Eating Around Foggy Bottom
Before headed over to the Kennedy Center for Sonny Rollins’ concert on Wednesday, we wanted to try out Founding Farmers but the waiting list was at least 25 minutes. We went across the street for El Chalan, a Peruvian restaurant.
The place is located in the basement so it had a very cozy feel to it, especially with the pouring rain outside. The waitress brought out bread and butter and some sort of spicy dip that I really liked. For appetizer, we shared Anticuchos El Chalan (marinated beef hearts). The hearts were a bit chewy but had a pleasant flavor. Dana had Parihuela (fish broth soup with fish, shrimp, clams and mussels) and it was just passable. I had Cabrito Norteno ( traditional goat stew cooked in beer, vinegar, onion and spices) and it was like goat curry, nothing extraordinary.
Today Dana took the Metro over to have lunch with me. Once again we wanted to check out Founding Farmers. I was standing in line and the host went right past me to a white lady behind me. He greeted her, put her on the waiting list and left me stood there. What was that all about? I didn’t even bother to find out so I just left with Dana and I don’t think I would come back again either.
We walked toward Tonic and it was 45-minute wait. We finally ended up at the Foggy Bottom Pub. A Chinese-Vietnamese greeted us and asked if we’re Vietnamese. She then told us in Vietnamese to follow the waiter. The place has the typical American food except for Pho. After glancing at the menu, I decided to go with Pho even though it was not on the menu. All you get for $6.95 are noodle and three or four pieces of flanks. It didn’t taste all that bad then, but now the MSG is really kicking in.
Walked away?!! Took the high road?!
There are things you still can learn from Rosa Parks!!
I have a different take on this. I personally would have a chat with the owner or manger before I leave the place. I feel that they have the right to know. They have the right to know what kind of people they have working for them. Now whether they want to do something about it is up to them but hey you’ve done your part right? :)
Hello Donny,
We apologize if you believe that you were treated unfairly during your most recent visit during lunch to the restaurant. Without other information like the name of the host, the time of your visit, the number of other guests that may have arrived before you and your friend, without knowing if there were actually a ‘line’ (which is often difficult to navigate for anyone in our entryway), it is difficult for us to corroborate your experience. But, you must know and believe that all of our staff – hosts, hostesses, managers, servers, kitchen staff – everyone – come from all over the world, and understand what it means to be a person of color, or of another ethnic diversity, but most importantly, everyone understand how to treat guests that come to the restaurant, with the utmost respect and kindness.
We greet guests in the order they enter the restaurant, and as the situation may have appeared unfair to you, it is our policy and practice to greet each guest in a timely manner, add them to a wait list in the order in which they arrived, and to seat guests as quickly as we can with available seating. Sometimes that means a party of 4 is sat more quickly than a party of 2 – or that a party of two can be sat before a party of 3, if a table is available, and if there is only room for 2.
We hope that you will come to the restaurant again, and suggest that a reservation is the best way to assure seating in a timely manner. Please visit the web site (www.wearefoundingfarmers.com) to reserve there, and please don’t ever hesitate to express your concerns to a manager, as your friend suggested. We assure you that our goal is to ensure an enjoyable experience for EVERYONE.
Sincerely,
Founding Farmers
To make it clearer, there was a line of three people. The hostess at the booth was helping the guy in front of me. I was next in line. Another host who has long hair skipped right by me and greeted the lady in the back of me. I turned and looked back but didn’t want to interfere with their conversation. She also had a party of two and without a reservation. He took down her name for the next on the waiting list and didn’t even bother to ask if I were being helped or that I was the next person in line. I left because I didn’t want to make a big scene out of it. If I was not welcomed here, I was sure I would be welcomed elsewhere.
LOL Donny you were too nice. If it was me.. I would make a big scence.. my hubby sometimes feel embarrassed but hey I cann’t stand it when people do that.
Even if the host had a reason to tend to the person behind you first, he is still in the wrong. Which I would have said something, probably not to the manager, because I would never come back, but to the host himself right in front of the customer, so that he would never do it again. The very least he should have acknowledged you or asked if you were being helped first. It takes events like this that ruins the rep of decent eateries. Shame but that’s why you have to hire the right people and train them properly.
Since servers in the restaurant work mostly for tip, this white lady might be a regular and leaves good tip! Asian? Not so much!