Four years into my restaurant reviewing, yelp finally recognized my contributions to the service. I have been made elite in Chicago. It feels good because there was a period of years where my reviews were not being seen- because all my reviews are 5 star yelp was filtering them out of public view. I was not trusted because I had no negative reviews. Many times it crossed my mind to switch my style and give negative reviews- but I stuck to my guns. In celebration of staying true to yourself, excerpts from two recent reviews, where I focus attention on the waitstaff:
Tavernita– Server was new and awkward but in a disarming way. Maybe the room needed to be sexed down. Speaking of the room- I asked my girlfriend what do you like and what do you hate. She has the good taste. She said she liked the wood floors and the lighting. She hated the weird chess scene masking the private dining room and the knick knacks separating the dining room from barcito and the kitchen towels as napkins. For record, I liked the upholstery but I don’t have good taste. And I disliked how the drink names are prominently written above the bar but I reckon its a sales pitch.
Server awkwardly addressed girlfriend and not me, but perhaps because of the angle of the table, or perhaps because she is beautiful and I was dressed in a Deadliest Catch in memoriam Captain Phil teeshirt and black hoodie. You know how folks react to those hoodies. I thought it was weird that food runner was on Madonna style headset short band radio but girlfriend reassured me that it was natural.
West Town Tavern– I live down the street and am eating my way around the neighborhood on a circular path- stopped in for fried chicken Monday and were greeted by owner- always a good sign. Girlfriend and I waited ten minutes for a table. She had a delicious dry cider and I had iced tea at bar. We sat in the back and I had a view of whole dining room. The waiting team was like 3 superheroes in black- a shaggy haired sheep dog guy, a Shante You Stay pompadour guy, and our waitress in round owl glasses. They were a cool trio.
The busser offers wheat or white bread and the butter is terrific. We ordered and shared the anti pasti plate- cured meat, olives, pesto, goat cheese, toast, it was a perfect starter. We also got fried calamari from Rhode Island. I got to talk about Point Judith where the fishing boats haul in the squid. There’s a seafood restaurant there with a pirate’s treasure chest full of stupid toys. Its a stupid childhood memory.