Letter in response to “Restaurants,” published in the Aug. 13 edition
Burt, I really enjoyed your restaurant article last week. I enjoy reading your articles every week, but this one struck a chord and brought back memories of my time in New York City. I’m very familiar with the restaurants that you spoke of; I would often visit them as well as several others that were in the same category. I myself ran a very fine restaurant/supper club that had all of the same fine attributes of the restaurants that you spoke of. I’m sure that you will remember the name—it was “The Stork Club.”
Burt, when we went to one of these fine restaurants, we would be greeted by a doorman who would open the door for you; you would then be greeted by the host who would take you to your table; the table would have on it crisp linens, fine silver and glassware and a centerpiece that would either be an elegant lamp or a floral piece; you would have a professional, well-dressed waiter who would cater to your every whim and dining pleasure. Upon leaving, the host would thank you and tell you that he looked forward to your return. Oh, how I would have loved to have taken my wife to such a restaurant last Friday. It was her birthday and I took her and another guest to what is considered to be Malibu’s finest restaurant—and no, it was not Nobu. After waiting for over half an hour for a table to be ready, we were finally taken to our table. The table had a formica top with absolutely nothing on it. It was completely bare. It reminded me of tables that you would see in a factory canteen. The service was almost nonexistent—I have seen better trained waiters with more knowledge of their menu—and, I might add, with a better attitude—in Denny’s. The food was no better than the service. It would take up too much room in this column to go into full details. Out of three entrees, one was returned and out of three desserts, one was returned. No one in management stopped by to inquire or apologize to us. Upon leaving, there was no one at all to see us on our way—it was truly a pathetic evening. I should have taken my guest to V’s, but my guest was from out of town and wanted to have an ocean view dinner. I will never return there again—and, to top it all off, the bill was way over $300. And, no, it was not Maestro’s.
Richard Chesterfield