Things You Order To Make The Server Say "huh?"
 

I don't call myself a fussy diner, but I'm finding it increasingly hard to find a restaurant or bar that serves two of my favourite things.

I order my steak Blue, and I like to drink Whiskey Sour's.

While they don't seem overly difficult, it seems that these two items often get a "huh?" type response from the bartender (in the case of the Whiskey Sour) or the Server (in the case of the Blue steak).

The thing that surprises me more than anything is that when I get this type of response it's rarely from a lower-end bar or restaurant, and is more often than not from places that have a reputation for being 'fine dining'.

Does anyone else order something on a regular basis that they have to explain to the server?

A bartender who does not know what a whiskey sour is has no place behind a bar.

Ordering a steak blue isn't that rare either. ;)

I get looks when I order a rusty nail or grand marnier on the rocks.

I have a girlfriend who loves her steak blue rare and the servers always go through a big explanation with her of what a blue rare steak really is and does she really want that, etc etc. She does! I thought maybe it was just because she was female that they questioned it, but you sound like a male?

My mother and one of her friends, who are both FTers, have a disease. It's called "offthemenuitis". They absolutely under no circumstances can order something exactly as it is listed on the menu. They ask questions and quiz the server and ask about the content of side pieces of the dish and make no less than two requests of the kitchen to subtract or add or replace certain things. So, in short, when dining with my mother, almost everything requires server explanation.

I have one personal explanation that I need to make: I like to, on occasion, drink Water Moccasins. I've never come across a bartender who knows what it is.

I order those with some frequency for an after dinner drink and have never been questioned or even seen a raised eye at the request. Maybe it is because I'm in NYC and everyone has a special order, but the wait staff here seem to just take it in stride.

I just had to google water moccasins. Sounds delicious.

They are, dangerously so...the fruit flavor of the Peach Schnapps kills the aftertaste in the Crown Royal, so you don't feel like you're drinking an adult beverage. It goes down like fruit juice. But after some brief Googling to see what's out there, I should say that my version as I was taught it deletes the sour mix. I just take 1 full shot Crown, 1 full shot Peach Schnapps, and add a dash of Rose's Lime.

Both of you are in NYC. Both of you need to go to Chin Chin, if you haven't already. 49th between 2nd and 3rd, right down the street from Waldorf Towers. Three words: grand marnier shrimp.

The one time I truly stumped a server was when I ordered a steak in some restaurant in Colorado and they asked how I wanted it cooked. As usual, I answered "medium rare". Apparently my Boston accent stumped the server. Given how few answers there are to this question, I couldn't believe that they couldn't parse the words. :eek:

9 times out of 10 I too either get a "huh" at asking for a black and blue steak
or else get something way overcooked that has to go back. At Ruth's in
Indianapolis last week, though, the waiter was so cowed, and so cowed the
kitchen, that I got a steak that was sort of tan and blue and cold on one side.
That was almost right, so I ate it.

If I'm feeling like a black and blue steak, I've found that ordering "Pittsburgh" gets more mileage than black and blue.

I've found some bartenders give me an odd look when I order a manhattan: "Knob Creek Manhattan, straight up, half and half, extra bitters". Half and half refers to half sweet, half dry vermouth, which is my personal taste for a manhattan.

I get a fair amount of odd looks in the US when I order fries with mayo. I don't know why, I kinda figured that people had seen mayo on fries by now...

Cheers,

-Andrew

When I was a kid I was eating at a place and the menu included two eggs any style so I asked for one scrambled and one over easy, the server wasnt amused.

I certainly am

Here in Australia, that would only generate more stares!

Hah ... I'll do that next time .. just out of amusement :D

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Re eggs - I'm always surprised at how often ordering poached eggs results in a blank stare. It's not that odd, surely?