SATURDAY
Leading off is a trip to the 94th Aero Squadron, situated beside Montgomery Field in Kearny Mesa. I've written of this place before, most notably because one of the servers there, Kevin, is possibly the greatest of his kind in San Diego and possibly the world. He MAKES going there an experience. Unfortunately when that's someone's opinion of a restaurant then it's gonna be trouble if for some reason Kevin can not be our server.
Take Saturday night for example. So as always, a reservation is made online. My family and I usually go at 5 or 5:30 but this time we went at 6:30. Big deal. Also while making the reservation we always make a point of asking for Kevin to be our server. So we arrive and are seated at 6:30, no big deal, though you could imagine how disappointed I was when a server came to our table who was not named Kevin despite seeing Kevin just as we walked in.
***Just to preface, this rant is in no way a ding against the server, who will go unnamed, but rather an issue with how this restaurant is managed.
So we sit. We wait. 20 minutes go by and we still haven't been given our water. In typical Greg's Gourmet fashion, I sit there in anger looking like a baby who's about to CRAP himself just for spite. Now, yes, the place was packed this evening including one party of, like, 30 people or something who are all probably shmucks because they were holding up everything.
But what's most disturbing here is that all of the servers seemed extremely overwhelmed and the restaurant ran like it was extremely understaffed. Having to wait 20 minutes without being given water is unacceptable. What we were given, though, was a bottle of wine after ordering a couple glasses at no extra charge. I'm pretty sure he saw me sitting there in an aura of radiated anger, so the wine was a nice touch. And naturally I got a little tipsy so all seemed well after that. Anyway, here's the dinner, a 10 oz prime rib:
The restaurant is also poorly lit, so without the flash you can't see anything but with the flash the creamed corn looks like chunky dog piss
The food was good, though we didn't get dessert cause, well, we've already waited so long. It's disappointing though because this place should be way better than it is. The food is good but not great. Their reviews on Yelp indicate all kinds of common issues that management should be dealing with but for some reason doesn't. They try to rectify the problems and I do give them credit, but there's something fundamentally wrong with this place if we're waiting 20 minutes for water. Again, I don't blame the server as he did the best he could given the difficult circumstances he was working under. But as Gordon Ramsay would say, "you run the kitchen, the kitchen doesn't run you...YOU DONKEY!!! NOW GET OUT!!!"
SUNDAY
In-N-Out, it's what a hamburger's all about. Straight and to the point:
Yeah, I really didn't put a lot of thought into photographing this one. Besides, In-N-Out is all about the experience
3x3 and Animal Style Fries. Beautiful.
MONDAY
Completing the Trifecta, a trip, of course, to the Great Plaza Buffet. Ironically we had to wait like 5 minutes for our beverages to come which is unheard of here. I don't know what it is with restaurants and beverages this weekend, jeez.
Plate 1: Steak, fake potatoes, and garlic bread
Plate 2: Pizza, chicken wing, pork rib, more fake mashed potatoes
Plate 3: Transition Plate of four chickens, Mongolian beef, white rice, and a salad
Plate 4: Dessert Hopper Plate with Jello, strawberries, bananas, honeydew melon, cantaloupe, one grape, and a sludge of different puddings
Plate 5: Dessert with too much stuff I couldn't finish
So there you have it; the Birthday Trifecta Eating Binge. A terrific birthday indeed. Yeah, I have my qualms of the Squadron but I got my steak, I'm with people I love, and it's a good time.
Thanks for reading. Hell's Kitchen tomorrow!