So trivial, yet it really ticks you off.

[Lean'n'mean]

Biologically there isn't a whole lot of difference between a tarantula and a lobster. Jump in the water here, Mr. Cuddles.

Tarantulas are grilled, fried or roasted, never boiled

 

[Lean'n'mean]

are in the tourist traps/goormay joints..

Goomay ? ........is that Maine for gourmet ?

 

[LizzieMaine]

Yep. The kind of places that print their menus in all lower case and never use a dollar sign on the prices. And who charge you $48 (or "48") for a lobster dinner that cost them five dollars at the boat.

 

[ChiTownScion]

Yep. The kind of places that print their menus in all lower case and never use a dollar sign on the prices. And who charge you $48 (or "48") for a lobster dinner that cost them five dollars at the boat.

What galls me to no end are steak houses that charge that amount- or more- for a decent prime cut.. and then want extra for salad/soup and every side dish, even the potato. Or franchises like Outback that have choice cuts with sides and salad/soup, but salt the bejezzezz out of the meat.

 

[Fading Fast]

My girlfriend and I rarely go to the high-end restaurants you describe above as we don't find we enjoy them, in part, because the portions are too big and, in part, because the total cost far exceeds the enjoyment we get. Also, in business, I have gone to many of those restaurants and think, overall, it is silly and unenjoyable to sit at a dinner table and talk business - but I am definitely in the minority in that view.

What all of this has taught me though is that the prices in high-end restaurants are only marginally related to the cost of the food. You are paying for some combination of location, decor, atmosphere, service, presentation, experience, etc., and, also, the food - preparation, uniqueness, quality, etc. And while not really my thing, there are some high-end restaurants I've gone to where I'd say that the combination of things they offer - decor, service, atmosphere, food preparation - makes the experience worth the price. But if you tick and tie the price back to the food alone, it will look silly expensive, but that is not a criticism because you are really paying for all those other things in addition to the food.

That said, are there some restaurants that insult your intelligence be trying to say the cost of the food to them justifies this or that price for something (lobster, as noted in above posts, being one that restaurants use all the time) when anyone who shops for that item knows it is silly to say so. When lobster prices collapse the last several years, very few mid- or high-priced restaurants dropped their lobster prices, so for me, that was the final indictment. As with everything, are there times when it probably is justified, when some food price has shot up and the restaurant really does need to increase the price - sure, but that happens far, far less than they claim.

 

[Lean'n'mean]

And who charge you $48 (or "48") for a lobster dinner that cost them five dollars at the boat.

Yeah but you've got add the restaurateur's overheads to that 5 bucks.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Subminimum wage to a skinny guy in a black turtleneck to wait table, rent for a dilapidated storefront in an "atmospheric" part of town, and a bunch of mismatched tables and chairs from a rummage sale for that "eclectic" decor. Of course, the biggest cost is the chef's ego -- you can't put a price on that!

If I want atmosphere while I eat, I open a window.

 

[HudsonHawk]

What galls me to no end are steak houses that charge that amount- or more- for a decent prime cut.. and then want extra for salad/soup and every side dish, even the potato. Or franchises like Outback that have choice cuts with sides and salad/soup, but salt the bejezzezz out of the meat.

I will gladly pay $48 for a top notch steak, cooked to perfection. What I won't do is pay more than 39 cents for that garbage they serve at Outback. I'd rather eat dirt.

 

[Lean'n'mean]

Subminimum wage to a skinny guy in a black turtleneck to wait table, rent for a dilapidated storefront in an "atmospheric" part of town, and a bunch of mismatched tables and chairs from a rummage sale for that "eclectic" decor. Of course, the biggest cost is the chef's ego -- you can't put a price on that!

And what about taxes, electricity/gas bills & of course the guy himself has to earn a living.

 

[ChiTownScion]

I will gladly pay $48 for a top notch steak, cooked to perfection. What I won't do is pay more than 39 cents for that garbage they serve at Outback. I'd rather eat dirt.

It isn't the price: it's the concept of nickel and diming a person to death on the premise that the essentials of a decent meal are, somehow, "extras." Charge me more, if you have to do so, but please, do not insult me by implying that a potato (mashed or baked) and a side of asparagus or corn is, somehow, a superfluity.

