Dine Out Vancouver - The Topic (2002-2007)

[canucklehead]

I was toggling the menus and the selections at Aurora, Lumiere, C, HSG... et al - all look fantastic. Fantastic deals. Even the White Spot DOV looks pretty decent.

I was thinking how good it was to see some Chinese restaurants on the list - but then I saw the Floata menu - $25 gets you deep fried spring rolls/or wonton followed up by chicken on rice or beef on rice and a mango pudding. Helllo? Compare that with with impressive menu that Aurora has on offer (at the same price) and I am left baffled. Why participate if you are'nt even going to try to offer something interesting? I think I can go down to my local food court and get better grub.

I hope everyone remembers to have fun and take DOV for what it is - a chance to try out some new places and a great deal. The work loads at restaurants become insane - so a little understanding by everyone goes a long way.

If you can't get a reservation at your restaurant of choice - I am SURE that Floata will have some openings.

Edited January 6, 2006 by canucklehead (log)

[BCinBC]

^ Maybe that Floata rice is hand-picked by Thai virgins, then fed to you by Chinese-Canadian virgins.

[teamboom]

Just finished booking everything (finally).

Thanks to Ling's post regarding West, we got reservations for the 25th!

Hurray! I've always wanted to go there and now I finally can (and actually afford it).

We also booked Chambar, Feenies and the Dockside Restaurant.

[adelaide]

Hi all, I'm not new to eGuillet but this is my first post.

Have been going out for DineOut for a few years now.....but didn't get the restaurants that I wanted this year. Chambar, Lumiere, and Quattro are all full >< Instead booked West and I suspect I only got a space because West wasn't on the DineOut website's list.

[~cayenne~]

I was thinking how good it was to see some Chinese restaurants on the list - but then I saw the Floata menu - $25 gets you deep fried spring rolls/or wonton  followed up by chicken on rice or beef on rice and a mango pudding.  Helllo?  Compare that with with impressive menu that Aurora has on offer (at the same price) and I am left baffled.  Why participate if you are'nt even going to try to offer something interesting?  I think I can go down to my local food court and get better grub.

If you can't get a reservation at your restaurant of choice - I am SURE that Floata will have some openings.

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I saw that, bizarre. One would have to be pretty clueless to think that a worthwhile deal. Curious though, how the alcohol and tipping expectations might work at a place such as this. (considering that most of us in our extended group usually partake of the endless teapot and perhaps tap water, and, well, there's been mention of the tipping practice amounts at similiar restaurants on this board in the past).

Edited January 6, 2006 by ~cayenne~ (log)

[JasmineL]

I will be dining at C and Parkside!

Hooray!

[chocomoo]

If you can't get a reservation at your restaurant of choice - I am SURE that Floata will have some openings.

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I'm pretty sure Hon's will have openings too - I mean, who eats mango & coconut pudding at Hon's anyway?? I remember Kam Do on Alexandra Road used to have dessert included in their $9 (or whatever price it was) set lunches - it was some hard Jello-like dessert, diluted with so much water that you could barely taste the lime flavour (yet it still retained it's radioactive colour....weird).

[CanadianBakin']

I heard back from West and they said they hadn't finalized their Dine Out menu yet but would post it soon.

[JasmineL]

One interesting observation:

Butternut squash is in like 30% of the menu's  

- Butternut Squash Soup

- Butternut Squash Ravioli

- Butternut Squash risotto

I shouldn't have made squash soup a few days ago!  I'll be butternutty by the end of this DOV.

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I noticed that Risotto factors in to many a menu. It is on the menu at both my reservations.

[eatbc]

Fud wrote:

What is the best way to handle reservations when you have 6 people with varying schedules trying to go to a list of places but of course as you call the places book up and you end up wildy shuffling things around. The only way I manage this is to book for say 4-5 people at every restaurant and then deal with trying to fill those seats. In some cases I may call back and try to increase or reduce the reso. This has got to be a pain in the butt for the restaurants but I can't find a better way to do it. If I got every reso I wanted at the time I wanted this would not be an issue but this is also reality and stuff like that doesn't happen!

