Happy Valentine's Day

I want to make it clear up front that the incident I'm about to lay out is very out of character for the restaurant in question, and the manner in which it was handled by management is indicative of that.

A very nice young man wanted to take me out for dinner last night. Around six thirty he gets a call from the restaurant where he'd made a reservation. They cancelled it. (My assumption is they overbooked. Not inexcusable, but still obnoxious.) I suggest Treno as an alternate. I love Treno. They have a comprehensive wine list that covers all budgets and tastes. Their house wines, (usually $5/glass) are knocked down to $4 during happy hour. They have interesting artisan pizzas, they cure their own meats, and the service is good. Furthermore, it's an enormous place, and I was pretty positive we'd have no trouble getting a table.

So my date calls the restaurant and a young-sounding girl answers the phone. He asks her if it's still possible to get a table. To which she replies, "Do you know what night it is?" He was dumbfounded. I was furious. So I call the restaurant back to see what kind of response I would get. The hostess (may or may not have been the same girl, as my date was too flabbergast to ask her name) tells me very politely that they don't take reservations, but at that moment they had a number of tables open. Snap.

It took a lot of convincing, but I got my date to take me to Treno for dinner. And when we got there (around nine) the dining room was half empty. The hostess who greeted us was very pleasant, the server was on top of it, the food was decent.

Now I'm pretty forgiving as far as restaurant mistakes go, especially in a casual dining atmosphere. In fact, I rarely complain or comment about anything. I certainly never ask for a manager. However, rudeness is something I will not tolerate. So the following day I call up the restaurant and ask for a manager. I explain that I'm a semi-regular patron. That I work in the industry. That I'm not calling to complain, but I want to make her aware of something. The manager is furious. She is shocked that we still came in for dinner. She wants the name of this hostess, which of course I can't provide. She apologizes profusely and takes my information.

Several hours later I get a call from the general manager. I run him through the story. He is, you guessed it, furious. He also cannot believe that we still came in for dinner. He also wants the name of the hostess...because he wants to fire her. He wishes I had said something when we came in, because it would have been easier to determine who had mouthed off on the phone. He wants me to find him the next time I come into the restaurant.

I have no idea whether he identified the hostess, but if he did she probably no longer has a job. And he would be absolutely justified in letting her go. There is no excuse for someone working as the face of the restaurant to be rude to a customer. Ever. And behavior like that does not deserve a second chance. I get that it's frustrating to be working on Valentine's Day when all of your friends are on dates or at parties. I, myself, waited tables the very first Valentine's Day my husband and I were together. We had tickets to the symphony, and I was slinging margaritas. I get it. We work while everyone else is eating turkey or throwing steaks on the grill or drinking champagne and toasting the new year. It's a part of the job description, and if you can't handle that, (or at least smile pretty and take your complaints to the back room like every other waitress and hostess) then you don't belong in this industry.

Chances are I'm not going to track down the GM on my next visit. I'm not there to make trouble or get free food; I'm there to have a glass of wine and a pizza. Maybe some house-made ricotta and roasted vegetables...or budino...mmm...

Treno

233 Haddon Ave, 

Collingswood, NJ

(856) 833-9233
www.trenopizzabar.com