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31 replies

What do you do about poor wine service?

J jburman82Member
On friday night my and I went out with another couple to the Oakwood Grill in Palm Beach Gardens. They are are a wine friendly restaraunt and have a pretty good wine list. We ordered a bottle of Nickel & Nickel Syrah for about $80. We were sitting at the bar and after trying it I told the bartender to pour it and I looked away to continue my conversation. When I looked at our glasses I saw that she had poured the entire bottle in one serving. Dont get me wrong, I like a big pour when ordering by the glass. However, when I buy the whole bottle I like small pours to allow the wine to open up in the glass as I swirl it. I am not a confrontational person and didnt say anything to her or the manager. I dont blame her, I blame the restaraunt for poor wine training. When we ordered our second bottle I told her we werent ready to start it and to open it and leave it so I could pour it myself. I know that the service wont change unless someone brings it up but I hate to be a pain in the butt. Should I have said something or did I handle it correctly? I am interested in everyone opinion.
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W wine+artMember
I take a very simple approach to service issues. You are the customer/client. You have the right to respectfully inform the waiter of your wishes if they are within reason, always.

I would have simply told the waiter of my request, ask if we could perhaps pour all of the glasses in a decanter, then pour again at levels you are happy with.

There are certain times when you just know you might need to pay a little more attention to the wine service, and other times you expect the server to be well versed.

I would have tried to inform of my wishes without bringing undue attention to her, unless required. Smile
G gregtMember
quote:
my and I . . . ordered a bottle of Nickel & Nickel


And then you ordered a second bottle. Seems like a lot of duplication that night.

Anyhow - she poured the entire bottle at once? It's weird but don't assume it was all her decision. I went to a restaurant with a friend and my wife and we ordered a bottle. Wife gets up to go to the bathroom, the other guy stands to let her out, we're in a conversation so I'm not watching the table, and the waiter comes around the side and fills all three glasses to the brim. We asked him what the hell he did that for. He says the owner wants the glasses filled like that.

Apparently people ordering by the glass complained when they got glasses partly filled. They don't get their Coke or mixed drinks like that and didn't want their wine like that. So the owner bought small glasses and fills them to the brim. And this in "wine savvy" NYC. The place does great business too.
S sandyfitzgeraldMember
My answer is probably not as toned down as Wiml's and W+A. It is drawn from a lot of experience.

1. ToO many establishments have "Flip that Table" as a high priority amoung its staff. Overpours is a proven and often used technique of accomplishing that goal. Never fail to consider that mgt was not dicating the pour you received! I threaded, not that long ago, about the horrible wine service I received at the Joel Palmer House, by the owner's wife, in Dayton, OR. This place knows wine and understands service, but she didn't give a sh--!

2. There are too many good restaurants around to waste one's time at one which doesn't properly train its staff, or doesn't give a sh--.. NEXT!
W wine+artMember
quote:
Originally posted by Sandy Fitzgerald:

My answer is probably not as toned down as Wiml's and W+A. It is drawn from a lot of experience.



Big Grin

Sandy, I understand. I spend well over 6 figures a year on corporate dinners, and rarely if ever darken the door of corporate or table turning restaurants. I also tend to set the tone very early on what type of service is excepted, and always reward well for holding a table for hours at a time, and request waiters by name when I reserve the table. It is rare if any detail escapes my eye, as like you, I have far more experience than I wish sometimes.

I know nothing about Oakwood Grill, and assumed we had a waiter here in need of direction. Wink

It sounds to me, we are much alike. Smile
B bobbycMember
What really annoys me is when the pour is done like that to get you to buy another bottle!

Five of us recently went out to St. John's in London and we started with a bottle of white. The waitress proceeded to pour four glasses before getting to mine, and all I got was a miniscule pour. Her first response was, "Can I bring you another bottle?"

Hell no!! If you can't pour out five glasses from a bottle, there is something wrong. I ordered a white by the glass before moving onto red. But I did give her a piece of my mind!
flwinoflwinoMember
quote:
Originally posted by jburman82:
On friday night my and I went out with another couple to the Oakwood Grill in Palm Beach Gardens. They are are a wine friendly restaraunt and have a pretty good wine list. We ordered a bottle of Nickel & Nickel Syrah for about $80. We were sitting at the bar and after trying it I told the bartender to pour it and I looked away to continue my conversation. When I looked at our glasses I saw that she had poured the entire bottle in one serving. Dont get me wrong, I like a big pour when ordering by the glass. However, when I buy the whole bottle I like small pours to allow the wine to open up in the glass as I swirl it. I am not a confrontational person and didnt say anything to her or the manager. I dont blame her, I blame the restaraunt for poor wine training. When we ordered our second bottle I told her we werent ready to start it and to open it and leave it so I could pour it myself. I know that the service wont change unless someone brings it up but I hate to be a pain in the butt. Should I have said something or did I handle it correctly? I am interested in everyone opinion.


