How Many Chances?

[mojoman]

My fiance and I make an above average DC income but nothing stupendous. Therefore, there are hard choices to make regarding how we want to spend such dollars when eating out.

We do like the pricey places (2491, Citizen, Minibar, etc.). However, our sense of fiscal responsibility limits going to such places to maybe 3-4 times/year.

We go to mid-high places (say Komi (which is getting more into the expensive area), Rays The Steaks) maybe about 1-2x a month.

The rest of the time, we like to keep it under $75 for two, out the door, and preferably less.

Except at quite high levels of income, regardless of your earnings, you face the same generic dilemma (I can only afford so many fancy meals, how do I allocate my resources?).

What is my point? Generally, at the highest price level, we only give a resto one chance to wow us. We don't have the scratch to keep going back to a high-priced place and there are too many unexplored fine-dining places for us to try. Of course a well-regarded cheapie or mid-priced place can be retried.

Discuss.

[chickenlover]

I generally give a place one chance, especially an expensive place. Also, I am much more willing to try new places if they fall into the cheap eats category. For less affordable meals I tend to stick to places that I know will like, i.e. Palena, rather than rolling the dice on something new.

[jiveturk21]

What is that saying, variety is the spice of life?

I am pretty lucky that I get to go out to eat often and not always on my dime, so I get to try most places in the DC area that many would consider "expensive." But, I still agree with mojoman that restaurants get ONE chance to impress me. Is it fair? Probably not, but there is a ton of competition out there with new and exciting places opening every day, so if a place disappoints me, I likely won't go back and try somewhere else. If I was a professional restaurant reviewer, yes, this wouldn't be fair, but I am just a random idiot that is trying to find some tasty and creative food.

Also, at this point in my life, I have been to a lot of places and I think that I have a pretty good handle on what I like and what I don't like. On top of that, I also think that I can determine if a place is having an off night or if the server is just in a bad mood or if the place truly isn't that great.

So, when it comes down to it, I don't necessarily think that anyone's financial situation changes the answer very much here. Yeah, there are going to be some people with unlimited funds that go out every day and night to nice restaurants, but for the other 99% of the people, they want good experiences on the first try and we live in a city that has places that can pick up the slack if that first impression is not up to par.

[Adam23]

I generally give a place one chance, especially an expensive place. Also, I am much more willing to try new places if they fall into the cheap eats category. For less affordable meals I tend to stick to places that I know will like, i.e. Palena, rather than rolling the dice on something new.

We are pretty much the same way. Every place gets one chance, but if it's a bad meal and the service was outstanding, we may give it a try again. But if it's a bad meal with bad service, it gets sent to restaurant purgatory and we never return.

The wife and I travel all over the place in the area to try out cheaper restaurants, but when it comes to a higher priced meal we generally stick to our stable of favourites. I think generally the only time we stray from this for expensive places is if there is a grand opening of a higher-end place. We are willing to try it right when it opens, but then again, if i'm droping over $100 a person, the restaurant still only gets once chance. I also have no problem trying out new places on my company's dime, but that is a different story, since if I pick a place and its bad, I don't get to pick on work's dime again.

[porcupine]

There's never a second chance to make a first impression. It's not fair (of course any restaurant could have one bad night), but neither is life. It helps alot, though, if you can set aside great expectations, which are often a recipe for disaster at any restaurant.

Ever the cynic,

[jpschust]

It depends on so many factors. Do we know the chef can do better? (i.e. previous experience). Was there something massive that happened that the kitchen had no control over? (Party of 20 just shows up randomly) How was the service? All these things can give an expensive restaurant a second chance. That said, for those places that knock it out of the park, we end up coming back again and again to entertain others.

[rkduggins]

I was JUST thinking about this based on last weekend's disappointing experience at a board favorite. I like to eat out. If I want to do it often and not bankrupt the family, I have to be careful, and expensive dining is judged very critically for a potential return visit. In my way of thinking, why go someplace mediocre and expensive when I can go to Joe's Noodle House 10 times for the same price?

Dining out last weekend was not call-the-manager horrendous, but merely flat on a number of fronts, to include service and the meal itself. Our waiter was attentive but not engaging, barely cracking a smile all evening. When I asked of the shoat or lamb which was better the reply was "get the lamb" with no supporting information. Looking for wine guidance, two selections were pointed out, again with no supporting information offered. We were not getting service at the level of tables around us. So, for service I know this place can do better. As we ate our way through the courses, we were each underwhelmed at the execution. We walked away feeling like I could have fixed the same thing at home with more satisfying results. It's more than likely we'll pass on another trip to the same restaurant because I'm too leery of spending twice on a basically blah experience.

[Chris Cunningham]

You have now hit upon the real reason McDonald's is open late-night or 24hrs-

[Aphioni]

We are pretty much the same way. Every place gets one chance, but if it's a bad meal and the service was outstanding, we may give it a try again. But if it's a bad meal with bad service, it gets sent to restaurant purgatory and we never return.

we also have a 1 strike rule on expensive restaurants, and if it;s a bad enough experience that the mgr onsite doesn't handle to our satisfaction, we write to the GM. received a $200 GC from Mortons that way once- but haven't been back since we used the GC. Ruth Chris is just too much better to bother going back to Mortons...

