What's Your Biggest Pet Peeve About Drinking Wine In Restaurants?
Hey, I may work restaurants, and because of that I also eat out far more often than the average citizen; and so I have my own pet peeves. My biggest? When you go to a hoity-toity dive and are presented a big book full of the "hottest" names in winemaking, many of which you never heard of. That in itself doesn't bug me (I love hot, new wines); but what does bug me is wine lists that do not give you a hint in the way of descriptions as to what the wines taste like, what they're all about, or why they're so cool. Why am I always forced to refer to servers (with their shaky knowledge), sommeliers (whom I am deathly afraid will try to "sell" me) or condescending managers (I naturally look like an idiot) for information?
Anyway, that's mine. What's yours?
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Jack & Karen Erhart on -
Wine served in the wrong type of glass for the type of wine served!
Here I live and dine out in the middle of California's fastest growing wine region, Paso Robles CA, and there are still restaurants in town that serve every wine they serve in these little half sized wine glasses, for every wine type they serve. Drives me nuts!!
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Permalink Reply by Randy Caparoso on -
Yeah, wrong glasses often make me want to slit my wrists, wine nerd that I am. I don't mind it, though, in small, super-casual joints where obviously the ten buck meal is not going to get you Spiegelau. But in pricey, "fine" restaurants? No excuses!
Very recently I was in a "reputable" place where I ordered a Beaujolais, and I asked for Burgundy glasses in place of the Bordeaux stems they brought to the table. They actually told me that their Burgundies were reserved only for guests who buy wines costing at least $75 (I ordered a grand cru Julienas, priced "only" at $55). Of course, I politely asked if they could make an exception, and they politely said "no." Aaaaaarrrrgggghhhhh!
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Permalink Reply by JoAnn Chisholm Dueno on -
I am with you on that Randy, Jack and Karen! Nothing worse than going to a "fine dining" establishment and having them serve your overly priced wine in bottle thick glasses!! Wrong on so many levels.
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Permalink Reply by Joshua Day on -
i'd have to agree 100%
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Permalink Reply by Amy DeCoux on -
Seriously...
It's so lame when restaurants serve wine in the "table glasses" (ie crappy Ikea cups trying to pull of the glass look) and say... "That's how they do it in Italy." Oy..
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Permalink Reply by Smoke on -
Mine is overpriced wine lists. I have the opportunity to travel across the US and eat out in the finest restaurants on a regular basis. It is appalling when lists are so over priced. My game is to find the one or two wines that are "mis-priced" somehow and a great value.
Restaurants who get it, give value to their customers base drive additional wine sales and repeat customers. Restaurants who don't get my business only when I have no other choice and they annoy me along the way.
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Permalink Reply by Randy Caparoso on
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Agreed. Somewhere along the line this must change. Interestingly enough, I just penned a column called "Is Retail Pricing in Restaurants Possible?," going into an upcoming issue of Sommelier Journal (www.sommelierjournal.com). I won't go into pros and cons here (hey, buy the book!), but suffice to say there are definite pros that most restaurateurs ignore.
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Permalink Reply by Joann Farrell Quinn on -
Likewise, my biggest pet peeve is asking a server, sommelier or manger/owner of a restaurant to tell me about a wine and have them tell me basics like I am a moron. (Things such as, 'that is a RED zinfandel, not white zinfandel like you usually see on a menu'... that has to be one of the worst, and sadly, I have heard it more than once!)
Being knowledgeable about wine to at least a certain degree (I hope!), I find it insulting (and bad for business) that restaurant staff seems to always assume that the customer knows little or nothing about what they are ordering. Because of this, I have learned to tailor my questions to specifics, but I believe it is really sad when you have to do this to garner a reasonable response. And of course, there are many staffers that just do not know enough to tell you much more than 'that is RED zinfandel...'
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Permalink Reply by Randy Caparoso on
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I feel your pain, Joann... I supposed it's because you're a woman... my prob is I look like a dorky minority case (okay, so I do), but somehow I learned to control my compulsion to pick up my fork and stab my servers long ago...
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Permalink Reply by Jack & Karen Erhart on
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Hum! A fork might get their attention! LOL!
Note to self......use tools.
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Permalink Reply by Marlene on -
Randy, this is MY pet peeve blog from Huff Po. As a former sommeliere (that's French for female somm) I have my own peeves.
Notes from a Sommeliere -- Pet Peeves
Posted August 6, 2008 | 04:51 PM (EST)
Lately there has been a deal of bitching and moaning http://www.slate.com/id/2191912/ about restaurant waitstaff and wine service.
Having been on both ends of the wine bottle, I can tell you that the feeling is often mutual. If you ask restaurant wine staff for their pet peeves about customers, these are some of the things you'd hear:
They talk dry, but drink sweet.
People say, "I want a nice, dry white wine with these soft shell crabs." But when you bring them a tangy Sancerre and they taste it, they wrinkle their nose and make it clear that they what they want is something much sweeter. Like white Zinfandel.
Speaking of white Zinfandel...
I cannot tell you how many times I've heard, "how come you don't have any white Zinfandel on the wine list?" I'll tell you why: Zinfandel is a red wine.
"And bring me an ice bucket."
Most white wine served straight from the refrigerator is already way too cold. You need to let it warm up for a few minutes to be able to taste it properly. Asking for an ice bucket when the wine is already the temperature of a frozen ice pop does not make you look cool. It tells everyone that you are a wine newbie.
Sommeliers don't have to look like dead presidents.
Nowadays, your sommelier many very well be young, female, a person of color or all of the above. So, please don't ask me to send out the sommelier. I am the sommelier. (Actually, I am the sommeliere, but we need not go into the gender of French nouns.)
"How did you become a somm?"
I studied for it. In my previous careers, no one ever asked me how I got an MBA in Finance or an MA in Linguistics. But show them you know something about wine, and they think you had a private audience with the god Bacchus.
"I don't want to sound like a wine snob, but..."
When the good old boy finally figures out that his sommelier is a woman, he will often feel the need to show off his wine erudition. Sorry fellas, it does not impress me, especially when you mispronounce Duval Leroy. (No, it's not Lee-Roy!)
Brand name Champagne.
The reason that the Champagnes you see in the media are the most expensive is not necessarily because they are the best. It's because they spend a fortune on advertising. If you really know Champagne, you know that some of the best are the ones you never heard of. (Henriot Brut Millesime, anyone?)
"I ordered Burgundy, how come it's white?"
Your burgundy tie may be purple, but the Burgundy region of France makes wine in two colors, red and white. (For those of you keeping score at home, the red is Pinot Noir and the white is Chardonnay).
Speaking of Chardonnay...
When I suggest a good unoaked Oregon Chardonnay to go with a seafood dish, I often hear, "I don't like Chardonnay." Buy a clue: What you don't like is the cheap, oak chip-soaked, artificially sweetened Chardonnay that you've been drinking. Try spending a few more dollars per bottle and you'll find that you like Chardonnay just fine.
Take your time ordering wine.
But don't linger over the wine list for half an hour. Tell me what you like in a wine and I will suggest something for you.
Order an expensive bottle and send it back.
Nothing says "arrogant poseur" like someone who orders an expensive bottle, takes a big slug and sends it back, claiming the wine is "off." Especially if it's not.
Smell the cork.
When you rent a bicycle, do you smell the seat? If I hand you a cork and it's mushy, then you should smell it. Otherwise, just finger it and put it down.
"I'll pour the wine myself."
That's fine for most somms, as it takes the pressure off us. But don't whine that your servers neglected you and leave
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