Finally, I'm doing a new post. I'm back to working part-time but 3 kids takes up a lot of time. Through it all, my husband and I managed to find some time to check out Good Stuff Eatery in DC for some phenomenal burgers.
I happened to come across the announcement of the the impending opening back in July and was very excited to find that Spike Mendelsohn of Top Chef was running the place. Spike was my favorite that season. That said, I was a bit leery of a place that boasted of burgers, after all, how special can a burger be? Let me tell you something; these burgers are pretty damn special as evidenced by the wall to wall customers tripping over themselves to make an order that day. I got the Farmhouse cheese burger and was blown away by the perfect seasoning and fresh taste of the meat. This was no ordinary burger. The onion rings were less like rings but more like battered onion chunks, not a huge fan, but the french fries with thyme and rosemary were quite good. Since I'm still trying to lose baby weight, I didn't even get near the custom made shakes, but they sounded wonderful bearing names like Toasted Marshmallow, Milky Way Malt and D-Lechable Leche.
I really didn't expect much from the bathroom as I have found that in Capital Hill, space is at a premium and there is no such thing as a large bathroom. This place was no different, it was more like a small closet with a toilet. Here's the interesting thing, while I was waiting, 3 women emerged from the bathroom. I have no idea how they all fit and even less of an idea of why they were in there together. At any rate, the bathroom was in need of some cleaning attention, I'll provide a pass since the place was beyond busy. The trashcan was overflowing, the mirror was smeared and there was hair and water on the sink. Overall, it did not appear to be a bathroom that suffered from chronic lack of attention. Now, the restaurant is listed as kid friendly, but I assure you the bathroom is not. While it would not be impossible to change a child and/or have multiple children with you, it would be quite a challenge. The food; however, is so good I would not let that deter me from returning.
The biggest disappointment was that Spike was not wearing his trademark hat! Also, he threw an eggshell at me. OK, not at me but while I was standing in line Spike tossed a an eggshell toward the traschan,missed and hit me instead. He laughed and apologized.
Overall, a great place and well worth the wait!
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Saturday, October 4, 2008
We have A New Baby!!
In case anyone is wondering where I've been (yeah right), I've been busy having another baby! Not only that, I went back to working full time, so I don't have as much time to rate my beloved restrooms anymore.
At any rate, our daughter Sasha Michelle arrived a full 2 months early on August 16, 2008. The birth story is quite interesting, but I'll save that for my friends over at Baby Center.
At any rate, our daughter Sasha Michelle arrived a full 2 months early on August 16, 2008. The birth story is quite interesting, but I'll save that for my friends over at Baby Center.
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Benihana, Georgetown, New Year's Eve
Happy New Year Everyone! Last night we took the boys (ages 2 and 6) to Benihana in Georgetown for New Year's Eve dinner. We don't keep them up until midnight for obvious reasons. At any rate we thought they were old enough to enjoy the spectacle that is Benihana. Overall Benihana was just fun as it was back when I was a kid. My 6 year declared it was better than Disney World. We'll see what he has to say when we make it the next family vacation destination. HA! My little guy was mesmerized and enjoyed it as well. Overall the food was OK. Our steak was overdone and the shrimp were not fully deveined, but the chicken, salad and soup were all good. Their special drink for the evening was a Cranberry Mojito. It was very nice, but that second one did sneak up on me. Of course, a trip to the restroom was necessary as is the case whenever we have the kids with us. I'll just say this; they keep those grills amazingly clean and I guess that's why they completely ignore their bathrooms!! Paper was everywhere because the waste basket had not been emptied. The soap dispenser was leaking and it had been for some time the soap had damaged the wood between the sink and the wall, causing it to separate. The sink also had not been cleaned in awhile nor had the toilets. It wasn't the worst bathroom I've been in, but I was very disappointed. Overall a fun place, but avoid the restroom if you can.
