannock]

It would be a telling stat. My guess is not many.

[deangold]

I wonder what percentage of diners (non-regular customers) return after an initial RW visit.

I would put the percentage at lower than the number of first timers in general, but not substantially lower. Most people who come to a restaurant one time do not return in any case. One measure of how we are doing at a given time is how many people sign up for our email list as they exit or do so by mail. RW skews higher because there are proportionately more non list folk eating here and because there are more folk eating here. The increase in signups seems to be quite high even given those factors. And we find that signing up for our list is a great predictor of future repeat visits.

Some of my better regulars made their first visit during a RW. And some folk who first visited during RW are great advocates but do not dine that frequently themsleves for financial or other reasons (kids, school etc). We put a lot into RW and we get a lot out of it.

[porcupine]

We put a lot into RW and we get a lot out of it.

That says it all, doesn't it?

[laniloa]

I wonder what percentage of diners (non-regular customers) return after an initial RW visit.

While not an answer to your question, my first trips to Corduroy, Vidalia, and Tosca were all during RW. All became part of my regular rotation and I've been to each at least twice since moving from DC nearly two years ago. I've also created other regulars for all three by luring them out during RW.

[deangold]

I was looking at our deposits for the week for RW and noticed some interesting differences. Needing to waste a few minutes, I went back to past resutuarant weeks and the same pattern was found:

Amex reciepts were way down for RW, maybe 1/2 of their normal percentages. Cash was way up. In fact, the restaurant took in more case than it paid out in tips (ie our net cash position actually rose during restaurant week), something that never happens otherwise. Taken together, these two effects actually have a further positive effect on our cash flow. This is not earth shattering, but it does help. And since Amex is usually a associated with business dining it seems that restaurant dining out at Dino falls during RW.