25 replies to this topic

[Wilfrid]

I liked this place very much. It's just in the wrong part of the wrong state for me.

[menton1]

I liked this place very much. It's just in the wrong part of the wrong state for me.

So what's the right part of your wrong state?

[Wilfrid]

Whichever part is closest to the right state.

[menton1]

Whichever part is closest to the right state.

Sounds like a state of minimal reality...

[Wilfrid]

All I am saying is that it's too far to go for dinner (from where I am, obviously)- which is a pity.

[Rail Paul]

We had reservations at Fromagerie today at 2.30. I was surprised that they would begin a reservation at 2.30, but it worked nicely into our schedule and it was on OpenTable. We confirmed the 2.30pm time yesterday

Dee received a call from Fromagerie today that they were rescheduling our reservation to 1.45 or 2pm, which I found curious. The ostensible reason was they had to prepare for the dinner service. My guess is they had few bookings past 1.30 or 1.45, and felt it unreasonable to hold and pay staff, etc until 3.30 or 4pm.

Their OT site still shows 2.30 reservations available tomorrow, so I'd suspect they decided not to stay open today for just a few guests.

Pretty sleazy, I'd say. We canceled.

[rozrapp]

We had reservations at Fromagerie today at 2.30. I was surprised that they would begin a reservation at 2.30, but it worked nicely into our schedule and it was on OpenTable. We confirmed the 2.30pm time yesterday

Dee received a call from Fromagerie today that they were rescheduling our reservation to 1.45 or 2pm, which I found curious. The ostensible reason was they had to prepare for the dinner service. My guess is they had few bookings past 1.30 or 1.45, and felt it unreasonable to hold and pay staff, etc until 3.30 or 4pm.Their OT site still shows 2.30 reservations available tomorrow, so I'd suspect they decided not to stay open today for just a few guests.

Pretty sleazy, I'd say. We canceled.

That doesn't make sense to me. Unless they bring in an entirely new staff for dinner, wouldn't the staff that is there during lunch be the ones who prepare the tables for dinner service?

Whatever the reason, I would have done exactly what you did -- cancel. But to be honest, my one dinner experience there after Burke took over was just o.k., so I've not been inclined to go back. In my view, the food we had was not anywhere close to caliber of Nicholas.

[Rail Paul]

We had reservations at Fromagerie today at 2.30. I was surprised that they would begin a reservation at 2.30, but it worked nicely into our schedule and it was on OpenTable. We confirmed the 2.30pm time yesterday

Dee received a call from Fromagerie today that they were rescheduling our reservation to 1.45 or 2pm, which I found curious. The ostensible reason was they had to prepare for the dinner service. My guess is they had few bookings past 1.30 or 1.45, and felt it unreasonable to hold and pay staff, etc until 3.30 or 4pm.Their OT site still shows 2.30 reservations available tomorrow, so I'd suspect they decided not to stay open today for just a few guests.

Pretty sleazy, I'd say. We canceled.

That doesn't make sense to me. Unless they bring in an entirely new staff for dinner, wouldn't the staff that is there during lunch be the ones who prepare the tables for dinner service?

Whatever the reason, I would have done exactly what you did -- cancel. But to be honest, my one dinner experience there after Burke took over was just o.k., so I've not been inclined to go back. In my view, the food we had was not anywhere close to caliber of Nicholas.

Thanks, Roz. It certainly seemed odd to me. It's possible David Burke's Fromagerie puts staff on unpaid time between 2 and 5 (etc) if there's no activity. Otherwise, they'd have people on the payroll clock from, say, 11.30 am to 9.30pm. It's possible that giving people time off stops the clock for wage and hours, overtime, etc, but that's beyond my expertise.

The fact they have the 2pm and 2.30pm lunch slots available on OpenTable tomorrow and Friday suggests that they could serve lunch, etc and still get the room and kitchen prepared for dinner service with people on the payroll. That points back to my guess they had few bookings and decided to screw off the few reservations. And, maybe move those FOH people to unpaid time.

I've not been very impressed by Fromagerie, based on two visits. In contrast, I was initially very impressed with several visits to Nicholas, but my last two visits have been disappointing. I wrote about one up thread, and decided not to post about my other visit. (Edited for clarity)

Edited by Rail Paul, 21 July 2011 - 01:28 AM.

[rozrapp]

I'm surprised and sorry to hear that you've had two disappointing meals at Nicholas, Paul. We haven't been there in quite a long time. In fact, now that I think about it, the last time was September '09. I had dinner on my own in the bar room when my husband was out of town. Dave Santos was still chef de cuisine, and the food was excellent.

[picnicchef]

We had reservations at Fromagerie today at 2.30. I was surprised that they would begin a reservation at 2.30, but it worked nicely into our schedule and it was on OpenTable. We confirmed the 2.30pm time yesterday

Dee received a call from Fromagerie today that they were rescheduling our reservation to 1.45 or 2pm, which I found curious. The ostensible reason was they had to prepare for the dinner service. My guess is they had few bookings past 1.30 or 1.45, and felt it unreasonable to hold and pay staff, etc until 3.30 or 4pm.Their OT site still shows 2.30 reservations available tomorrow, so I'd suspect they decided not to stay open today for just a few guests.

Pretty sleazy, I'd say. We canceled.

That doesn't make sense to me. Unless they bring in an entirely new staff for dinner, wouldn't the staff that is there during lunch be the ones who prepare the tables for dinner service?

Whatever the reason, I would have done exactly what you did -- cancel. But to be honest, my one dinner experience there after Burke took over was just o.k., so I've not been inclined to go back. In my view, the food we had was not anywhere close to caliber of Nicholas.

Thanks, Roz. It certainly seemed odd to me. It's possible David Burke's Fromagerie puts staff on unpaid time between 2 and 5 (etc) if there's no activity. Otherwise, they'd have people on the payroll clock from, say, 11.30 am to 9.30pm. It's possible that giving people time off stops the clock for wage and hours, overtime, etc, but that's beyond my expertise.

The fact they have the 2pm and 2.30pm lunch slots available on OpenTable tomorrow and Friday suggests that they could serve lunch, etc and still get the room and kitchen prepared for dinner service with people on the payroll. That points back to my guess they had few bookings and decided to screw off the few reservations. And, maybe move those FOH people to unpaid time.

I've not been very impressed by Fromagerie, based on two visits. In contrast, I was initially very impressed with several visits to Nicholas, but my last two visits have been disappointing. I wrote about one up thread, and decided not to post about my other visit. (Edited for clarity)

Just my two cents, but I wonder if like little Picnic there are two staffs, one for lunch and one for dinner. If that is the case, then, just a guess, if you were the only rezzie at 2:30 they would be holding staff just to lose money. A lunch for two is not going to cover the expense of the chef, the waiter, in their case, perhaps a bus buy and a hostess. So, from a financial viewpoint, they might have rules to cancel the latest lunches if there are not enough rezzies. I know that even evenings, if my last rezzie is at 8 and someone calls for nine, the hostess asks me first whether or not to accept the seating. Open Table doesn't allow for those decisions to be made on the spot. Just my guess as to what happened.

[Rail Paul]

Rosie notes that Fromagerie will be the featured restaurant on Anne Burrell's new show this week.

Rosie

It does seem curious that an organization like Burke's, where he opens restaurants on a regular basis, and probably has hundreds of employees in all, needs to go outside. However, Mr Burke has always been an astute user of TV and the media, so it could be another way to expand his brand.