Roch B.
Yelp
I can't imagine a restaurant experience less enjoyable than this. Unless, say, it was located outdoors and there was an active locust swarm in the area. Or, if the employees were hurling insults and machetes at you while you were trying to eat.
None of those things were in play here but, somehow, it was that bad.
Something happened to this place. Wifey and I dined here before and, sure, it was never as good as CPK's Encino location, but it was still pretty darn good. Now? It's gone completely off the rails.
It was a toss-up to label "the biggest problem" (given such jive food and service), but I'll go with the bad service. Super Bad, in fact - just not in the good way.
There were these long periods of time that went by where we went unattended to/unnoticed and actually wondered, if we left, would anyone have cared? Like maybe we'd have been doing them a favor by bailing after the 1st beer. I know we'd have been doing ourselves one.
We sit down at the stupid wobbly table. I expertly fashion my napkin into a crafty McGyver-like fix. It holds. Waitress comes by after what would be our first of many exasperating waits and takes our drink order, at which point I ask for another napkin. Eons go by, much later in the evening, the meals are at our table and still, despite asking, I don't have a napkin. I finally say 'uncle' and steal a place-setting from the bar and return to my seat. No apologies from our server.
Prior to that - after our first round of beers and bread and oil were finished and all those plates, bowls, glasses and beer bottles are empty, sitting there all stacked up at the edge of the table, 3 different people came by but none of them offered to clear any of this stuff. Finally, a girl brings one of our meals and starts to walk away (about to become the 4th person to not clear the table) so we ask if she can please clear it. She grabs two empty glasses, contemplates for a second...then leaves. She doesn't come back. The empty plates, beer bottles and bowls are still there. She absolutely did not want to do this part of her job. HA!
I could go on but I'm already as bored writing this as you are reading it.
Just THINK of all the amazingly cool excuses there could be to have a restaurant operate so poorly; I don't know...COVID - or a series of once-a-month rogue waves hitting Marina del Rey - or an impending meteor strike - or a pack of angry honey badgers that have taken over the place....NO! You don't get to use any of these excuses, Mr. Manager...
The only one you get to use is - you've run this place into the ground.
(you can hear the crickets following deletion of my CPK App....or, are those locust?)