Cove Atlantis Update
It is official, we will NEVER go back to The Cove. After numerous phone calls and promises that my glasses were on the way...I just went ahead and had LASIK! I'm very happy about the LASIK (I've been wearing glasses for 30 years), but bitterly disappointed by their lack of service or concern. Time to plan the next family vacation!
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Kanye's Meltdown!
Since summer vacation and now the start of real school, I haven't had much time to review any restrooms. I did; however, waste an entire 2 hours of my life watching the MTV awards(I'm not proud). I will not talk about the obvious because enough people have given it too much time, but the Kanye' West outburst reminded my of some very special people in my life. Check out our first movie:
I'm sure he'll never see this...but it was just too funny to pass up.
I'm sure he'll never see this...but it was just too funny to pass up.
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
The Cove Atlantis, Nassau Bahamas
The Lavatory Lady finally went on vacation with the family and boy do I have a helpful review for you.
Summer is finally over, the kids are in school and I now understand why summertime is considered a busy time for people with school age children. We took our annual family vacation during the week between camp and the beginning of school. This was a first for us as our oldest is just now starting regular school. We chose The Cove; which is billed as the newest and most exclusive portion of the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. Let me say; the place is absolutely beautiful! There are ponds with beautiful fish and lounging areas with soft blue backlighting from the drop off area to the registration desk. There are butter soft leather couches for your group to wait for you while you get checked in. I had no qualms about the looks of the place. You know what's next right? The bathrooms! I loved each and every one of them. Even the bathrooms around the pools were beautifully maintained and nicely decorated. I will spare you the details of each and every bathroom I went into for the sake of time, but I'll just say the bathrooms were not a disappointment, but the service in comparison to the price was less than stellar.
The first chink in the armor was the lack of towels upon our arrival. I figured it was just a housekeeping oversight until we got to the pool and snagged the last two towels. I heard the couple behind us say, after we were given the last two, "Still no towels, huh"? Hmmm....
We returned to our room and still NO TOWELS, even though we called to tell the staff our room was devoid of towels upon our arrival. During my shower, my husband spotted a cart in the hallway and procured some towels for our use. The towel issue seemed to suddenly resolve itself by day 3.
Aside from the towel issue, we were nickled and dimed to death!! The fitness center was $10/day per person. We were charged for being "late" for breakfast. The meal plan did not include lunch and so they attempted to charge us even though we had breakfast and not lunch. Fortunately, we were able to have $300 in "lunch" charges removed. During one breakfast I opted for a cappuccino instead of regular coffee and was charged $5. I've been on enough vacations to know that things at resorts are overpriced, but I'm sorry, there is no reason for a lunch of ham sandwiches to cost darn near $100.00. The only complimentary items were the very nice toiletries in the bathrooms and 2 tiny bottles of water provided with the turn down service.
The other thing I hated was the "exclusive" beach area of The Cove. It was incredibly rocky; so much so we took our children out and went to the pool instead of risking a twisted ankle. Upon talking to my mother-in-law, who stayed at Atlantis 4 years ago, she explained that the beach on the other side was equally as rocky.
A lot of the staff was borderline rude and have a lot to learn about how to treat patrons who are expecting upscale service. Neither the concierge nor the restaurant reservationist were particularly helpful and seemed to be "bothered" by our questions. The dinner crew at Mosaic is in pretty bad shape and are not concerned about keeping tables clear; our pile of dinner dishes sat on the table through most of dessert. The food at Water's Edge was practically inedible, with the exception of dessert.
The stay was certainly not all bad as there were many bright spots. The staff during the breakfast period at Mosaic was very sweet to us. The bellmen were great. Our babysitter, Katrina, was very nice and punctual. The lifeguards on the Lazy River Ride were cool. The lifeguards at the Splashers pool were good with the children. The best restaurants were Mosaic for breakfast, Mesa Grill for child-free dining and the BEST service was at the Bahamian Club. The rest of the staff could take a lesson from the wait staff at the Bahamian Club as we felt very well cared for while we dined.
