Kelly’s offers killer sliders and pumpkin pie, plus dining pet peeves and wine of the week
It wasn’t my week. I loved the rain, but it was wreaking havoc on my dinner plans—courtyard wet—and lunch plans—power outage. But then there was Kelly’s French Bakery, reliably open, welcoming, and full of wet-weather revelers.
A hot lunch was just the thing. So we split an order of the beef sliders special ($15) and sipped jasmine green tea as we tried not to surrender to pumpkin pie ($4) before lunch. The trio of sliders, each one a layering of beef and toppings on a beautiful fresh bun, offered an array of special flavors. All good. My favorite was the substantial patty (this was not one of those micro-sliders) topped with melted cheddar and bacon. A lavish addition of ketchup (the other Protestant condiment) made it even more so. On another slider, caramelized onions and Roquefort romanced the beef, and the third offered fresh avocado and chipotle sauce. Total yum! And enough for two. Kelly’s pumpkin pie was utterly authentic. Balanced spices, a voluptuous custard texture and delicious tender crust. Killer pie. Kelly’s—located in the center of the Ingalls Street empire on the Westside.
Choice Words to Servers
First off, let me salute you for your patience, smiles, and for your help interpreting menus, meals and receipts. That said, I offer a few choice suggestions.
Please don’t hover. Asking if everything is “all right” is fine. Once. Please wait to check on your customers until they’ve actually had time to sample the meal. This is close to another pet peeve of mine—servers who arrive at the table the minute you’ve sat down to ask what you would like to drink. Give the customer time to actually look at the wine list, or consider the other possibilities. How can they order if they don’t know the territory?
And please, don’t ask the diner, “Are you still working on that?” as if enjoying dinner at your establishment should require physical effort. This ubiquitous question insults the patron and insults the chef, and saps all leisurely enjoyment from the act of dining out.
If you notice that diners are deeply engaged in conversation—or holding hands and gazing romantically at each other—do not stop by to inquire about the meal. Timing is everything. An awkward interruption can ruin an enjoyable dining experience. Let’s get beyond generic responses such as “Sounds good” or “Perfect!” Yes, we all use these responses, and used once, they are friendly and put the customer at ease. However, repeated over and over at every service point during a meal, they become annoying. And the server sounds robotic. I know everyone has had the experience I had last week at lunch when a very upbeat, but superficially trained waiter responded to every single request and comment with the words “Sounds good.” Just don’t! Is restaurant management a lost art?
Finally, check this out. True story. I arrived at a popular Westside restaurant a few minutes earlier than my lunch companion, and was asked by the smiling hostess: “Would you like to be sat?” (Read that again.) I cannot make this up. Even if the young woman had been illiterate, someone had hired her. And that someone could easily have taught her the simple greeting: “Would you like to be seated?”
Wine of the Week:
Congratulations to winemakers Jon Morgan, Peter and Paul Bargetto, whose bold and lyrical Soquel Vineyards 2013 Partners’ Reserve Library Selection Pinot Noir (Santa Cruz Mountains) won gold medal honors in this month’s Sunset Magazine International Wine Competition. This is a sensational creation, an important Santa Cruz Mountains Pinot loaded with terroir-inflected spice, earth, and dark plums delivered on an ideal 13.9-percent alcohol ($24 at Shopper’s Corner). I have a bottle saved for one of the upcoming holidays, and you might want to make sure you locate some in time for, oh, Thanksgiving or New Year’s? soquelvineyards.com.
PUMPKIN EVERYTHING Damiana MacLennan of Kelly’s French Bakery with one of their best-selling pies. PHOTO: CHIP SCHEUER