 

[Fading Fast]

Subminimum wage to a skinny guy in a black turtleneck to wait table, rent for a dilapidated storefront in an "atmospheric" part of town, and a bunch of mismatched tables and chairs from a rummage sale for that "eclectic" decor. Of course, the biggest cost is the chef's ego -- you can't put a price on that!

If I want atmosphere while I eat, I open a window.

The of-the-moment places, the cool, hip, what-have-you places are never my bag - those seem to be more for the people who enjoy being part of whatever is "happening." That said, depending on what you like, there are some high-end restaurants that have been around for many years that do provide nice atmospheres, good (not pretentious) service, quality food prepared in interesting or classic ways that can enhance the experience and make for a nice evening. Again, it is not something we do often, but I completely understand why people enjoy those places.

 

[Trenchfriend]

We are going back to the lowpriced blue-plate-special. I like that term. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue-plate_special#/media/File:Blue_Plate_Special_(Mullan,_Idaho).jpg

 

[Fading Fast]

The of-the-moment places, the cool, hip, what-have-you places are never my bag - those seem to be more for the people who enjoy being part of whatever is "happening." That said, depending on what you like, there are some high-end restaurants that have been around for many years that do provide nice atmospheres, good (not pretentious) service, quality food prepared in interesting or classic ways that can enhance the experience and make for a nice evening. Again, it is not something we do often, but I completely understand why people enjoy those places.

And having had many friends over the years who have been waiters and waitresses, they make very good total compensation working at higher-end restaurants despite a sub-minimum wage. While no rule is ever 100%, in general, the higher-end the restaurant, the more total compensation the waitstaff makes. At the highest end, waiters / waitresses in NYC's top restaurants make well-into six figures. And even the mid-level waiters / waitresses do pretty well, at least in this city.

Edit, meant to add this to my last post, but messed up.

 

[LizzieMaine]

It isn't the price: it's the concept of nickel and diming a person to death on the premise that the essentials of a decent meal are, somehow, "extras." Charge me more, if you have to do so, but please, do not insult me by implying that a potato (mashed or baked) and a side of asparagus or corn is, somehow, a superfluity.

Especially when they're dished out of a number ten can.

 

[Trenchfriend]

In Germany, restaurant-gastronomy goes down, permanently. Their prices and the normal workers-wages, oh my! So, naturally, there is less and less inquiry. And Bratwurst and Döner are cheaper, so much more attractive!

 

[LizzieMaine]

My standard is very simple -- if a place has tablecloths, it's not for me.

 

[HudsonHawk]

It isn't the price: it's the concept of nickel and diming a person to death on the premise that the essentials of a decent meal are, somehow, "extras." Charge me more, if you have to do so, but please, do not insult me by implying that a potato (mashed or baked) and a side of asparagus or corn is, somehow, a superfluity.

Yeah, I'm not with you on that. When I order a high quality steak, I don't necessarily want it to come with a bunch of other stuff. Sometimes a small side of potatoes, but when I'm paying $48 for a steak, it's about the steak, not the filler. I'd rather pay a little extra for something I want a la carte than to pay more for a "package" of stuff because it's assumed I want all the other stuff included. That's exactly the Outback kind of mentality I can't stand in a high end steak place.

Same way with BBQ...don't charge me for a plate full of potato salad and beans and crap...just give me the meat. If I want the other, I'll order it.

 

[Trenchfriend]

My standard is very simple -- if a place has tablecloths, it's not for me.

Sometimes, I'm thinking about restaurant-visits, but always coming to the same result, that it is more or less senseless and I think, in reality, often it could be a kind of pomposity or something like that.
I'm stilll intelligent enough, to grease me a sandwich for along the way, wrapped in old-fashion kitchen-foil, not that plastic-foil!

 

[Lean'n'mean]

wrapped in old-fashion kitchen-foil, not that plastic-foil!

Would that be aluminium foil ? ...you're not worried about Alzheimer's then !

 

[Trenchfriend]

Would that be aluminium foil ? ...you're not worried about Alzheimer's then !

Yes, Alu-foil. But greasing me a "combat-sandwich" does not happen that often.