de-I - Wine Training for Servers

On Sunday, I wanted to take Derf and Agent W to a new pizza place that a client had taken me to and thought was pretty good. I went there originally for lunch but noted that it had an extensive wine list for a pizza place.

We got there fairly early and it wasn't too crowded (it would get so by the time we left) yet the staff seemed a bit flustered. I ordered a bottle of wine. The wine list was a bit weird because it had relatively few lower priced offerings (it's a pizza place remember) and a lot of choices that we higher, pricey, and down right expensive ($100+). After an inordinate amount of time they came and said they had to go in back to find it. Then after an inordinate more time, they said didn't have the bottle I ordered and suggested a replacement. By this time we just wanted a drink so I said yes.

Next transpired the absolutely worse example of wine service I have ever seen! The poor young man struggled to get the cork out. Broke the cork. Then failed to give me (or anyone) a taste. Grabs the bottle by the neck (good servers always hold from the bottom to have more control and leverage). Holds the glass to his eye (it was a BIG nice crystal glass) and proceeds to start filling it to the top! At this point, I literally am nearly yelling, telling to stop, only poor a quarter full (This is to allow the wine to move in the glass and get air). He proceeds to fill the other glasses asking me with each if that is enough or too much. And he doesn't know how to twist the bottle at the end so the wine is dribbling down the side.

I'm getting more upset. I'm paying good money for good wine. The service should be a given. Finally I'm so upset, I get up, take him to the side so we're not next to any other tables and ask him if he has every been given any wine service training. As I expect he hadn't been. I go into a tirade at how his employer has failed him and how I want to talk to the manager. I give the manager a tirade that if you're extracting $30 $40, $50 plus for wine you sure as hell ought to know and teach how to serve it. He gives me this mealy mouth answer.

The meal goes on and I tell our waiter Jeremy that I'm going to order another bottle and show him how it is done correctly. Bless his heart, he seemed to appreciate this so I went and did just that. (A note: the cork screw they gave him was a piece of shit and even I had trouble getting the cork out!). Of course by this time the place is packed and all the tables around us are having a good time as I'm going through all the steps of wine service with explanations of each to Jeremy.

I still can't quite figure out what owners are thinking having relatively inexpensive (though very good) pizza with very high priced wine. You can be sure I will be putting in reviews of this place all over the internet.