[Banco]

we also have a 1 strike rule on expensive restaurants, and if it;s a bad enough experience that the mgr onsite doesn't handle to our satisfaction, we write to the GM. received a $200 GC from Mortons that way once- but haven't been back since we used the GC. Ruth Chris is just too much better to bother going back to Mortons...

Quick: edit out those spaces or you are in DEEP SHIT!

[jpschust]

we also have a 1 strike rule on expensive restaurants, and if it;s a bad enough experience that the mgr onsite doesn't handle to our satisfaction, we write to the GM. received a $200 GC from Mortons that way once- but haven't been back since we used the GC. Ruth Chris is just too much better to bother going back to Mortons...

There are just too many steak houses in the country to eat at Mortons and Ruth's Chris unless you're under pain of death.

[zoramargolis]

We walked away feeling like I could have fixed the same thing at home with more satisfying results. It's more than likely we'll pass on another trip to the same restaurant because I'm too leery of spending twice on a basically blah experience.

This is one of the few downsides of being a good cook! We eat good restaurant quality meals at home on a regular basis, so I hate spending a lot of money on food that is not as good as what I can easily do at home. When we do go out, it's usually someplace casual and not too pricey. On very special occasions, we'll splurge on a meal that I can count on being fabulous.

[mdt]

we also have a 1 strike rule on expensive restaurants, and if it;s a bad enough experience that the mgr onsite doesn't handle to our satisfaction, we write to the GM. received a $200 GC from Mortons that way once- but haven't been back since we used the GC. Ruth Chris is just too much better to bother going back to Mortons...

Get yourself to RtS or RtC and you wont bother with Morton's or Ruth's Chris (ugh) again!

[Aphioni]

Quick: edit out those spaces or you are in DEEP SHIT!

what spaces? saveme- i have no clue what you are talking about!

[Aphioni]

Get yourself to RtS or RtC and you wont bother with Morton's or Ruth's Chris (ugh) again!

what and where are these RtC and RtS that you recommend? I am always looking for a better steak. made the mistake of going to Shulas once- it was soup kitchen quality at mortons pricing- ridiculous!!!

[mdt]

what and where are these RtC and RtS that you recommend? I am always looking for a better steak. made the mistake of going to Shulas once- it was soup kitchen quality at mortons pricing- ridiculous!!!

Ray's the Steaks (Arlington) and Ray's the Classics (Silverspirng). There are a couple of (very) long threads on this board.

[porcupine]

what spaces? saveme- i have no clue what you are talking about!

Check out the Administrative Announcements thread.

what and where are these RtC and RtS that you recommend? I am always looking for a better steak. made the mistake of going to Shulas once- it was soup kitchen quality at mortons pricing- ridiculous!!!

What planet are you from? Click here and here .

[Poivrot Farci]

It helps alot, though, if you can set aside great expectations...

Indeed. And a reasonable diner dines for the pleasure of exploratory dining and their company whereas all the rest remain bound by amateur appraisals of gettin' their money’s worth and are intolerant of human (and/or) nature’s occasional crapshoot. Banquette critics with charlatan dining savvy and Consumer Reports subscriptions should distance themselves from obsessive Dollar value and perhaps hold court to their dinner companions rather than the restaurant’s errant jesters... or frequent the consistent cost/yield/service trinity of name-brand vending machines. The realism of seatbelts and safety measures should be infallible; the idealism of soup to nuts perfection not so much.

[Pool Boy]

There are just too many steak houses in the country to eat at Mortons and Ruth's Chris unless you're under pain of death.

Uhhhh...yeah!I agree.

I give most places one chance. I know it ain't fair, but risking my dollars at a place that disappointed me before is, well, too risky!

[Aphioni]

Check out the Administrative Announcements thread.

What planet are you from? Click here and here .

Planet dine out once a quarter... that's why i joined this group- to become enlightened and educated....

[Walrus]

We often give places two chances, unless it was laughably horrible, but if there's still no "wow" during the second meal, then we'll be done...this is why Citronelle is off my list. Our first meal there, we had excellent and charming service, but the food was...fine. The second time, the food was...fine...and the service was...fine. Not openly hostile by any means, but certainly not friendly. Neither time did the food meet the level I would have expected for the price we paid. And the decor is just wrong. Add in impersonal and severe service, and you're left with the only thing you remember from the experience being the happily intoxicated birthday boy sloooooowly sliding down his chair until he was almost prone -- the rest of his table didn't seem to even notice!

[dinwiddie]

A lot of factors go into whether I will give a place an expensive restaurant a second chance. If I went out of my way (meaning distance or difficulty in getting there) to eat somewhere, and it didn't wow me, I am unlikely to do so again. On the other hand, I've been to places that were OK the first time, but because they have a great reputation, I've given them a second chance. On occasion, I've wished I hadn't, but more often, the reason they have a great reputation becomes obvious on the second visit. On the other hand, if both the food and the service are bad the first time, there is not much chance that I will try again.

While I like trying new restaurants, I am more likely to dine at places that I really like than to give a place that was just OK the first time a second chance. I'm always open to new experiences, but there are just too many choices from the ones I've really enjoyed to change my rotation too much.