Tablerock Brewpub & Grill
705 Fulton
Boise, Idaho 83702
208-342-0944
http://www.tablerockbrewpub.com/
Tablerock – Restaurant or bar with a personality disorder?
As you approach, the brick exterior and signage gives the impression of a bar. To contrast that, the covered entry door that is set in off the street and the outside dining area take you back to thinking that it’s a restaurant. Once inside though, the confusion only gets worse. The inside of this half pub, half restaurant has an Arizona flavor, which is a bit odd for a Boise based eating establishment. The inside is pretty drab and boring with plain browns and bare walls reminiscent of a bar. My wife, that normally accompanies me, made a comment on the design and feel of the restaurant. Just past the bar the ceiling rises to the roof like a hole that goes upward. She commented that if it wasn’t for this rise in the ceiling, this place would feel claustrophobic.
My take on Tablerock is that they are trying to cater to both bar goers and restaurant goers and tried to accommodate and appeal to both crowds. In my opinion they failed to accomplish this. Tablerock looks like a bar that decided it wanted to be a restaurant but didn’t want to give up the bar life.
The most noticeable feature of the interior is the huge steel beer vats that sit behind glass enclosed rooms just behind the bar. Though the restaurant and the bar are both incorporated in this one building, I did not notice the smell of cigarette smoke or the unusual noise level that I would normally associate with a bar. In the corner there sits a large popcorn machine which adds to the bar like feel. In fact, I could not help but get visions of the TV show Cheers in my head.
We began with an appetizer of their “Buffalo Bites.” The menu describes these as a boneless version of Buffalo wings with tender chicken breast smothered in a traditional buffalo sauce. I was very disappointed with what arrived, though I have to admit that my review of these may be tainted by the fact that I loathe vinegar and vinegar based sauces.
The chicken strips were not especially tender or the light and fluffy textured meat that I would expect from using fresh chicken. They looked and tasted like the frozen chicken strips that can be purchased from any store. They were indeed drenched in a red sauce. Now for those of you out there that like the taste of vinegar, you might love these, as my wife does. They had a very strong vinegar flavor which was very overpowering and bitter. I thought that the heat level was pretty mild, but my wife had to drink a lot of water. (On a side note, water only spreads the heat. Dissipating the heat requires a milk based product.)
For our main course I ordered the bacon Cheeseburger, while by wife ordered the Meatloaf. After we had turned in our order and waited 10 minutes or so, our server came over to our table and told us that she had to make a confession. She admitted to us that she had neglected to turn in our order. After apologizing, she went off to turn in our order. I have to give her good marks for admitting to this error on her part. She could have kept this info to herself. We would have thought the service slow, but we would have been none the wiser to her mistake.
Our meal did finally arrive and we anxiously dug in. My hamburger was one of the better ones that I have had in Boise. There were large strips of crispy bacon to accompany the large hamburger patty. The meat itself had a wonderful charbroiled flavor but was a little red on one edge of the patty which indicated to me that it had not been cooked evenly.
My wife’s Meatloaf was dripping with grease. I tasted it and I liked the flavor in spite of the abundance of grease. Again, our server (#27) came to our rescue. She noticed that my wife had barely touched her meal and came to our table. She must have noticed the grease as well, because she commented that the Meatloaf did not go over too well, and offered to remove it. She took my wife’s Meatloaf without saying much else, but soon returned. She said that he Meatloaf and the drinks would be no charge and that she hoped that we would return.
In spite of the problems that we encountered at Tablerock, we will return. I was very impressed with how they handled the problems that we experienced. Many businesses seem to have the misconception that problems and mishaps are the end and even the talk or the admitting to such should be avoided. This is a result of poor thinking and a traditional view of sweeping problems under the proverbial carpet.
The reality is that problems and complaints should be viewed positively. Employees and businesses that admit to mistakes and problems and make restitution for those mistakes will win loyal employees. Most customers will respect that employees or that businesses honesty in admitting to the problem and going the extra mile of making some sort of restitution for their mistake. In fact static’s show precisely this.
