I will also be at the Crave event - look forward to meeting some of the other ICers there!

I had a great time at the Crave Kimpton event. I met up with another Flyertalk Inner Circle member, but it seemed like ICs were actually in the minority. It was a very diverse crowd. Anyway here is a report on my experience at the event.

Thanks for following up with the review (bonus to you for including pics.). Looks like loads of fun. Hope they find a reason to host an event in the west in the future.

Has anyone tried using the "Complimentary Chef's Taste" perk? I tried twice...
Saltbox (San Diego): I mentioned that I'd like to use it to our server, who had never heard of it (awkward!). Then I brought it up on my phone and he brought us some dessert, which was nice. He was pleasant throughout the exchange, but I hate the drawn out conversation of "can i have free stuff? no really, it says here that i get free stuff!".

Scala's Bistro (San Francisco): Hoping to avoid any potential awkwardness, I mentioned the perk in the "additional notes" part of my opentable reservation. Our waiter brought us a delicious tomato soup as a result, though he mentioned that they don't really do the perk anymore. It'd be nice to see some clarification about where and when (I know recently they clarified that it's dinner-only) the perk applies.

I've tried several times in probably 3-4 different restaurants -- it has always been awkward and I don't think I've ever gotten anything special. I have just mentioned to the host/hostess that I'm Inner Circle and that hasn't worked, and then this past time at the Eventi I made an Open Table reservation and mentioned it in the comments, and that didn't work either. I'm really not keen on having to say "please give me my free stuff" so I've let it go every time. And really, it's not a big deal at all. But it's too bad that it's mentioned as a benefit and no one seems to know what to do about it...

I've emailed CEO Mike Depatie a few times on the how poorly Kimpton delivers the Chef's Taste benefit, especially how unevenly it is applied. I've received an email back confirming they are trying to improve this, but I'm sad to see that others are reporting similar frustrations.

I've had luck on getting this at The Brice in Savannah, Vintage Park in Seattle, Solamar in San Diego, and Hotel Palomar in Philly*

* Offered in January 2014 and told "we don't offer it" in August 2014.

I've only asked for the Chef's Taste once -- it was in The Bookstore at the Alexis in Seattle -- and the server knew exactly what I was talking about, bringing us each an oyster on the half shell and a very petite salad.

[QUOTE=discflicker;23561198]Has anyone tried using the "Complimentary Chef's Taste" perk? I tried twice...
Saltbox (San Diego): I mentioned that I'd like to use it to our server, who had never heard of it (awkward!). Then I brought it up on my phone and he brought us some dessert, which was nice. He was pleasant throughout the exchange, but I hate the drawn out conversation of "can i have free stuff? no really, it says here that i get free stuff!".


Ha ha - you've captured exactly how I feel about it. I've come to the point that the embarrassment of having to explain it makes it not worth it (similar to the secret word at a couple properties last week...)

Love that description. I've felt that way about the secret word a few times (alleviated now by saying something like "Are you guys still doing the Summer of Karma secret word thing?", which doesn't work as well when the promotion is just beginning). But, mostly it describes to a T how I feel about the Chef's Taste -- not worth the awkwardness of explaining it.

I've never had any awkwardness with the Chef's taste thing. I usually just ask the host or waiter if they do anything special for Inner Circle guests. The answer in my experience has always been yes.

Are you getting this response for meals other than dinner? I asked at the Hotel Palomar in Philly during breakfast and the response was "No, we only do that for dinner."

Has anyone received their extra stay credits for the summerfling promotion yet?

Also, Kimpton corporate may want to take a look at KimptonInFL:

https://twitter.com/KimptonInFL/stat...45116601462784

If they aren't familiar with a specific benefit, just ask for what you would want. Do you most want a free drink, free appetizer, desert, what is it? Just tell them that is what you usually get as a result of the Chef's Taste or the secret word. You must do this in both a confident and respectful way. If you wallow or are not confident you are not going to get what you want in many cases. You should phrase it like its a given, no big deal!

There is some concept in psychology that your confidence in getting something is very important in terms of whether you will get it.

I was respectful when I asked for free parking. They weren't so respectful with their responses. Fortunately, it's a rare slip in my experience with Kimpton.

One thing I gleaned from reception was that The Omphoy in Palm Beach is joining the brand. It's a nice property with my only complaint being the pool is on the wrong side of the building (not beach side).

Only did breakfast once and was not offered the same appetizer I received at dinner from the night before.