PLangfordJr

First of all, very engaging thread. Thank you to everyone for your input / comments. After growing up in the Dumont/Bergenfield area, I can appreciate the fact that unless you travel to one of the major restaurants off of the highways (easily a 15-20 minute trip), it is rare that you will find a 'gem' of a restaurant that you will want to return to. Although there are exceptions....Harvest...Picnic...Andiamos. (To the owner of Picnic....do you think that the plans in Emerson to 'upgrade' the strip and increase foot traffic help your business? BTW...after eating some of your meals, I'm intreagued as to what product/establishment you would produce if you did have a location such as the Emerson Hotel!) My personal opinion is that the proper atmosphere/amenities in a location will bring people in from a good distance...more than just from the local community. I frequently travel 40 minutes to a restaurant for the simple fact that they have a game room for the kids! The restaurant I manage has different environments which has people frequently traveling from other areas (upwards of an hour each way) to eat in an area that makes them comfortable. Whether it be in our formal dining area, our pub area, or our outdoor patio, I truly believe that if an atmosphere is agreeable to a core group of customers, that group of customers will grow off of word of mouth alone, not the fact that you are located off of the exit ramp of a major highway.

The Porter House is the last stop on Kinderkamack before you hit Rockland County. Website is www.porterhouseusa.com If you call ahead for a table, keep in mind that there is still a smoking section available.

Don't know if everyone else is like us, but our reservation book is filling up much faster than last year. Find a place quick.....

Not sure of the exact menu cover that you are looking for, but I have had been very happy with BOXER BRAND Menu Covers. They are located in Boston, MA. Their number is 800/253.2772 and email is info@boxerbrand.com. pl

Fat guy...I totally agree with you that no one wins in this situation. Does it happen often? no. I just posted this question after a long night, when this situation did happen to come up...I just wanted to benchmark my response off of some others.

My past experiences have me agreeing w/gfron1. The way I look at it is that you chalk it up to experience. As long as the customer did not deliberately let you know that he was unpleased, and you and your staff feel that you have given good service, then there is not much you can do. I too have seen servers/bartenders chase patrons out into the parking lot to hand them back the 'tip' and tell them to keep it. The way I look at it, it all evens out in the end...for those that stiff the servers on the tip, there will always be those who give the generous tips for outstanding service

I am relatively new to this forum, but am impressed with the wide variety of opinions that you can find on any given subject. I have an issue that I wanted to through out there to see how others handle a situation.... At times, servers who work for me will come to me to inform me that a table had left a small tip (5%, 10%, etc) on a table, and they believe that they provided proper service. This is a rare occurance, but happens. Whether your own personal standards for tipping is above this or not, servers make their living off of tips, and are due an acceptable amount. Personally, I make it a point to touch base with every customer who sits during their meal to ensure that they are enjoying their time as well as to put a face with management, if they choose to speak to me later. I also want to ensure that if there is an issue, I am giving them every opportunity to voice either their pleasure or, unfortunately, discontent. How do you approach a table to see if there was an issue with service, food, atmosphere, etc, which caused them to leave a small tip? How do you do so without coming across rude and abnoxious, as well as not embarass a customer who you want to see back in next weekend?

The smoking ban was put into effect to protect those employees in the restaurant industry. I understand this for casinos, because if working in this industry is your trained profession, it would be difficult to gain employment elsewhere. However, if I am working in a restaurant where there is smoking, I can get a job elsewhere. Working in a smoking establishment is a choice, and one where the pros of working in a cigar bar outweigh the cons. Unless the government is willing to pay the restaurant owner's mortgage, why should they have the right to dictate what customers they open their doors to. Many of the regulations in the NJ Free Air act make perfect sense...separate rooms for smoking/non smoking areas, two separate ventilation systems which do not feed into each other....if these were enforced rather than used as a requirement after the fact, I think that you would find many more satisfied smokers in New Jersey. I've seen first hand that there is still a market in the New Jersey area for smokers, and many satisfied patrons once they find it.

If anyone is interested, check out The Bergen Record from a last Friday. They did a review which was less than favorable...1 1/2 stars