[Member-organized event - 2006 Heartland Gathering]

I just heard about this tonight. Count me in. Has a hotel discount deal been arranged/likely to be, or should I just go ahead and pick one of the three?

[Sans Souci (Cleveland)]

I will happily answer questions and respond (or not) to criticisms with all the respect and impartiality that I can muster. I hope this might be a refreshing outlet for me. At the very least, I might be able to comment on, if not learn something about the Cleveland scene.

I've always had great food at Snas Souci, but I've been treated so badly by wait staff and most especially the host/hostess/manager out front that I avoid returning as best I can.

It seems the only response they know is we're sorry, but there is nothing we can do about it. Which, to me, is just not acceptable.

I rarely complain at restaurants at all. Once every couple of years would be on the high side. When something awful enough occurs that I do complain, I expect more than patronization, which is less even than I received there.

[Charlie Trotter's]

I have eaten at Trotters, Trio, and Tru. Thought I'd give some thoughts on each, mainly to compare/contrast to Trotters.

Trotters

I found much to agree with in the post that started this thread about Trotters. While I did appreciate much of the food, something about the environment felt totally off. The wait staff somehow crossed the point in being helpful that made us feel bad about what we were 'making' them do.

For example, we had asked for a glass of wine that we had recalled liking. When my wife mentioned that it wasn't as great as we remembered, they immediately assumed the wine had gone bad (I think not), started group tasting the wine to be sore, and then had us switch. This was an exaggerated overreaction for people like us. It seems they expect you to be demanding, which in a way is fine as they should strive for excellence, but somehow it shouldn't seem our fault that they have to go thru the extra effort.

In the same trip to Chicago in which we visited Trotters, we also tried Arun's. Less known, less expensive. Trotters, we'll probably never return to. Arun's was great.

Trio

For me, this was one of the greatest dinners, ever. My wife and I reserved the kitchen table for the 20 course menu. The wait staff was very friendly and, in stark contrast to Trotters, conversational. We felt welcome to ask questions, and weren't afraid we were going to offend by not being an expert on everything. I can't wait to try Alinea. Guess I'll be planning my next Chicago trip around dinner there.

Tru

This was somewhere in the middle for me. Part of the problem is that my wife and I again ate at the 'kitchen table'. Usually this is a great concept for a couple, as the conversation lulls, and occasional waits for each other to finish, etc. are nicely filled in with watching the kitchen action. Sadly, Tru's kitchen table is in a separated room. This distanced us from both the kitchen and the other diners, and created a more secluded atmosphere, when we were really looking for less. At Trio, I'd recommend the kitchen table to anyone. At Tru, its better for groups of 4 or more.

The wait staff at Tru is, much like Trotters, trained in the traditional French stiffness. Luckily we were able to draw some conversationalism out of them after a while, making it possile to lighten the atmosphere.

The food was as good as anticipated.

I think the biggest issue at Trotters is that the wait staff has only one note. They do not know how to alter their behavior to suit the customer. They assume that all customers want the exact same type of treatment.

[Garlic scapes, shoots, greens]

I steamed a bunch, and tossed a bit of butter on them, plus a little salt and pepper. Not bad.

[Gumbo, Jambalaya, Etouffee, Creole...]

I have made Etouffee in the past, but I used a roux. From all of the recipes I found, that apparently is not the traditional approach for etouffee. Does anyone know if there is a correct term for what is essentially a traditional etouffee recipe but is started with a roux?