I would make my exception Chez Georges in Paris - a lovely little bistro. And we were very disappointed with Chez Panisse last year - very haughty service and the food was fine, but not wonderful.

My wife and I enjoy Commander's Palace and try to eat there at least every other time we visit New Orleans. We find the food well prepared and the service outstanding. My wife enjoys Chardonny and I enjoy Merlot and we have had no compliants as to the way the wine has been served. We have commented many times regarding the service, they don't interrupt time and time again with questions, would you like this, how is that. It just seems as if they appear when needed taking care water, drinks, etc.

Maybe it was a bad night.

Lucky you!

My sweetie and I went to Tetsuya's a couple years back and
found some of the best food and certainly the best restaurant
experience of the young millennium. Beat the socks off Grange
(which had taken a dive, it appeared to me) and at least as
good as TFL, in the big-ticket department. Okay, the desserts
aren't the over-the-top fancy things, but who needs anything
like that after such a meal? I thanked the gastronomic deities
that I wasn't expected to plow through acres of sweetness
after the truffled spatchcock.

As far as Chez goes, I've always liked Chez Henri (Cambridge, US),
Auberge Chez Francois (Great Falls, US), Chez Maitre Paul
(Paris, FR), and Chez Bruce (Wandsworth, UK). There would
be others, but I can't think at the moment.

is this the Emerils at CityWalk? We were staying at Royal Coconut Palms (or whatever that hotel is in the Universal complex) for an IT convention, four of us were starving... walking around, looking for somewhere to eat, someone picks Emeril's, so we go in to see if they have a table. Not terribly busy, but the "hostess" looked at us as if we had dog pooh on our faces. "You mean you DON'T have a reservation??" she asked stupidly, as we had just asked if they had a table for four. "Well, we usually don't take walk-ins, I will have to check..." she said sneeringly as we looked at her in confusion, wondering why a restaurant would turn down four hungry people when no one was waiting around for a table at 9ish on a Tuesday night, and there were many many tables free. Finally she came back and attempted to seat us at a really crap table by the server station, at which I balked - she got even more foul-tempered when I asked if we could have a nicer table we had walked by. She begrudgingly seated us there, and said - I loved this - "in the future, you might want to think about making reservations if you want to eat at an Emeril's restaurant, ok?" to which a particularly witty member of our group replied, "oh thank you for the tip, but I don't think we'll be dining in another Emeril's again, dearie."

Every single one of our four different entrees was the same shade of brown. Some were runnier than others. We even asked the waiter how he could tell them apart. He said a lot of people asked him that. They even tasted brown.

We decided not to return. Ever. Avoid, please.

Emeril has spread himself way too thin!

As has Alice Waters, IMHO. She is the doyenne of "California Cooking," and historically a deserved icon... However, Chez Panisse isn't what it used to be, though I'm sure that others will disagree.

Here are two for the Int'l list-

1. Kizkulesi, or Maiden Tower -the restaurant on this island in the middle of the Bosporus in Istanbul was laughably bad.
The food looked like it was well "executive chef-ed," but very very poorly executed. And it was not cheap, but I guess once they get you on the boat, you are trapped.
(I would recommend going over to get a drink at the bar on top of the tower, though...nice view)

2.Hostellerie de l'Abbaye de la Celle - This is Alain Ducasse's country inn in Provence. We thought it would be a nice way to sample M. Ducasse's cooking, but were very disappointed. Staff, setting and presentation were lovely, but the food was simply not up to the level we had hoped and certainly not as good as many other less-known chefs in the region. Really just disappointing.

This is a great story!
 

OK, putting aside food for a moment, you all have to read this story about a restauranteur here in Los Angeles. If foul words offend you, maybe you shouldn't click on the link.

This is a classic that has been making the rounds here in LA for a month or so.

http://www.laweekly.com/ink/printme.php?eid=60512

The original Postrio folks left and started Town Hall. I've been there several times and it's quite good.

Blast! Mr Theologian and I are planning to head out there for an anniversary dinner some time from now, as I've read so much about Trotter and the wine cellar. I have one of his cookbooks, which I am hoping he'd autograph one day. :( We did tried Vivere at the Italian Village and the service was crappy.

Avoid Nam Long in Old Brompton RD.
 

I cast an enthusiastic vote in support of Emeril -- I ate lunch at the bar that looks into the kitchen at his Emeril's restaurant in New Orleans, and my date and I had a fantastic meal. The service was great too. It was the highlight of our trip.

I recently missed a chance to be in LAS long enough to go to one of his restaurants there, either seafood or steak. If the choice comes up again, I'm open to suggestions on which one I should try first.