Wow, I'm not sure if I understand this question. Are you saying that you book tables of 4 to 5 people at several restaurants and then just try to fill the seats? So, you might have what, 45 reservations around town? Then you have to call and make the changes, increase or decrease each table? That seems like an awful lot of juggling and calling and cancelling (you cancel, of course) just to attend DOV. Yes, it's a pain for restaurants, but what about you? Am I reading this right?

[Dumpling Girl]

Maybe restaurants should start asking if customers are only going to be ordering tap water or tipping lightly when they take reservations during DOV so that they can turn away all those undesirable customers .

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Edited January 6, 2006 by Dumpling Girl (log)

[kontemporary]

One interesting observation:

Butternut squash is in like 30% of the menu's  

- Butternut Squash Soup

- Butternut Squash Ravioli

- Butternut Squash risotto

I shouldn't have made squash soup a few days ago!  I'll be butternutty by the end of this DOV.

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I noticed that Risotto factors in to many a menu. It is on the menu at both my reservations.

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vegeterians have to be able to eat something

[kurtisk]

...and helps with the food cost.

[nwyles]

I heard a rumour that Chambar servers start @ something like $18/hour and have benefits. If this is true, it'd be interesting to see if that affects their mindset during all this.

If somebody could confirm this, I will apply this week !

[eugene]

Dont hire Neil, hire me! I will work for $17! Even $16!

Maybe $15, but only if I'm allowed to blatantly flirt with Karri

[BCinBC]

Never flirt with the spouse of the person with the biggest knife.

[Daddy-A]

Yah, I'm starting to think I should stop reading these posts about Dine Out Vancouver from people inside the industry, because maybe I'd be much happier naively believing that the staff are all happy to be there doing their job.  I heard a rumour that Chambar servers start @ something like $18/hour and have benefits.  If this is true, it'd be interesting to see if that affects their mindset during all this.

I felt like that last year too. But the fact is that in addition to people who dine out frequently and understand about the spirit of this event, DOV also brings out the worst diners ... people who make you wonder if their parents ever taught them anything about manners.

Does that make all the servers' beefs simpler to take? Perhpas not. But I'm certain some of my clients wouldn't want to hear what I say about them either It's perhaps not the best idea for service staff to complain so publicly. But for some reason, they do, and I for one find it damn entertaining.

Never flirt with the spouse of the person with the biggest knife.

Or with the mother of a newborn. That's just wrong on so many levels!

A.

[Ling]

Fud wrote:

What is the best way to handle reservations when you have 6 people with varying schedules trying to go to a list of places but of course as you call the places book up and you end up wildy shuffling things around. The only way I manage this is to book for say 4-5 people at every restaurant and then deal with trying to fill those seats. In some cases I may call back and try to increase or reduce the reso. This has got to be a pain in the butt for the restaurants but I can't find a better way to do it. If I got every reso I wanted at the time I wanted this would not be an issue but this is also reality and stuff like that doesn't happen!

Wow, I'm not sure if I understand this question. Are you saying that you book tables of 4 to 5 people at several restaurants and then just try to fill the seats? So, you might have what, 45 reservations around town? Then you have to call and make the changes, increase or decrease each table? That seems like an awful lot of juggling and calling and cancelling (you cancel, of course) just to attend DOV. Yes, it's a pain for restaurants, but what about you? Am I reading this right?

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Some of my friends do this...not 45 restaurants, but booking tables of 4-6 at 5 or 6 restaurants, then asking around to fill seats. I don't think there's ever been a problem with them filling the seats. But somehow this year the friend I thought I was going to West with ALSO booked reservations, not knowing that I booked for us too! So now I have to scramble and find someone to eat with, which is easier said than done since a lot of ppl have other Dine Outs to go to that Friday night!

[~cayenne~]

But somehow this year the friend I thought I was going to West with ALSO booked reservations, not knowing that I booked for us too! So now I have to scramble and find someone to eat with, which is easier said than done since a lot of ppl have other Dine Outs to go to that Friday night! 

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I've a feeling you won't have much of a problem finding another dining partner.