So all that to say that I will indeed return to tablerock and give them another chance.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Applebee’s Restaurant Review
Applebee’s Review 1527 Caldwell Blvd
Nampa, Idaho
In Nampa, with so few good newish restaurants to choose from, its easy to get into the habit of overlooking poor service and food. Such is the case with Applebee’s.
This was my 5th visit to Applebee’s over the course of the last several months. In fact, the only real reason why I keep coming here is because people keep giving me gift cards. This visit was on a Tuesday, when it was not especially busy. I have previously eaten at times when it was crowded, so I wanted to come when it was slow and see if the service and food was still the same.
My wife and I came with my 7 month old daughter this time. We were met at the door by the manager, which was very nice and pleasant. Though I got the distinct impression that this was seen by the employees as more of an annoyance than a pleasure. We were seated promptly and I quickly settled in for what I hoped was to be a very nice and enjoyable dining experience. At numerous restaurants, I have found that the little things are often overlooked, so I have come to look for these things. In particular, a filled and clean ketchup bottle has become one of my pet peeves. I scoped out the ketchup bottle and it did indeed look clean and full. It was not until I picked it up that I found that it was simply the color of ketchup, which made it impossible to tell if it was full unless it was physically checked. There was only a small amount of ketchup in the bottle, so I went for the one at the table next door, only to find that it too was almost empty.
My wife loves the Orange Chicken and orders this almost every time we come here. In the past 4 times though that we have come here, every time she has ordered Orange Chicken, there is very little to no sauce on it. The Chicken, though good and crispy, is as dry as a proverbial bone. My wife again ordered Orange Chicken, and we even explained to the waiter that every time that we ordered it, it had come without sauce. He told us that he would make sure that not only would it have sauce, but that he would bring out extra. We were satisfied at his assurance and placed the order. I wanted Chicken Fried Steak, but I only saw Chicken Fried Chicken on the menu. I asked the waiter if he had chicken Fried steak, but he didn’t seem to know. I finally had to point out the chicken fried chicken on the menu to which he also pointed and said that this was apparently the closest they had.
We got our order quickly, but we were sadly disappointed once again at the quality of the food at Applebee’s. My wife’s Orange Chicken not only came with without any sauce, but the waiter also forgot to bring the sauce on the side that he had promised us. It wasn’t until we complained that he came out with the sauce. The sauce that he brought us though was yellow and didn’t seem to have the same flavor as the sauce that was suppose to come with the Orange Chicken. My Chicken Fried Chicken was good, but didn’t have enough gravy on it.
Being from Texas, I love my iced tea. In my opinion that only way to serve tea is in the form of Unsweetened and pre-sweetened. It’s only common sense, as well and physics, that sugar just doesn’t dissolve well in cold liquids, so if you want your tea sweet, you have to stir and stir and stir. Even with all that stirring, you will still be left with unsweetened tea that is only slightly less bitter than the original. So, I have to take off points to any restaurant that does not have to good judgment to make two kinds of tea.
After about a dozen visits to Applebee’s Restaurant in Nampa, I have no choice but to conclude that their service and food is poor and has little if any chance of improving. My advice would be to find another place to eat at. It’s only a matter of time before a good restaurant. like maybe Chili’s, move into Nampa.
Nampa, Idaho
In Nampa, with so few good newish restaurants to choose from, its easy to get into the habit of overlooking poor service and food. Such is the case with Applebee’s.
This was my 5th visit to Applebee’s over the course of the last several months. In fact, the only real reason why I keep coming here is because people keep giving me gift cards. This visit was on a Tuesday, when it was not especially busy. I have previously eaten at times when it was crowded, so I wanted to come when it was slow and see if the service and food was still the same.
My wife and I came with my 7 month old daughter this time. We were met at the door by the manager, which was very nice and pleasant. Though I got the distinct impression that this was seen by the employees as more of an annoyance than a pleasure. We were seated promptly and I quickly settled in for what I hoped was to be a very nice and enjoyable dining experience. At numerous restaurants, I have found that the little things are often overlooked, so I have come to look for these things. In particular, a filled and clean ketchup bottle has become one of my pet peeves. I scoped out the ketchup bottle and it did indeed look clean and full. It was not until I picked it up that I found that it was simply the color of ketchup, which made it impossible to tell if it was full unless it was physically checked. There was only a small amount of ketchup in the bottle, so I went for the one at the table next door, only to find that it too was almost empty.
