David B.
Yelp
We had dinner here last night, and the food was quite good. However the server interacted with us very strangely. As he saw me looking at the cocktail menu, he made a recommendation for what I should order -- the Soul Reviver. I considered it but since I don't like gin, decided on something else. Then when I ordered my meal, the short ribs, I made an admittedly semi-odd request, to have fries instead of mashed potatoes (having seen that fries were on the menu). He warned me that the dish worked really well with the mashed potatoes and the sauce wouldn't be the same with fries. He said, "I can still do it for you if you want," and I said I did.
From that moment on, the waiter pointedly never made eye contact with me again, only addressing my wife. When we ordered dessert, which consisted of three profiteroles, he joked (to her, as he seemingly wasn't on speaking terms with me) that she should have two, and I should have one. After we'd each taken one, on his way by, he pushed the plate with the remaining profiterole toward her. When we asked for our check, he checked whether she'd had two. These would have been funny jokes if he hadn't been so persistent, and if it weren't in the midst of so obviously ignoring me, as if I were some "difficult customer" for not sharing his tastes. (I was nothing but friendly even while being ignored and am only now reflecting on how frustrating the server's behavior was).
After we paid, the server told my wife, "It was a pleasure serving you guys," and I can only assume he was referring to my wife and daughter alone, not me, as again he completely ignored my existence, pointedly only looking at the two of them as he said this.
For what it's worth, the server was right about the short ribs. They were very dry, at least the way I requested them. I've been to dozens of restaurants who have handled this request well, plating the food in a way that allows the sauce and fries to happily coexist. I imagine the cook didn't want to go out of his way here to do so. Luckily my wife doesn't like sauce so I was able to use hers, which came in a sauce cup with her steak.
Regardless, ignoring a customer who doesn't share your taste seems a little overboard. Maybe the server was having a bad day or I reminded him of someone unpleasant, but in a town with so much great food paired with equally great service, I wouldn't recommend risking such a strange and unsatisfying experience. Not liking mashed potatoes and gin is not a crime.