I doubt it. Miss Manner’s tends to expect you to dress for the occation, no matter how uncomfortable you are. Not comfortable, don’t go. She doesn’t suggest you show up to a black tie wedding in your sneakers and jeans because you are more comfortable. No one wants to pay $100 per person for a meal and be seated next to someone who didn’t bother to dress up (except at the aforementioned Vegas, Atlantic City, DisneyWorld, etc. - where dress expectations are a little strange). i.e. you “feeling comfortable” is going to make the other customers feel uncomfortable. (Which is why you don’t often get screaming children in these places either … well, there is that DisneyWorld problem again, which is one of the reasons I hestitate to call any restaurant at Disney other than Victoria and Alberts “high end.”).
I’ve been a couple of times to restaurants where the bill for two people, plus tip, topped $80, but never to anything fancier than that. The couple of places I’ve been to that were that expensive left me disappointed: I’d get one spectacular dish (usually an appetizer or dessert), and one dish that wasn’t as good as what I could make at home in an hour or two.
Asheville has got plenty of superb little restaurants where dinner for two will run you less than $50, with wine and tip; we usually go to these places for our fancy occasions.
One of these days, I would love to try a top-rated restaurant. Sadly, salaries in the nonprofit and public schoolteacher sectors don’t make that the easiest thing in the world…
Daniel
I disagree entirely.
A gracious host always make his or her guests feel comfortable, and a high-end restaurant should offer gracious service.
I can think of one occasion when I and some friends arrived at what turned out to be a rather high end restaurant, quite underdressed (we were skiing and didn’t realize what kind of place it was when we made the reservations). Staff was unfailingly gracious to us and we enjoyed every minute of our meal.
I’ve been to a few high-end restaurants, more often for lunch than dinner since it was quasi-business schmoozing and a publisher was usually picking up the tab. Ooh, I adore it. The dressing up, the delightful tasty treats… all of it.
I used to, but as I’ve become older I’ve decided it’s usually not worth the bother. I get more enjoyment out of the ambience of a place than the quality of the food, particularly since my wife can cook better meals than most restaurants I’ve been to. And while I’ve been to a few really enjoyable high-end places, most are frankly quite boring. So I’m much more likely to go out for Mexican or to a pub for fish and chips than to go to any of the tonier places around here.
I don’t drink anymore and I just recently went out to a nice local restaurant with friends who would, I knew, be drinking quite a lot of wine. I was actually surprised at how pleasant the experience was. I ate what I wanted and came out of the dinner feeling fresh and satisfied, rather than stuffed and sleepy. When I first stopped drinking, one of my worries was that the fine restaurant experience would be diminished for me, but I haven’t found it to be so. I just focus that much more on the food. Plus, it cuts the cost in half, usually.
Infrequently, mostly with Mama and/or Papa Doug, who are connaisseurs in their modest way from spending so many years in NY.
Probably the highpoint of my NY dining experience was when I did some music work for Charlie Palmer’s Aureole and got comped there regularly. Superb. Just superb. That goes for food, service, wine list, people — the whole nine yards. I sometimes crfedit Charlie for the onset of my Type 2 diabetes (tho that’s probably unfair).
Mom does some foundation work down in DC and I usually accompany her there. We invariably go to Restaurant Nora, an extremely good place whose cooking is gourmet American and whose ingredients are 100% organic. I’d call it the equal of most anyplace in NY (surely head & shoulders over anyplace in Washington), and with a much more relaxed atmosphere than NY restaurants.
I’ve never been to such an establisment. Besides being relatively poor, I dislike formal clothing at all levels (wearing it, being seen in it, whatever) and apparently have a low level of discernment for subtleties in flavor. (I’ve even voluntarily eaten twinkies!)
So, a steak is a steak is a steak, as far as I’m concerned. I don’t feel that I should have to be punished with insane prices and awful clothing just to eat one.
As much as I love food, and particularly good and/or exotic meals, I don’t go to high-end restaurants because I couldn’t enjoy my food at those prices. I’d choke every bite down and feel miserable about what I’m going to have to cut out of my already-stretched thin budget later in the month. No matter how good the quality is (and I don’t really care about things like dressing up fancy, snooty waiters, or high-class ambience), it wouldn’t be enough to make me relax and enjoy it.
There’s actually a restaurant called ‘The Frog and The Peach’?
Is that one of Sir Arthur Streeb-Greebling’s?