My wife loves the Orange Chicken and orders this almost every time we come here. In the past 4 times though that we have come here, every time she has ordered Orange Chicken, there is very little to no sauce on it. The Chicken, though good and crispy, is as dry as a proverbial bone. My wife again ordered Orange Chicken, and we even explained to the waiter that every time that we ordered it, it had come without sauce. He told us that he would make sure that not only would it have sauce, but that he would bring out extra. We were satisfied at his assurance and placed the order. I wanted Chicken Fried Steak, but I only saw Chicken Fried Chicken on the menu. I asked the waiter if he had chicken Fried steak, but he didn’t seem to know. I finally had to point out the chicken fried chicken on the menu to which he also pointed and said that this was apparently the closest they had.
We got our order quickly, but we were sadly disappointed once again at the quality of the food at Applebee’s. My wife’s Orange Chicken not only came with without any sauce, but the waiter also forgot to bring the sauce on the side that he had promised us. It wasn’t until we complained that he came out with the sauce. The sauce that he brought us though was yellow and didn’t seem to have the same flavor as the sauce that was suppose to come with the Orange Chicken. My Chicken Fried Chicken was good, but didn’t have enough gravy on it.
Being from Texas, I love my iced tea. In my opinion that only way to serve tea is in the form of Unsweetened and pre-sweetened. It’s only common sense, as well and physics, that sugar just doesn’t dissolve well in cold liquids, so if you want your tea sweet, you have to stir and stir and stir. Even with all that stirring, you will still be left with unsweetened tea that is only slightly less bitter than the original. So, I have to take off points to any restaurant that does not have to good judgment to make two kinds of tea.
After about a dozen visits to Applebee’s Restaurant in Nampa, I have no choice but to conclude that their service and food is poor and has little if any chance of improving. My advice would be to find another place to eat at. It’s only a matter of time before a good restaurant. like maybe Chili’s, move into Nampa.
Whitewater Pizza
Whitewater Pizza and Pasta Review
1510 N. Eagle Road at Fairview AveMeridian, Idaho 83642
I had been looking forward to eating at Whitewater for some time. It seems that there are an abundance of pizza parlors in the Boise area. However, most all of them offer up the very same boring, unimaginative choices. I had heard that Whitewater had some of the best pizza in the Boise area. Taking that as a personal challenge, I decided to try out Whitewater to determine if their pizza did indeed deserve this reputation.
It was a Tuesday evening at Whitewater Pizza and Pasta. My wife and I were only one of only 3 other tables that were occupied with hungry patrons. We eagerly awaited our server with our menus, which we hoped would offer up visual delights which would lead to gastronomic ecstasies.
As we so often find in the many Restaurants that we visit, the menu is the part of the dining experience that is overlooked. The dining experience starts with the menu and the menu is what is supposed to entice the patron and wet their appetite. We are visual creatures, especially men, and need that visual stimulation in order to get a good overall picture of what we desire to eat. It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words, which is all the more true when it comes to menus.
All that to say that we were disappointed to find that Whitewater as well had succumbed to the problem. However, putting that aside, we placed our order and settled in for what we hoped was a wonderful dining experience. We had our 8 month old daughter with us and we wanted to offer her some food as well, so we asked the waiter for a bread stick for her. The waiters braces glistened in the soft sun light as he said; “sure, I will be happy to bring her a bread stick.”
My wife ordered spaghetti and I ordered their newest pizza creation. I can’t recall the name of the pizza, but it came with the interesting ingredients of potatoes and a garlic sauce instead of the traditional red sauce. About 5 minutes after we placed the order, the waiter re-appeared to tell me that they were all out of potatoes, so I had to change my order to the “Hot Hawaiian.”
Our meals finally arrived and we prepared to dig in, though we wondered what had happened to the bread stick that the waiter had promised that he would bring our little girl. My pizza was good, but after being set to eat the potato pizza, it just didn’t have the impact that it might have had. I will withhold final judgment on their pizzas being some of the best until I have had a chance to sample more. However, so far, I would have to say that theirs is at least among the best. Though I would still have to give the designation for being the best pizza place to “Flying Pie.” I sampled my wife’s spaghetti and was sorely disappointed. The sauce tasted like it had come from a jar.
