The Incredibly Bad Service Award Goes To….
…il Ristorante di Giorgio Baldi in Santa Monica Canyon. I used to go to this beachside boite all the time, but hadn’t been for a few years until this past Saturday night. Always got the grilled langostines which are off the menu, and this night was no exception. Aside from having to wait for our reservation, my friend and I sat down for an anticipated great meal. The waiter was a bit surly and to the point, but hey, I’m a New Yorker, so no big deal.
But after the appetizers, when my friend asked for lemon to squeeze on his fish, things went severely south. Mr. Surly said, “You don’t need any lemon. There’s already some on the fish.” And promptly jetted off. WTF? My langostines were served with a piece of lemon on a fork, so I handed it over to him. We had wine, dessert….and then it was time to go. While he went to get the car from the valet, I hit the ladies’ room.
Then, the real crazy stuff happened. The waiter ran after my friend outside and complained about the tip he was left, which was about 19% of the hefty tab. My friend, being from out of town, had doubled the 9.75% LA tax. And this wasn’t enough for this freak? After he refused to give a guest a piece of lemon? Unbelievable….
