The restaurants we dine at and foods we eat are very personal.
Everyone has their own taste. Some of us focus on the food itself (sushi, italian, pub/tavern, etc.), others on the volume (larger/smaller portions, all you can eat) or the cost (dollar menu versus sit down $$$$), while still others look for the ambience of the restaurant surroundings (waterfront decks in good weather, historic locations, modern, theme, etc.).
Like almost everything in life, it’s what you like and what works for you. Some folks we know like diner food, yet others won’t even enter a restaurant if they can’t get something better than they can make at home.
But we all want a clean restaurant, good food and good service, in a timely manner.
Having experimented quite a bit, admittedly have our local favorites, but we also take time to try new places to support local business and find out what else is available.
Finding the best restaurant for you may not be as daunting as you may think. One way we’ve found that works is not just looking at reviews, but also listening carefully to other’s opinions about their restaurant experiences, sifting through why they like or don’t like a particular place they went to. Using this strategy, we can normally discern if a restaurant is one we’d like.
We follow several protocols when dining.
- First we try to research upfront the restaurant itself, looking for good reviews. With websites and social apps on your phone like Yelp and TripAdvisor, it’s a lot easier than it used to be to find out what a place is like before you go. Always check out the reviews. Always look at the negative reviews carefully because you’ll see sometimes a bad experience was the diner’s fault, not the restaurant’s fault.
- Try something typical, something exotic, something . If a restaurant is known for a particular dish, you’re almost obligated. If they have something that is out of the ordinary, you may be pleasantly surprised, we certainly have.
- Look for new places. As humans, we tend to get stuck in a rut with our favorites, especially if the experience is always good. We like to be adventurous and we have been rewarded almost every time. (Note – with Protocol #1 above, the negatives should be few and far between). Sometimes, like with Jimmy’s Old Town Tavern, we go random.
One thing we always do though is try a restaurant a second time, especially if something went awry. Sometimes a restaurant just has a bad day, so rather than judge them or one of their staff on one experience, we go a second time to see if it’s any different. More often than not, we’ve been pleasantly surprised.
It’s always important that if you have an issue with something, be very kind and explain what you feel is not up to a proper standard. Almost every restaurant owner/manager we’ve had that discussion with has been incredibly accommodating, some even offering us a free meal. We have more than one favorite haunt that has made a mistake and rectified it with more than what we would’ve asked for. Of course if you’re a regular, they tend to work harder to maintain your loyalty.