The thing that will stand out the most about our visit to Whitewater will be the service that we received. To say that it was poor would be the nicest thing that I could say about it. We never did receive the bread stick for our baby. We were charged separately for the bread that was supposed to be included at no charge in my wife’s meal. We had asked for extra napkins, that the waiter said that he would bring out, but never did. I did not want the salad that came with my meal (I ordered the personal pizza, which came with a salad), so I asked the waiter if my wife could have it instead. He replied that this would not be a problem, but when we got the check, we had been charged for a side salad.
In conclusion I would have to say that the food so far is a little better than average, with extra points for creativity. The service though was dismal, which I hope that Whitewater will address. While I understand that everyone can have a bad day, this waiter should definitely be retrained and re-evaluated. Good customer service is the only real thing that will get customers in your door and keep them coming back. Likewise, poor customer service will drive them away.
1510 N. Eagle Road at Fairview AveMeridian, Idaho 83642
I had been looking forward to eating at Whitewater for some time. It seems that there are an abundance of pizza parlors in the Boise area. However, most all of them offer up the very same boring, unimaginative choices. I had heard that Whitewater had some of the best pizza in the Boise area. Taking that as a personal challenge, I decided to try out Whitewater to determine if their pizza did indeed deserve this reputation.
It was a Tuesday evening at Whitewater Pizza and Pasta. My wife and I were only one of only 3 other tables that were occupied with hungry patrons. We eagerly awaited our server with our menus, which we hoped would offer up visual delights which would lead to gastronomic ecstasies.
As we so often find in the many Restaurants that we visit, the menu is the part of the dining experience that is overlooked. The dining experience starts with the menu and the menu is what is supposed to entice the patron and wet their appetite. We are visual creatures, especially men, and need that visual stimulation in order to get a good overall picture of what we desire to eat. It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words, which is all the more true when it comes to menus.
All that to say that we were disappointed to find that Whitewater as well had succumbed to the problem. However, putting that aside, we placed our order and settled in for what we hoped was a wonderful dining experience. We had our 8 month old daughter with us and we wanted to offer her some food as well, so we asked the waiter for a bread stick for her. The waiters braces glistened in the soft sun light as he said; “sure, I will be happy to bring her a bread stick.”
My wife ordered spaghetti and I ordered their newest pizza creation. I can’t recall the name of the pizza, but it came with the interesting ingredients of potatoes and a garlic sauce instead of the traditional red sauce. About 5 minutes after we placed the order, the waiter re-appeared to tell me that they were all out of potatoes, so I had to change my order to the “Hot Hawaiian.”
Our meals finally arrived and we prepared to dig in, though we wondered what had happened to the bread stick that the waiter had promised that he would bring our little girl. My pizza was good, but after being set to eat the potato pizza, it just didn’t have the impact that it might have had. I will withhold final judgment on their pizzas being some of the best until I have had a chance to sample more. However, so far, I would have to say that theirs is at least among the best. Though I would still have to give the designation for being the best pizza place to “Flying Pie.” I sampled my wife’s spaghetti and was sorely disappointed. The sauce tasted like it had come from a jar.
The thing that will stand out the most about our visit to Whitewater will be the service that we received. To say that it was poor would be the nicest thing that I could say about it. We never did receive the bread stick for our baby. We were charged separately for the bread that was supposed to be included at no charge in my wife’s meal. We had asked for extra napkins, that the waiter said that he would bring out, but never did. I did not want the salad that came with my meal (I ordered the personal pizza, which came with a salad), so I asked the waiter if my wife could have it instead. He replied that this would not be a problem, but when we got the check, we had been charged for a side salad.
In conclusion I would have to say that the food so far is a little better than average, with extra points for creativity. The service though was dismal, which I hope that Whitewater will address. While I understand that everyone can have a bad day, this waiter should definitely be retrained and re-evaluated. Good customer service is the only real thing that will get customers in your door and keep them coming back. Likewise, poor customer service will drive them away.
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