Well, of course you shouldn’t go if you can’t afford it. That would take the enjoyment out of it. But if you’ve got the finances to splurge once in awhile, why not treat yourself? I’m not saying go into debt, but many of the high-end restaurants are well worth the price.
Two years ago my whole family when to a suit coats required type resturant and it was, without a doubt, the worst resturant meal I had ever had. Most of the food was cold and some wasn’t even right, the waitress spill half a pitched of water down the back of my shirt (I normally wouldn’t have minded that much, as accidents happen, but New England in December is cold). We complained to the manager to little avail. Not much fun, really.
When I was interviewing for grad school, they wined and dined us quite well. We joked that their goal was to get us drunk in hopes that we’d wake up and find out that we had accidentally matriculated. One place took us to this amazing resturant in Napa Valley that had to have been incredible expensive. It was an amazing experience. It restored my faith in nice resturants.
In general though, I’d rather go out for Indian or pizza and soda, personally, than wine and lobster, but that’s just me.
My sister and her husband have gone to L’Espalier several times, and rave about it.
I haven’t done the high-end thing in a while, mostly because I have young kids, but I used to be able to go on special occasions, usually on my mom or sister’s dime. For a while, we weren’t doing Thansgiving or Christmas at anyone’s house, but going out to eat instead, and they generally chose the very high end places.
miss bunny , have you ever been to Silks ? My sister, BIL, and mom went there for Christmas dinner one year when I was dining at my in-laws. Evidently it was sublime.
One of the joys of living in Tokyo, truely world class food. Not for the meek, they do charge you.
I’ve had some incredible meals here, including The New York Grill, at the Park Hyatt (featured in Lost in Translation) and others. It can get insane here, with dinners, including wine, running $400 to $500. I’ve only done those for business – that’s too much for me.
That’s pretty common in ski areas, and I love it. They don’t usually expect people to have brought extra clothes, so you can go to some really high-end food places, without the high end pretension.
I’m with you. Besides disliking most things you need to dress up for, I’m a eat to live person, so the quality of the food - especially since I’m a picky eater with food allergies & intolerances that limit my choices even more - is probably going to be lost on me. $10 for food I might not even care for is much better than $100+ for the same result. I used to get dragged to nice resturants as a kid and for a few jobs I’ve had, and I’m glad I don’t have to put up with that at the moment - I rarely like the meals.
I went to my first high-end, three figure meal restaurant this past July Fourth.
It was beautiful, with a gorgeous view, a maitre’d, cloth napkins, wonderful wine. I had scallops that just melted in my mouth, the most amazing coconut shrimp I’ve ever tasted in my life, Ahi poke, and some kind of tender, tender delicious beef… (most of these were appetizers, the scallops were my main course, served with asparagus and some sort of very elegant looking potatoes in a creamy sauce). The waitress took our orders and kept our wine glasses filled, but the chef delivered the main courses personally.
It was amazing. The service was polite and friendly, the food was beyond everything I’ve ever tasted. But never again. It’s not the prices… not the service… not the incredible food. It just wasn’t our style, in the end. I will never forget it, but I also don’t want to go back. It’s a very weird feeling. I love it, but don’t want it. I am glad we did it, though.
Also, it has nothing to do with my recent discovery of gallbladder disease, I made up my mind as we left the restaurant, still giddy with wine. “What a wonderful experience!” I clapped, “Let’s never do it again!” Mr. Stasaeon agreed… though I think part of the decision for him had to do with his smoking debit card.
I’d be up for it, sure. Although right at the moment, I haven’t a thing to wear.
lorene, haven’t seen you around for a bit, I was starting to get worried. Nothing wrong, I hope.
Oh, and I have to try Blue Ginger out in Wellesley one of these days. I’ve heard great things about it.
I’m the same way–allergies, pickiness, and not liking to dress up.
I’ve never been to a high-end restaurant, and if I ever find myself in one I have no doubt I will make an embarrassing fool out of myself in many ways.
We go for really special occasions. But to me, the cost isn’t worth it. I tend to enjoy meals from less expensive restaurants just as much. Also I will use any excuse to dress up, so I will dress up even when going to an average-priced restaurant.
I find the style of waiting at high-end restaurants over the top. I would rather be left alone a bit more. So, I definitely would not go to a high-end restaurany for the service.
We do go out to eat often to “middle of the range” restaurants. I’m sure if we preferred high-end restaurants we’d go out to those, but not nearly as often.