I have had the same experience as some other posters with the Legal Sea Foods in DCA. It's good food but I always feel I have to hound them to bring the drink, bring the food, and bring the bill in order to get to my gate on time.

cubbie :cool:

As much as I adore the restaurant downstairs, I've had pretty mediocre service and food upstairs, it can get mighty loud at lunchtime.

lala

Bad Restaurants in Vancouver
 

VANCOUVER - Do not go to Sui Sha Ya. Service sucks, (esp. when they are busy for all-u-can-eat-sushi) and food not that great. Your order will get 'technically lost' once you're there for more than 1/2 hour.

Samosa Garden on Kingsway, I don't know why they were rated excellent for service. I only go there for the good food but it takes AGES for the plate to get to your table. Buffet's a bit of a hit and miss - mostly veggies even though they claim they've got tons of meat on their menu. Suggest you walk in and get a good look at the buffet before sitting down. http://www.samosagarden.com

Banana Leaf on Denman Street. Terrible food fare. Service ok but not that great. I don't think the cooks are from Malaysia. Banana Leaf on W. Broadway is so much better.

White Spot - any bloody White Spot in Canada. What's there to say? Food is greasy! greasy! greasy! I ordered mashed potato and the rosemary garnish that came with it had dirt. Disgusting! The manager was polite though, took the dish off the bill but I wouldn't step into any White Spot.

Cannery Restaurant, Commissoner St - for all the hype, it doesn't do it much justice. I don't know why ppl think this restaurant is worth going to. I've been disappointed time and time again. I ordered the swordfish and it was sooooo dry and tasteless. For the price you pay, definitely not worth it. And what's with the darkness? Can't see a frigging thing. I know they're supposed to create a romantic atmosphere but man, there's something wrong when you have to use the candle to read the menu. Service is top notch though. http://www.canneryseafood.com

Tanpopo, Denman St - Terrible! Terrible! Terrible! They have this all-u-can-eat sushi buffet that is not even worth paying $1 to try. Virtually everything I ordered off the menu was a disappointment. The only thing worth going for is the salmon sashimi - there's no limit even for lunchtime.

I have had nothing but pleasant experiences with Macaroni Grille. I've eaten at one in upstate NY and in PA. Actually plan on going again hopefully sometime soon. A friend of mine hated it, but thought they used too much sauce. My friend is also extremely picky ;)

Harry's Bar in Venice- go for a drink (please please NOT a Bellini)- that is nice.... but a meal is a terrible way to spend a couple of hundred euros (or more) in a city with (otherwise) fantastic food.

Couldn't agree with you more.... we had two nights in Vancouver and ate there one night after a strong Frommer's recommendation since it was close to the hotel...very disappointed.

Did have a FABULOUS meal at a restaurant that we just sort of stumbled into called Wild Rice near the International district.....the owner was friendly and the food was out of this world......

I have had the misfortune of eating at BOTH Legal Seafoods in DC. Service was consistently bad, and the food was overpriced and medicore.

Yeah, Wild Rice rocks!!! :D http://www.wildricevancouver.com

AVOID most of the 2 or 3 michelin star restaurants in italy - they're just overpriced and desperately trying to copy the french style, at which they don't succeed at all. Examples:

La Pergola (@Cavalieri Hilton) in Rome: Despite the german chef and 3 stars, nothing but uncreative and expensive, service makes a big fuss about everything, guests are just tourists

Il Desco in Verona: same thing: big service theatre in the restaurant, nothing special out of the kitchen -and again just nightmare prices

Not always. Comme Chez Soi In Brussels is supposed to be very good.

Horrible! My travel companion got severe food poisoning there which ruined the remainder of an otherwise wonderful trip. We both agreed that, while beautiful, it was dreadfully crowded and mediocre.

You made me laugh. That sums it up almost perfectly. Add "and burn everything" and you've achieved perfection!

Chez Maitre-Paul, 2 rue Monsieur-le-Prince, 6th
The restaurant is nice, typical French bistro, our food was O.K., but not great. I had Cocq ou Vin (Poulet au Vin Jaune), Mrs. USAFAN Steak Frites...both not tender.

However, Chez Maitre-Paul is NOT a restaurant to avoid ...

Eddies Steakhouse in Oklahoma City. Dry, tough steak served with an equally dry, tough potato, and then charged $25 each.

Avoid Olive Garden's alltogether. All the food comes prepackaged like one of those Kraft Pasta Anytime meals. ughhhhhhh
I'm sure I will think of more later.

Thanks for your input, I have reservations at Chez Georges on Monday night to celebrate my wifes' birthday and first visit to Paris. Hope it lives up to it's reputation.

Venice Restaurants
 

TRAVELSIG,
I would love if it you would post the names of those restaurants in Venice - perhaps on the Dining-Europe forum - that have "fantastic food". I've had, with only a couple of exceptions, mediocre to downright terrible meals there.

Deleted - Already said a few times...

JOLLIBEE in the Philippines. Also that Greenwich Pizza chain place...really bad.