Please describe what she looked like or jer name.

I'll personnally pass this om to John Spoto [owner] who is a friend of ours. Willadvise his comment when received

Otherwise, I watch the server intently on the first pour just to make sure it is correct. I have been know to tell them directly their error, and let me do it from now on.
glennkglennkMember
quote:
Originally posted by bobbyc:
What really annoys me is when the pour is done like that to get you to buy another bottle!

Five of us recently went out to St. John's in London and we started with a bottle of white. The waitress proceeded to pour four glasses before getting to mine, and all I got was a miniscule pour. Her first response was, "Can I bring you another bottle?"

Hell no!! If you can't pour out five glasses from a bottle, there is something wrong. I ordered a white by the glass before moving onto red. But I did give her a piece of my mind!
Hey Bobby, surprised to hear about St. John's. You would think an established place like that would have better service.

We should get together again soon to drink some vino. I’ll hopefully get into that Cos tasting in Feb!
M mitpradikatMember
Here's a question regarding the opposite end of the wine service spectrum. Do you think that a restaurant which prides itself on its wine list and wine service should automatically rinse the decanter with an appropriate wine prior to decanting the wine you ordered? I've been to a couple of wonderful restaurants where the only minor complaint of the evening was that this service was not offered and the server seemed puzzled by what I was asking.
glennkglennkMember
quote:
Originally posted by mitPradikat:
Here's a question regarding the opposite end of the wine service spectrum. Do you think that a restaurant which prides itself on its wine list and wine service should automatically rinse the decanter with an appropriate wine prior to decanting the wine you ordered? I've been to a couple of wonderful restaurants where the only minor complaint of the evening was that this service was not offered and the server seemed puzzled by what I was asking.
Why would you need to rinse the decanter?
D davetongbbpMember
quote:
Originally posted by GlennK:
quote:
Originally posted by mitPradikat:
Here's a question regarding the opposite end of the wine service spectrum. Do you think that a restaurant which prides itself on its wine list and wine service should automatically rinse the decanter with an appropriate wine prior to decanting the wine you ordered? I've been to a couple of wonderful restaurants where the only minor complaint of the evening was that this service was not offered and the server seemed puzzled by what I was asking.
Why would you need to rinse the decanter?

My thoughts too. At any decent restaurant the decanter should be clean and dry.

What wine are they supposed to rinse the decanter with? My nice bottle or whatever by-the-glass crap they have that may have been open 3 days?
S sandyfitzgeraldMember
kca; Good question. I spoke with one of the State Legs at a party over the holidays on this issue. He laughed. As you know right now the fight is over dropping 3.2 beer and allowing the supemarkets to sell regular beer. That is going to be a bruiser for both sides.

Here is part of the problem. Under current rules the Legislators are only allowed to carry 5 bills per year. So someone, with money would have to convince a Leg to carry this as one of his bills. It will have to go through Appropriations for financial impact. If it has a price tag(it will), do you think anyone in the Leg would support it anytime in the near future? If retail is charging X for the bottle and restaurants typically charge 3X for the bottle, the State and muni is losing the differnce in sales tax. No one in the industry is going to support it, so it will have to be done as a purely consumer bill.

Great idea, wrong period of time!
R RothkoMember
I agree that it was poor wine service for the waitress to pour the entire bottle out on the first serve.

Did this impact your decision to buy a second bottle?

In bobbyc's case, it appears that the server deliberately filled up the other four glasses and gave a short pour to bobbyc in order to sell a second bottle. In this case, it doesn't appear to be as blatant. You could chalk it up to poor training.

What I am curious about is whether you think that you might not have ordered that second bottle, but for the server's actions.

