Michelle B.
Yelp
Parigi has long been a favorite. I chose Parigi for a pre-show dinner with two dear foodie friends visiting from San Francisco. On the way, I gushed about how much I love Parigi, the food, the service, the ambiance, etc. Then we arrived...It was 5pm. There was one table in the entire restaurant.
The hostess greeted us by asking if we had a reservation. We did not. She said they would seat us but we had to leave by 7pm. Uh, ok. Not how I would welcome guests to my restaurant but we were attending a show at 7pm, so it wasn't a problem.
Suggestion #1: graciously seat us, guide us through our meal, drop the check around 6:30, let it play out. If it is pushing 7pm and you need the table, have the conversation then. Chances are, most people eating at that hour are on their way somewhere and not looking to camp out.
We were given 2 menus for a party of 3. I asked for a menu. The waitress pointed to a card with a QR code. My friend scanned the QR code and tried to download the menu, no luck. For the second time, I asked for a menu. The waitress launched into a condescending lecture explaining they had a shortage of menus and that we needed to use the QR code. Really? I pointed out there were only 2 tables in the entire place so being short of menus was surely not a problem. Third time, asked for a menu. Now, keep in mind, we are being rushed out of there by 7pm so wasting 10 mins asking for a menu is very annoying. I digress...The waitress comes back, hands me a menu, and sarcastically says, "I'm glad we were able to accommodate your request". Me too, since I want to order food (I also speak sarcasm).
Suggestion #2: when a guest asks for a menu, give them one.
At this point, I was totally embarrassed I brought my friends here for what I was sure would be another lovely experience at Parigi. Food and drinks were good but didn't make up for the lack of hospitality, rude service and overall "tense" experience. Oh, and in case you were wondering, we were gone by 6:30pm.
Not to worry Parigi, we won't inconvenience you with any future menu requests.
Suggestion #3: get over yourself