Worst event on local dining scene this summer?

[Robin Garr]

Hey, everybody! What do you think was the worst thing that happened on the local dining scene this summer? A favorite store closing? A displeasing trend that just popped up? A chef retired? What (if anything) made you sad this summer?

It didn't actually happen this summer, it's been happening for the last couple of years but my wife and I really hate the changes that have happened to Equus. It used to be a very convenient and comfortable place for a nice dinner where you could actually hold a conversation while enjoying great food. Now it's morphed into nothing more than a loud sports bar! Everywhere you sit there are televisions in your face and the food has become bar food instead of what it was and the noise level has risen considerably!

I realize that Dean now wants people who want a nicer dinner to go to go to American Place but it's somewhat stuffy in my opinion and certainly does not have the same fire but that the old Equus had.

[Robin Garr]

I hear you, Mark. I like Equus and I loved the old Jack's. I get why merging them made sense for Dean & Co., but was a little sad when the flatscreen TVs came into the more elegant dining rooms. Still, I can't honestly say I feel as upset about it as you do. I don't really see Corbett's as "stuffy," either, but hey, that's why they make 31 flavors of ice cream!

Anyone got any terrible food things that happened THIS summer? I need to come up with some specific horrors for an article, and while the closing of Joe's OK Bayou was sad, it doesn't quite rise to that level for me.

The closing of El Camino was a little shocking

[Robin Garr]

The closing of El Camino was a little shocking

Yeah, that was a little more of a shock. Wasn't it spring, though? My constraints here are firmly "summer." Also, wasn't El Camino supposed to reopen elsewhere? Or is that starting to look like one of those "I have to close but I don't want to admit it so I'm telling you that we're moving" situations?

The closing of El Camino was a little shocking

Yeah, that was a little more of a shock. Wasn't it spring, though? My constraints here are firmly "summer." Also, wasn't El Camino supposed to reopen elsewhere? Or is that starting to look like one of those "I have to close but I don't want to admit it so I'm telling you that we're moving" situations?

They closed mid July and were supposed to reopen. I've heard rumors of a Germantown location, but that was back in July also.

El Camino closing. That was a big loss for Louisville dining scene. They spent a ton of money renovating the space, it had an amazing patio, and it was the only place doing Rick Bayless-level Mexican cuisine. Plus, killer tiki drinks. BIG loss.

Guy Fieri opened a sham of a restaurant in a sham of a tourist attraction. Does September count?

It didn't actually happen this summer, it's been happening for the last couple of years but my wife and I really hate the changes that have happened to Equus. It used to be a very convenient and comfortable place for a nice dinner where you could actually hold a conversation while enjoying great food. Now it's morphed into nothing more than a loud sports bar! Everywhere you sit there are televisions in your face and the food has become bar food instead of what it was and the noise level has risen considerably!

I realize that Dean now wants people who want a nicer dinner to go to go to American Place but it's somewhat stuffy in my opinion and certainly does not have the same fire but that the old Equus had.

When the recession happened Dean did take measures to keep people in the seats and that included the TVs. The TVs are now off in the two dining rooms 80% of the time- they are only turned on for Louisville and Kentucky games.
The menus were merged so you can indeed get bar food, but also Dean's wonderful Filet Mignon, Halibut, etc.
So please come and join us on a non game night, request the old Equus room if you wish, and enjoy a lovely non-TV interrupted dinner.

[Robin Garr]

When the recession happened Dean did take measures to keep people in the seats and that included the TVs. The TVs are now off in the two dining rooms 80% of the time- they are only turned on for Louisville and Kentucky games.
The menus were merged so you can indeed get bar food, but also Dean's wonderful Filet Mignon, Halibut, etc.
So please come and join us on a non game night, request the old Equus room if you wish, and enjoy a lovely non-TV interrupted dinner.

On an extremely person note, my father-in-law, in town from Hong Kong (only able to visit every few years or so), was locked in the men's restroom at Finn's Southern Kitchen while we had the whole family out for dinner. I won't go into all the gory details, but the lock had to be hammered in and a 48" pry bar used to enventually free him. The whole process took about 30 minutes and was a disturbance to the entire place, not to mention a major pain to the 10+ folks in our party. At least he had a great story to take back home, however he was very hesitant to lock any more restaurant bathroom doors the remainder of the time he was here.

I felt that the manager at Finn's handled the situation acceptably, but far from stellar. Unfortunately on the way out of the place a few major problems reared their head's (waitress forgot to change for drinks...we thought they were comp'ed...and she simply returned the check and the cash that had been paid and said, "I made a mistake. This isn't enough." ...and left.).

All of which is a shame, b/c I thought Finn's had some excellent fried chicken and mac-n-cheese, along with quite possibly the best collard greens I have ever tatsed.

DD

locked in the men's restroom at Finn's

Wow. Honestly, I can't believe your whole meal wasn't comp'd!

[Robin Garr]

Wow. Honestly, I can't believe your whole meal wasn't comp'd!

I was thinking the same thing!

Me too. A portion was, but I thought the proper thing would have been the whole party's meal comp'ed and everyone in the place offered free dessert. Trust me, everyone @ Finn's that night was somewhat disrupted due to the malfunctioning door. Our table was offered dessert, but we had already planned to hit up Dairy Kastle.

While I thought things could have been handled better, I was not overly displeased...until the final few moments we were there. That is when things went downhill quickly.

Oh well...things happen. D

From the other topic BY FAR the worst recent dining news for me is learning that Royals removing hot chicken* from their menu. A hot chicken restaurant taking hot chicken off the menu in favor of tenders, chicken sandwiches and tofu is just really depressing. I'm sure those things are good, but they are not hot chicken. 400 degrees, Prince's, Bolton's, and Hattie B's make hot chicken work. And I thought Royals was actually better hot chicken than Hattie B's, which has lines out the door every time I drive by in Nashville. People were saying the Middletown Joella's is better than the Frankfort location, so I'll give them a shot, if only to show my support for hot chicken. Mainly I am suprised to see this happen given we had a hot chicken festival last year. It just seemed like hot chicken was viable here.

I should also second El Camino's apparently permanent closing as a big loss. I always enjoyed my food and drinks there, and was looking forward to the Germantown location.

*hot chicken defined as intensely spicy fried chicken quarters served on white bread with pickle slices