And if you don't like KFC, Burger King or Wendy's in the U.S., then you REALLY won't like them in other places where the quality slips. McDonald's makes much greater efforts than these places to try to keep quality consistent.

K-Paul's in its heyday was a turnoff with mandated minimum checks and community seating.

Perry's Smorgy in Waikiki also seems way lame for the amount of business it gets. Location, location, location.

Oh, and those FEBO places in Amsterdam. The thought of getting some pasty croquet from one can almost make me lose dinner.

Angus Steakhouses in London are probably the most revolting restaurants in London and to be avoided at all costs. They have several restaurants strategically positioned in and around the tourist areas of central London (Leicester Square, Piccadilly, Knightsbridge to name a few) that lure unwitting tourists in. Serving so-called "American" cuisine that is tasteless, overpriced and
boring. I'd rather go hungry than dine in there. Fortunately, London has an abundance of better quality restaurants and you'd be better off eating practically anything else. And don't you just hate those paper napkins in each wine glass when you walk pass one? Ugh!

I don't recall where I read it (perhaps the Fodors boards?) but there is a LARGE amount of people who agree with you on Angus... the consensus is that the place is overpriced, the food quality is TERRIBLE and not worth a dime.

That being said...

I guess my standards must be lower, but I enjoyed the one time I went to Macaroni Grille (in Fort Lauderdale) and Legal Seafood (in Palm Beach)... I found the food delicious, the service fine (a little slow on Legal, but not terribly so), and the desserts sublime.

Of course, I wasn't paying for either meal, that may make a difference! (was a guest both times)

I have been going to New Orleans for almost 20 years and have many favorite restaurants, but I have never been able to figure out what the big deal about Commander's is. My experiences have been much like yours. It's just nothing special.

We were at Commander's for Easter Sunday Jazz Brunch this past weekend and food was great but service was outstanding. They refilled out coffees and waters (and bloody marys :D ) continuously. We must've drank a gallon of each considering how hungover we were. And all this while the restaurant was packed for the 3 hours we were there. No complaints. The food is hit or miss though, definitely ask the waiter for suggestions.

I don't think I've ever had a bad experience in N'Awlins (August, Stella's, Herbsaint, Bayona, Acme, etc.).

Legal Sea Foods is a classic destination restaurant
 

By and large Legal Sea Foods has a stellar record for customer service at every one of it's units.
On a given day they drop the ball like any restaurant.
But let me say they are a company driven to obsession with having the freshest seafood prepared to the highest standards.

I have been dining in a multitude of their numerous units for over 15 years and they deliver more consistently then the lions share of establishments nationwide.
Should you have a problem I can tell you that they will take swift steps to correct the situation above and beyond.
Simply contact a manager in house or contact me and I will give you the information directly to their corporate consumer affairs who has some of the finast professionals in the buisness looking after quality control in every one of their units.
Legal Sea Foods is a US legend :-: :-: :-: :-:
Don't miss a chance to dine on their pear salad a boiled lobster or lobster roll
I love their food ^
FYI I am surprised to hear about your experience very unusual

Am I the only one who finds it annoying to have my water glass filled to the brim every time I take a sip?

My vote for avoiding everywhere is Buca de Beppo. Lots and lots of mediocre food.

Another ^ here for Chez Maitre Paul in Paris.

[QUOTE=ILuvParis]Am I the only one who finds it annoying to have my water glass filled to the brim every time I take a sip?

Or it filled with 98% ice and one sip of water :(
Had to chime in here it was the 77th post here
They don't call me 777 for nothing ;)

Is that a group of restaurants including units in London ?
I may be confusing it with something that sounds similar

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Don't go to La Cabaña :td: , Rodriguez Peña 1967. It's a tourist trap. Our food (lomo and baby beef) was lousy, the service was bad too ... spoiled our whole evening. This restaurant belongs to the Orient Express Comp.?? This restaurant was recommended in a newspaper :mad:

Bad - Macaroni Grill in AGS - was actually served food there on obviously dirty plates. Grime/residue baked on. Told manager I would never ever come back. He gave me some coupons....

Bad - Househunting in CLE with spouse, decided to try a "family" oriented place in prep for family being there. Went to MAD CACTUS in Strongsville, as supposed Mexican place. First place wife or I could ever remember where food was completely inedible.

Bad - Hard Rock Cafe, anywhere. However, after a few weeks "in country" somewhere, a cheeseburger and a Bud there goes down well!

Really Bad - Pizza Hut in Xiamen, China. Not my choice, taqken there by a supplier quite proud of their new western restaurant. Got sicker from than meal than I've ever been.

Good - Pomeroy's in Strongsville and Mallorca in downtown CLE, Old Hickory in DAY, The Snug in AGS, others all over the world I neglected to write down. I'll pay more attention and refer on this thread.

EDIT - GOOD: Forgot to mention FAHRENHEIT in CLE. Very interesting presentations with excellent winelist, service, and food.