When the price of food is on the rise and there are a shortage of workers, going out to eat at any restaurant is a luxury for some, so much that some people can no longer afford dining out anymore. However, if you are one the financially savvy one's who can spare to eat out, and you decide to go out for a night on the town, I'm sure you want to be treated like you are getting your monies worth. Even if you aren't spending thousands on a dinner for 2, there are tricks that you can use to make sure that you are satisfied after spending your money.
The goal is to spend on things that will make you happy, rather than things that only push you down a never ending path of unhappiness, poverty, and depression. Yes, food is that important to me and it should be for you too. Okay, now we can agree that when you are going to a restaurant, you should feel like you are receiving VIP treatment especially now that there are less people. I have always loved eating out at nice restaurants and sharing my experience, but keep in mind there are some restaurants that don't deserve a second visit or promotion, so I try to stay away from those places in its entirety. I'm sure by now, I have either successfully made you really hungry and ready to dine like a VIP.
The first step to be a VIP diner is to change your mind to believe that you deserve the highest level of service, especially since you understand that you intend on paying for this level of service. If you enter a restaurant with the air of this is too expensive and you are pinching your pockets to be there, you are not going to appear as a VIP customer.
VIP customers leave great reviews and the only way to leave a great review is to try something NEW. In order to try something new, you have to be open minded. The way to let restaurants know that you are only interested in eating what they specialize in because you intend on being pleased at the end of your meal. If you get a suggestion from a waiter and you are not pleased with your service, they will be more inclined to change your meal if you are unhappy with the quality of your selection.
Another way to get the VIP Treatment at any restaurant is to become a foodie/content creator. Every foodie knows that you have to take pictures of EVERYTHING so that all the guests, staff, and cooks know that a critic is in the house and the food, atmosphere, and service will be critiqued by not only their guests but the social media feeds of every guest at the table guaranteed. This the BEST way to ensure that you will be satisfied with you meal and leave with a full belly and hopefully a new favorite restaurant.
Take a look at a gallery of my last visit to my new favorite restaurant, Burton's Grille in Riverdale, MD and keep reading to hear about the service, food, and restaurant quality below.
Starting off the meal with a Firecracker Shrimp appetizer which I enjoyed very much! The crispy breading and sweet and spicy sauce was the perfect combination. It arrived to my table piping hot and was a nice way to start this seafood meal. There were no areas of improvement for this dish and I would definitely return for this dish or try to remake myself at home.
The entrée was the Chicken Picatta replaced with Shrimp with angel hair pasta. To be very honest I was so unpleased with this dish, that I ended up returning the entrée and ordering a basic hamburger (not pictured). I am not usually one to send food back but I am a VIP customer now so I wanted to be sure that instead of acting like everything was ok, as to not be a nuisance, I asked my waiter for a menu to see what to exchange my pasta for.
To my surprise, instead of my waiter brining a menu to my table, the manager of the restaurant greeted me at my table and let me know she was sorry about my unsatisfactory meal and asked was there anything that she could do to help me have a better experience. I was very pleased that she took the time to greet me and address my problems, as well as removing the dish from my check.
I ended up ordering a burger that I would rate a 6/10. But what could I expect from a basic burger when I opted out for the more flavorful burger option.
My date ordered the Lobster & Shrimp pasta and of course I tried a few bites and I was immediately disappointed in myself that I hadn't opted for another order of that to go. But all in all the restaurant made every effort to make sure that I had an enjoyable experience and despite not enjoying my first selection I was highly pleased with my visit to Burton's Grille and I would definitely return. I also order a Moscato, but there were out of the wine so they gave me a complimentary swish of the last bit and I ordered a Sunset Sangria as I waited for my last and final order adjustment and still left a 25% tip for all the hassle.
Overall Rating: 7.5/10
