November 14, 2005
A restaurant experience.
Ever go to a restaurant where you're the only customers, and the restaurant is really good and the people are so nice that you feel for them so much that you kind of wish you'd gone somewhere else? What if no one else is there because on other occasions people have had that experience so they don't go back because they don't want to feel sorry for the nice family that runs the place? I'd name the restaurant, but I'm afraid it wouldn't help them!
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I went to a place in St. Petersburg, FL, A Taste of Europe, owned and run by a Hungarian couple. My wife and I were the only two in there on a Friday night. Food and service were great, but we felt awful the whole time. We had no cash, and they didn't take credit cards. We tried to give them our hotel address and such, but they said no you'll come back and pay. We paid them next day, but when we went back the next year, they were gone.
Art: I'm afraid of making people avoid the place.
There was a Seinfeld episode about this situation.
-=-=-=-=-
THE CAFE
(Episode 24): From his apartment window, Jerry spies a little cafe that does not seem to be doing any business. Jerry feels sorry for the Pakistani owner and offers him some advice. George concocts a scheme to have Elaine take an IQ test for him. Kramer tries to keep his mother's ex-boyfriend's jacket, because he meets many women with it. Air Date: 11/6/91
Rick: Oh, yeah. I wasn't thinking about that one, but now that you mention it, it's a reminder that trying to help might only hurt.
You're overthinking your role in the cosmos. Post their name and address and a comment along the lines of "what a yummy place to eat" and then let causality proceed along its merry path, unhindered by Althousian considerations.
Causality doesn't worry about you; you're allowed not to worry about causality.
Ann, I've read your post three times and I definitely have no idea what you're talking about.
I wish I could find restaurants where I'm the only customer! That's like a fantasy come true for me.
Do you feel sad for the proprietors because they didn't have more business the night you went? That seems unlikely. I'm nonplused.
Chuck: Yes, I felt bad for that. Why is that hard to understand?
I understand your discomfort in an empty restauarant, but I'm not sure you're right about not naming them. My fear on entering an empty place is that maybe people are staying away for a reason ... and that I might want to save my money as well. On the other hand, if I'm told that it's actually an undiscovered gem, that would give me an incentive to frequent it ... with the added benefit of cheering on an underdog.
Hey, it may not be that bad to be alone.
When I proposed to my wife, it was at a Chinese restaurant. I bribed the waitress to slip the proposal into a fortune cookie.
At the moment my wife opened it, there was no one else in the restaurant (other than the waitress who was watching us) and I had the ring out. It was a better experience because we were alone.
As for the concern that if they are ALWAYS empty, they may go out of business, you may as well name it. If they are that empty, the odds that someone who is contemplating going there tonight will read your blog about the great food and decide to stay away because it is empty are vanishingly small, compared to the odds that someone from your community who has never been to the restaurant before will read it and want to check it out.
Although, I have to admit, there has been once or twice I've walked into an empty restaurant, and immediately wondered whether it had been cleared out by Ptomaine poisoning, and looked around nervously to see where they displayed their food inspector's permit.
Is there any more appropriate situation to name the restaurant? You like it, and they could use your good word.
It's clearly different from Seinfeld sticking his nose into the proprietor's business. Plus I think everyone is curious.
I think the only time I ate at a restaurant like that was just before I left Hawaii (reassigned to Germany) in December of 1990. There was a place called "Crab Factory Sada" that I'd always wanted to go to - they advertised that they brough their crabs in fresh daily from the Pribilof Islands.
So one day prior to going to a concert downtown, I decided to eat there.
I got there before it even opened.
I ate probably a good 2lbs of a variety of crab. And loved it all.
And I was still the only customer in the place when I paid and left.
I would have just assumed it's a slow night or something. Or that people would have come earlier or later that night.
Eating at a restaurant, I don't want to be ignored, but I also don't want to be the center of attention.
One of my favorite Vietnamese restaurants is always crowded. I love eating there. Once at lunch, I shared a table with another guy who was also eating alone.
There's another Vietnamese restaurant closer to home -- probably just as good -- but too often I'm the only one there. So I only use that place for take out.
TCD: I've been there other times when it is busy, like on a weekend night. We went on a Monday night. Maybe that's the worst night -- lots of restaurants choose to be closed that night. I think it's a particularly good night for eating out! I mean, you have to eat every day. Why not pick a down day to go out?
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