[fud]

Wow, I'm not sure if I understand this question.  Are you saying that you book tables of 4 to 5 people at several restaurants and then just try to fill the seats? So, you might have what, 45 reservations around town?  Then you have to call and make the changes, increase or decrease each table? That seems like an awful lot of juggling and calling and cancelling (you cancel, of course) just to attend DOV.  Yes, it's a pain for restaurants, but what about you? Am I reading this right?

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Oh no!! I am saying - Say a group of 8 of us as a superset choose 5 restaurants to eat at. I will book tables for 4-6 at 5 restaurants and then try to "fill" the seats with my available group of people. Since everyone's schedules vary and since dining times/reservations are on a first come first served it's a big juggle in a short time. The idea is that I am playing the statistics that a pool of 8 people should be able to fill say two tables for 4, and 3 tables for 6 (obvsiously many people are dining at more than one of these places).

The risk of course is I may end up with more people wanting a reservation than I booked a table for. OR less people meaning I have to reduce my reservation size thereby causing a real headache with the restaurant since it means a totally different table.

All in all it still sucks.

[edit] I just had a thought. If I could tap into opentable I could setup a system wherein my friends all register with me with the dates/times they like and places they want to eat at, my program would optimize the dining sizes and then automatically contact open table to book. Oooh maybe I can sell it

[/edit]

Edited January 7, 2006 by fud (log)

[JasmineL]

I am having the darndest time picking a restaurant to go with my mom, brothers (24 and 16) and my sister (12). It would be a birthday dinner, but since my mom is paying for the whole thing I am trying to find something on the $15 menu. I might have to supplement and push for the $25 menus.

[CanadianBakin']

I managed to get in at West, but for 5:15. Nothing else left unless I want to eat around 9:30 or 10 and then drive back to Mission. We're also going to make reservations at the Irish Heather.

[nwyles]

Yah, I'm starting to think I should stop reading these posts about Dine Out Vancouver from people inside the industry, because maybe I'd be much happier naively believing that the staff are all happy to be there doing their job.

It is like the "Wizard of Oz".

If you do not want to know, stop looking behind the curtain at the Wizard !

Having read some of the other threads about this topic : I saw the one about making multiple reservation on the same night and filling the spots with friends. Hat off to the person who fills all the spots, but I can tell you, not everybody goes to the trouble of filling the spots. Sometimes they just do not show, leaving the restaurant swinging in the wind. Why not just make reservations for yourself and stick to it. Why do you feel the need to be a "dinner broker". Let people make their own resos and stick to it.

It is like preaching to the choir here, as everybody takes this seriously, happy to get resos and stick to them.

I am already having nightmares about Dine Out and it has not even started yet !

[fud]

I am having the darndest time picking a restaurant to go with my mom, brothers (24 and 16) and my sister (12). It would be a birthday dinner, but since my mom is paying for the whole thing I am trying to find something on the $15 menu. I might have to supplement and push for the $25 menus.

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Sandy and I shortlisted this $15 but we had too many booked to fit it in. But it is indian food so it depends on tastes:

Ashiana Tandoori Restaurant $15

1440 Kingsway (Knight St.)

Vancouver BC V5N-2R5

604-874-5060

Fax: 604-874-5061, 604-951-4522

[Link]

Mind you I have never been so I can't attest to it.

[fud]

Why not just make reservations for yourself and stick to it. Why do you feel the need to be a "dinner broker". Let people make their own resos and stick to it.

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Well the least I can say is that the reso's I make are for places I will personally dine at. Therefore the absolute worst we can do is 2 people. The issues - I believe - are in regards to having to reduce or increase reso's for friends.

The problem with the theory on making reso's for yourself of course are that if you want to dine with friends you need to have one person make the reservation. In normal days that is easy since there's no risk of not being able to find any table at all during the dining week. It just seems like there might be a better way (as suggested by others - like increasing the dineout period) besides avoiding dineout entirely or keeping it to oneself and a significant other in order to avoid time conflicts.

I wish I could say "hey I'm eating at Hammy's on this night at this time, you guys book too!" and leave em at it - and somehow we all get a table together. Boy that would be nice