I have been at some restaurants where I notice some aggressive bottle pouring before the main course is served. I suspect they do that in order for you to run out of wine as you begin the main course, thereby resulting in the purchase of a second bottle. If you run out of wine when everyone is finishing their meal, you are less likely to go ahead and spring for another bottle.
board-oboard-oMember
quote:
Originally posted by Stefania Wine:
I find the best way to avoid wine service disappointments is as W+A and Sandy say, take charge of the situation and be clear and direct in your expectations.

This is a fairly common one, and I've just gotten into the habit of always telling the server exactly what size pour I'd like.


I watch as the server makes the first pour and signal them to stop pouring early. Sometimes I'll politely tell them we prefer to pour the wine ourselves.
J jburman82Member
Rothko, we were going to order another bottle anyway so it really didnt affect us. Like I said, I really dont think the girl knew any better. She probably thinks that is how she pours wines by the glass so wine by the botte should be the same. What was worse than the big pour was the 45 minutes it took for our hummus appatizer to get out to us.

I also see waiters give heavy pours right before the meal comes and offer another bottle. We ussally decide by how much we want to spend that night. If we dont mind a big bill we get another bottle if we want a smaller one we go by the glass if we run out.
B brashleyMember
quote:
Originally posted by Board-O:
quote:
Originally posted by Stefania Wine:
I find the best way to avoid wine service disappointments is as W+A and Sandy say, take charge of the situation and be clear and direct in your expectations.

This is a fairly common one, and I've just gotten into the habit of always telling the server exactly what size pour I'd like.


I watch as the server makes the first pour and signal them to stop pouring early. Sometimes I'll politely tell them we prefer to pour the wine ourselves.


I always do this ... this has never caused a problem, and I suspect many waitstaff are relieved to be relieved of this duty.
M mitpradikatMember
quote:
Originally posted by GlennK:
quote:
Originally posted by mitPradikat:
Here's a question regarding the opposite end of the wine service spectrum. Do you think that a restaurant which prides itself on its wine list and wine service should automatically rinse the decanter with an appropriate wine prior to decanting the wine you ordered? I've been to a couple of wonderful restaurants where the only minor complaint of the evening was that this service was not offered and the server seemed puzzled by what I was asking.
Why would you need to rinse the decanter?


I had a lengthy discussion about this with some local wine geeks and sommeliers. It seems that the practice of rinsing out the decanter, either with a small amount of the purchased wine or an acceptably similar wine that the restaurant has open, is part of the formal education for sommeliers. The idea, I gather, is that any residual amounts of detergent or the wine previously served in the decanter, or any other off odours or flavours imparted by ambient smells from the kitchen are washed away before my wine goes into the decanter.

Anyway, just wondering. The last time I asked the waiter to do this for me, I got the most bewildered look in response, but they did it anyway.
M mplswineguyMember
I always tell the server I will be pouring the wines myself even if I'm ordering off the restaurant list. 95% of the time I bring my own wine anyway and always bring a wine service. However when traveling abroad I can see where it might be an insult to the restaurant staff but hey you are paying for the food and wine so you should be able to do what you wish.
B bobbycMember
quote:
Originally posted by GlennK:


We should get together again soon to drink some vino. I’ll hopefully get into that Cos tasting in Feb!


Hey Glenn,

We definitely should. I don't think it should be a problem getting into the Cos tasting. It looks like a lot of people are going to drop out after the change of date.

So I'll definitely see you then. After that, we should try to arrange a night out with our better halves!

When do you head back home?
B bobbycMember
quote:
Originally posted by Rothko:
I agree that it was poor wine service for the waitress to pour the entire bottle out on the first serve.

Did this impact your decision to buy a second bottle?

In bobbyc's case, it appears that the server deliberately filled up the other four glasses and gave a short pour to bobbyc in order to sell a second bottle. In this case, it doesn't appear to be as blatant. You could chalk it up to poor training.

What I am curious about is whether you think that you might not have ordered that second bottle, but for the server's actions.

I have been at some restaurants where I notice some aggressive bottle pouring before the main course is served. I suspect they do that in order for you to run out of wine as you begin the main course, thereby resulting in the purchase of a second bottle. If you run out of wine when everyone is finishing their meal, you are less likely to go ahead and spring for another bottle.


The white was to accompany our starters. We were going to move onto reds after a glass or so of white. So no.

If we run out of wine towards the end of our main course, I generally try to get a feel for what everyone wants to do. If we want another bottle, I will normally chose a different bottle. I almost never order the same bottle twice. It is nice to try as many different wines as possible! Smile

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