Monday, March 25, 2013

Kudos to Our Staff

Check out this recent Trip Advisor post from a couple traveling from Michigan. Thanks to the entire team, for making all of our guests feel welcomed and special each and every visit.

 
“They stayed open just for us!”
5 of 5 starsReviewed March 22, 2013
I want to agree with the other reviewers that the restaurant is expensive. But let me tell you "the rest of the story". We were traveling from Florida to Michigan and had made hotel reservations for the evening in Macon, Georgia. As soon as we were close to Macon the skies opened up and we drove through one of the worst rainstorms we could remember. When we got to our hotel the whole block that it was on was dark. We told the clerk holding the flashlight that we were going to find someplace to eat and if the power was not on when we got back, we were going to have to cancel. Of course, she said "no problem" so we looked in our GPS and found what we thought sounded like the only locally owned restaurant in the area. We like to frequent non-chains whenever possible to support the local economy. We found Marco's Ristorante Italiano and called to see if they were open. They said that they were open and we told them we were on our way. We were expecting to see checkered tablecloths and Chianti flasks with candles when we got there. Imagine our surprise when we found a very elegant and upscale looking restaurant with only one couple in a corner of the place. They seemed to be well into a dessert course and ready to leave. We said to the manager that we had just called and that we did not want to keep them open just to serve us if there were no other customers. He said that they had lots of work to keep them busy and they would love to take care of us. Well, we sat at the bar and a lovely bartender brought us menus and the drinks we ordered. A young server named Eduardo with a strong Italian accent came and took our order and we had a wonderful discussion about how and why he came to America at such a young age (22). He said he came to study the culinary arts and he was also learning the beverage alcohol business. He was a very personable young man and he and the bartender joined us in conversation for some time. I was very surprised when I read the menu that a simple dish such as Lasagna was priced at $25.00! I am a Lasagna fan so I ordered it and my wife ordered fried oysters and calamari appetizers. Eduardo came back and said the bad news was that the Lasagna would take 35 minutes to make. I told him not to bother with the Lasagna and that I would order something else. I ordered hand-made Fettucini noodles with spinach and mushrooms in a white cream sauce. When the food came out it was beautifully presented and after the first bite I thought I was in Heaven! The sauce was not the regular Alfredo that is grainy and gloppy. It was the lightest and tastiest I had ever had. The bottom line of my review is that despite the expensive food cost, the atmosphere, the servers, the enthusiastic manager, and the wonderful food made it well worth the cost. The whole staff made us feel welcome and never once made us feel as if we were keeping them there even though we must have been because as soon as we walked out of the door the place went dark and employees started to leave. These people know what they are doing and they know how to make their guests feel welcome.

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