Tuesday, January 24, 2006
Eye contact avoidance
Mary and I sometimes joke that our waiter must have gone to the "International School of Eye Contact Avoidance" as they scan round the room looking but not seeing. It is very frustrating as you raise your head or lift an arm to attract their attention and their Teflon-coated gaze slithers over you as if you were invisible.
Not so in the *excellent* Food Room in Queenstown Road, Battersea. We ate there on Friday and the staff were superb. Every time I looked up someone would catch the movement out of the corner of their eye and look over. A series of micro-expressions would flicker back and forth, "Need anything?", "No just looking round", "Good, look up again if you do", break eye contact and on they'd go. I have to say that it probably because the manager and staff were all women; I have only ever noticed male waiters to be guilty of "customer-blindness".
Impressive though that was of course a restaurant stands by its food which was equally noteworthy. Courtesy of Top Table we had three delicious courses off the á là carte plus a welcome cocktail (glass of champagne) for only GBP 19.50 per head. Mind you we, as usual, bumped that up with a couple of bottles from their well balanced wine list. I agree with one reviewer who said you would easily pay twice as much in the West End. Definitely one to go back to. ¶ Permanent link: 8:42 AM
Mary and I sometimes joke that our waiter must have gone to the "International School of Eye Contact Avoidance" as they scan round the room looking but not seeing. It is very frustrating as you raise your head or lift an arm to attract their attention and their Teflon-coated gaze slithers over you as if you were invisible.
Not so in the *excellent* Food Room in Queenstown Road, Battersea. We ate there on Friday and the staff were superb. Every time I looked up someone would catch the movement out of the corner of their eye and look over. A series of micro-expressions would flicker back and forth, "Need anything?", "No just looking round", "Good, look up again if you do", break eye contact and on they'd go. I have to say that it probably because the manager and staff were all women; I have only ever noticed male waiters to be guilty of "customer-blindness".
Impressive though that was of course a restaurant stands by its food which was equally noteworthy. Courtesy of Top Table we had three delicious courses off the á là carte plus a welcome cocktail (glass of champagne) for only GBP 19.50 per head. Mind you we, as usual, bumped that up with a couple of bottles from their well balanced wine list. I agree with one reviewer who said you would easily pay twice as much in the West End. Definitely one to go back to. ¶ Permanent link: 8:42 AM
