Consumerist
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NYC Restaurant Stops Accepting Cash
If you decide to eat at Commerce, an unpleasantly named upscale restaurant in New York City that charges nearly $25 for spaghetti, your cash is no longer welcome.
More »"If you don't have a credit card, you can use a debit card," said the restaurant's co-owner, Tony Zazula. "If you don't have a debit card, you probably don't have a checking account. And if you don't have a checking account, you probably shouldn't be eating at Commerce to begin with."
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utensils
Consumers No Longer Forking Out For Knives
Culturally bankrupt shoppers are now buying twice as many forks as knives, according to a British department store. The Brits blame the erosion of their cherished culture on "the American habit of using a single fork." And that's not all. Apparently we're also ruining their understanding and respect for the elegant tradition of proper place settings. More » -
meals
Eat Out And Save
Eating out is one of the fastest ways to burn a hole through your wallet, but with a few tips from Five Cent Nickel, you can still enjoy a good meal without breaking the bank. More » -
cutting out the middle man
More People Are Getting Their Food Straight From Farms
Farmers markets aren't just for dirty hippies anymore. Everyone's starting to catch on to food straight off the farm, according to a study by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service. More » -
customer service
Black Bear Diner And The Thrice Cooked, Twice Eaten Steak Of Disappointment
The Black Bear Diner in Colorado Springs twice served Jason the same undercooked steak. When he asked for a new steak, the server returned with the same steak cooked for a third time. When Jason told the server that the steak looked unappetizingly familiar, the server responded with "some story about her eating the old steak, and (unprompted) said that she couldn't bring out the other steak because she had ate it, and got in trouble with her boss about it." More » -
recession
Sharing Restaurant Dishes Is Becoming Slightly More Acceptable
Good news thrifty diners, you're not the only ones asking to share dishes at restaurants these days. Thanks to the recession, it's becoming acceptable for everyone to split their dishes, and restaurants aren't complaining. "Now all bets are off," said David Pogrebin, manager of the snazzy French restaurant Brasserie. "People are not ashamed of being frugal." More » -
lobster
Recession Bargain: Lobsters Are Cheap, Cheap, Cheap
The New York Times says that due to the recession there is a glut of available lobster, which is driving down prices. More » -
food
Can You Finish The 50 Pound Burger And Win $1,000?
ABCNews took a look at "Free if you can finish it" challenges all over the US — and even sent the reporter to attempt one — with the help of a championship competitive eater. So, was the 50-pounder a bargain? More » -
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consumption
20 Ways To Make The Most Of Your Groceries Without Spending An Extra Cent
Americans throw away a quarter of our food uneaten, which translates into serious wasted cash over time. The Guardian compiled an excellent list of ways to shop smarter so you end up buying what you need, and eating what you buy. More » -
food
Restaurant Gives 25% Discount To Birthday Diners, Writes "Bug On Food" For Reason On Check
A restaurant in Dubai gave a 25% discount to a party of birthday diners after they found four bugs in their food. Says a restaurant official, "The guys thought being friendly and having a joke about the environment would relax the diners because it was a birthday, but unfortunately it didn't." We sort of think after the second or third bug, you should probably just comp the meal—and then shut down the restaurant for fumigation. More » -
personal finance
6 Ways To Save Money When Dining Out
RacerX at "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Money" has posted the 6 ways he and his wife save money when they go out to eat. Following all of them would make for a noticeably different experience at your favorite restaurant—perhaps more than you'd like. But even adopting a couple of these tips could knock 10% or more off your next fancy meal with the significant other. More » -
gluttony
Restaurant Week Returns To New York City
If you ever wanted a literal taste of the good life, this is your lucky week. Through the 27th, over 200 New York restaurants are throwing open their doors to New Yorkers on a budget. Participating restaurants offer a three-course prix fixe menu; $24.07 buys you lunch, while dinner costs $35.00. Some of the city's top restaurants deign to welcome the relatively impoverished, including Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill, Le Cirque, and Iron Chef Masaharu Morimoto's Nobu. You can try to snag a reservation through OpenTable, but your best bet is to call restaurants directly. Don't fret if traveling to New York is too much to sate your gluttony: Boston's Restaurant Week starts on August 5th, with Washington's starting the day after.
NYC Restaurant Week Summer 2007 [NYCVisit.com]
NYC Restaurant Week [OpenTable]
Washington Restaurant Week [Washington.org]
Boston Restaurant Week [BostonUSA.com] -
complaints
Waiter, There's a Lack of Disclosure in My Soup
A reader is mad that many restaurants won't give you the dietary information about the menu. So she wrote a letter to Bertuccis, an Italian place, and sent it to us as well. More » -
complaints
Consumers Speak: "Poison Street Sushi"
As if putting up your complaints were not cut-and-pastey enough, reader Oz even sent us this totally functional title as well to his story of good lamb, mediocre sushi, and bad service.So two weeks ago, I decided to treat my cousin and his expecting fianc e to dinner at Bond Street Sushi in Manhattan. He'd patronized the place a few times, and noted that it was cool and swanky. Aside from going to Nobu, I'm not sure if swanky is the best advert for sushi - but we went nonetheless.
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customer service
The Waiting Is the Hardest Part
Lest you think that we get pleasure out of bad service at restaurants, let's get one thing straight: There's nothing that pleases us more than to be able to immediately reward someone for doing a great job. Gratuity-based jobs are not without their faults, but as a customer it's got a lot going for it. More » -
sucks less
This CEO Sucks Less: John Pepper of Boloco
Lest we leave you unable to eat food at all, we present this letter from John Pepper, the CEO of Boston's Boloco restaurants (formerly 'The Wrap'), which is the very model of how to handle a customer complaint, even when a company isn't going to be able to address the specific complaint. It was sent to us by the pleased recipient. More » -
complaints
Consumers Speak: Bad Waitress Prompts Epic Tale
A magical unicorn writes:Last night, my boyfriend and I went to Macaroni Grill for dinner and, in the course of the evening, experienced the worst service either one of us had ever witnessed. My boyfriend used to wait tables, and as a result is usu ally a very lenient and understanding customer. Unfortunately, as a former waiter he is also quick to recognize when the server has done something wrong. In this case, something went wrong at literally every point of interaction between ourselves and our waiter; the service was so bad as to become the single point of conversation for almost the duration of our dinner. I apologize for the length of this comment, but I feel that it is necessary to get across the consistent nature of the terrible service.
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complaints
Consumers Speak: Jimmy John's Jimmies with Coupons
John B. writes:I recently went in to Jimmy John's (http://www.jimmyjohns.com/) in downtown Indianapolis. While some might consider them YASC (Yet Another Sandwich Chain), my wife and I love them. Their #6 is one of the few vegetarian items at a fast-food place I can order without changing the order. It is a delectable sandwich, and quite affordable. I walked in a few weeks ago to pick up dinner, greeted by the familiar wafting bread smell, anxiously awaiting my precious #6.
More »
eating
New York, 8:22 AM
Tue Nov 10
22 posts in the last 24 hours
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