Overall, we had a fabulous vacation and at one point I thought we might give it another chance in the future, but once back at home I realized I'd left my glasses and called the hotel. The housekeeping staff informed me that they would send them to me as soon as I gave them a Federal Express Account number. That, for me, was the last straw...while we had a good time and it is a very family friendly place, we will gladly spend our money elsewhere.
Summer is finally over, the kids are in school and I now understand why summertime is considered a busy time for people with school age children. We took our annual family vacation during the week between camp and the beginning of school. This was a first for us as our oldest is just now starting regular school. We chose The Cove; which is billed as the newest and most exclusive portion of the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. Let me say; the place is absolutely beautiful! There are ponds with beautiful fish and lounging areas with soft blue backlighting from the drop off area to the registration desk. There are butter soft leather couches for your group to wait for you while you get checked in. I had no qualms about the looks of the place. You know what's next right? The bathrooms! I loved each and every one of them. Even the bathrooms around the pools were beautifully maintained and nicely decorated. I will spare you the details of each and every bathroom I went into for the sake of time, but I'll just say the bathrooms were not a disappointment, but the service in comparison to the price was less than stellar.
The first chink in the armor was the lack of towels upon our arrival. I figured it was just a housekeeping oversight until we got to the pool and snagged the last two towels. I heard the couple behind us say, after we were given the last two, "Still no towels, huh"? Hmmm....
We returned to our room and still NO TOWELS, even though we called to tell the staff our room was devoid of towels upon our arrival. During my shower, my husband spotted a cart in the hallway and procured some towels for our use. The towel issue seemed to suddenly resolve itself by day 3.
Aside from the towel issue, we were nickled and dimed to death!! The fitness center was $10/day per person. We were charged for being "late" for breakfast. The meal plan did not include lunch and so they attempted to charge us even though we had breakfast and not lunch. Fortunately, we were able to have $300 in "lunch" charges removed. During one breakfast I opted for a cappuccino instead of regular coffee and was charged $5. I've been on enough vacations to know that things at resorts are overpriced, but I'm sorry, there is no reason for a lunch of ham sandwiches to cost darn near $100.00. The only complimentary items were the very nice toiletries in the bathrooms and 2 tiny bottles of water provided with the turn down service.
The other thing I hated was the "exclusive" beach area of The Cove. It was incredibly rocky; so much so we took our children out and went to the pool instead of risking a twisted ankle. Upon talking to my mother-in-law, who stayed at Atlantis 4 years ago, she explained that the beach on the other side was equally as rocky.
A lot of the staff was borderline rude and have a lot to learn about how to treat patrons who are expecting upscale service. Neither the concierge nor the restaurant reservationist were particularly helpful and seemed to be "bothered" by our questions. The dinner crew at Mosaic is in pretty bad shape and are not concerned about keeping tables clear; our pile of dinner dishes sat on the table through most of dessert. The food at Water's Edge was practically inedible, with the exception of dessert.
The stay was certainly not all bad as there were many bright spots. The staff during the breakfast period at Mosaic was very sweet to us. The bellmen were great. Our babysitter, Katrina, was very nice and punctual. The lifeguards on the Lazy River Ride were cool. The lifeguards at the Splashers pool were good with the children. The best restaurants were Mosaic for breakfast, Mesa Grill for child-free dining and the BEST service was at the Bahamian Club. The rest of the staff could take a lesson from the wait staff at the Bahamian Club as we felt very well cared for while we dined.
Overall, we had a fabulous vacation and at one point I thought we might give it another chance in the future, but once back at home I realized I'd left my glasses and called the hotel. The housekeeping staff informed me that they would send them to me as soon as I gave them a Federal Express Account number. That, for me, was the last straw...while we had a good time and it is a very family friendly place, we will gladly spend our money elsewhere.
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