Surprising Experience at Shula's (Better Title!)

[Uncleromulus]

We eat at Shula's all the time and this is the first time I've ever heard of something like this taking place.
I suspect this was a "one time" incident and something that rarely happens.
I don't think anyone has to be especially wary of getting the wrong steak at Shula's...

 

[daisyduck123]

Thanks for posting.

We've dined at Shula's before...always a perfect dinner experience. We do have an dinner reservation for an upcoming holiday too - Father's Day....I'm sure I'll remember your experience while we are eating there that evening.

 

[DisneyStarWisher]

We eat at Shula's all the time and this is the first time I've ever heard of something like this taking place.
I suspect this was a "one time" incident and something that rarely happens.
I don't think anyone has to be especially wary of getting the wrong steak at Shula's...

That's good to know.

 

[DisneyStarWisher]

Thanks for posting.

We've dined at Shula's before...always a perfect dinner experience. We do have an dinner reservation for an upcoming holiday too - Father's Day....I'm sure I'll remember your experience while we are eating there that evening.

That was one of the holidays they mentioned when they don't take the restaurant.com certificate. Just an FYI.

 

[daisyduck123]

That was one of the holidays they mentioned when they don't take the restaurant.com certificate. Just an FYI.

Thanks, but we plan on using our TIW card...it's actually good on that date, although Mother's Day is not.

 

[Silver Queen]

Thanks for the heads-up Disney Star Wisher. I'm sorry that happened to you, as many posters mentioned, it puts you in a no-win situation. Also, as you mentioned, a few posters did not read your original post carefully. There are many good people here on the boards so I hope that this experience won't discourage you from posting in the future.

 

[DaisyMaisie]

"To play devil's advocate, sometimes it's easier to take what was served, even if it is not exactly correct, so that you don't have to wait for a new piece to be cooked, while his wife doesn't either have to eat without him, or wait for him and have her meal get cold. Realistically, it's a lose-lose. "

No way. At a place like Shula's the whole table MUST be served at the same time. Unless the husband insisted that he was happy with the wrong cut (and I have done this) they should have taken both plates away, gave them a complimentary appetizer while they waited and rushed two hot fresh steaks (which really don't take long anyway.)

The real lesson I take from this post is that if you aren't happy do not pretend you are. You can very politely get exactly what you want. The servers that day may have thought that what the couple wanted was a free dessert.

 

[cjsm&d]

No, as I stated earlier, the server informed us that she had written down the correct order but mistakenly told the chef the wrong cut of meat. There was no correct steak sitting back in the kitchen.

Not to upset you more, but you didn't say that the server said she ordered the wrong steaks for you.

 

[cjsm&d]

Thanks for posting.

We've dined at Shula's before...always a perfect dinner experience. We do have an dinner reservation for an upcoming holiday too - Father's Day....I'm sure I'll remember your experience while we are eating there that evening.

I'll be there on Saturday Feb. 26! And they had better get my 12 ounce filet mignon right!

 

[A_Princess'_Daddy]

...I just thought it was ironic that we listened to and watched a 5-minute presentation of the different cuts of meat before we ordered and that the server recommended the porterhouse, then ordered the wrong steak! She even said that she wrote down the Porterhouse, but told the chef the New York Strip.

Not to upset you more, but you didn't say that the server said she ordered the wrong steaks for you.

Yes, she did.

 

[cjsm&d]

Yes, she did.

Sorry, my bad!

 

[DisneyStarWisher]

Thanks for the heads-up Disney Star Wisher. I'm sorry that happened to you, as many posters mentioned, it puts you in a no-win situation. Also, as you mentioned, a few posters did not read your original post carefully. There are many good people here on the boards so I hope that this experience won't discourage you from posting in the future.

You are right. There are great people on this board. I was just surprised to post something about my trip and then be criticized for something that didn't happen, all because some people weren't reading the posts carefully. If you are going to criticize, read the posts carefully first. This experience won't stop me from posting on the boards, as my first Shula's experience won't stop me from eating there. I'm pretty easy-going and don't hold grudges.

 

[Peter Pirate 2]

Yes, but if they'd replaced his steak, she would have had to eat alone and then watch him eat when his arrived, or wait on his steak while hers grew cold, or, if they'd replaced both steaks, the correct course of action, have their dinner delayed 15-20 minutes. None of the three is a good outcome when paying for a quality meal and experience.

Mistakes do happen, and it's too bad, but they should not happen when paying over $200 for a meal (our minimum tab for two at Shula's) and if they do, the diner has a right to be frustrated. And that's all the OP is saying, that she's frustrated.

+200.00 for two??? Wow. We ate their last weekend and it was 215.00 for 4!!! Including tip, btw.

 

[DisneyStarWisher]

+200.00 for two??? Wow. We ate their last weekend and it was 215.00 for 4!!! Including tip, btw.

I can definitely see it costing $200 for 2. Our bill (including tax and tip) was $125, and we didn't get any appetizers or alcohol and we didn't have to pay for dessert. If you added those things on, it could easily be $200.

 

[LockShockBarrel]

Unfortunately, crap happens. Things get busy in the kitchen, servers are trying to keep tickets straight and honestly I think having food runners makes the situation worse. Even at Disney or even though you're paying that much for a meal, things can get messed up. I do agree with other posters that your husband should have just asked for the porterhouse if that's what he wanted, but by saying it was ok, I can see why a server would not offer a replacement. If the customer says its ok and seems happy, why would they push it? In the ideal world, yes they'd offer a replacement to you without asking, but we all know the world is less than ideal. Anyway, thanks for the warning and hopefully it was just a one off experience.

 

[A_Princess'_Daddy]

+200.00 for two??? Wow. We ate their last weekend and it was 215.00 for 4!!! Including tip, btw.

It is obviously highly dependent on what you get, but very approximately:

2 Fillets at $40 each = $80
2 Appetizers at $10 each = $20
2 Sides to share for the table at $7 each = $14
2 Desserts at $10 each = $20
2 cocktails at $9 each = $18
2 glasses of wine at $9 each = $18
Sub Total = $170
Tax at 6% = $10
Tip at 20% = $34
Total = $214.00

Obviously anybody can eat for less (any combination of skip/share appetizers, skip/share desserts, skip/share/reduce sides, reduce/eliminate alcoholic drinks or drink water, etc.) or more (get an expensive bottle of wine, a couple cocktails, order lobster, etc.), but that's an average.

Sometimes we spend less, sometimes more, but yes, for my wife and I we probably average around $200 for a nice dinner at Shula's or a restaurant that is comparable in menu and price.

 

[dalt01]

First of all, I'm not complaining now as many of you have stated.



And many of you are obviously not reading carefully! We were NOT offered a replacement!

Sorry to some of you for posting about a situation that I thought some might want to know about. Won't happen again. First time I've felt this way on the boards.

As far as the wrong cut, the manager was never called. In fact, the person who brought out the steak didn't say much of anything at all. He set the steak in front of my DH who then said, "Did I not order the 24 oz. porterhouse?" The man said, "Oh, did we bring you the wrong steak?" My DH responded, "Yes, but it will be ok"

i do not know how much more carefully i could read this.............your husband said it was ok..........at that point the server was off the hook, your husband caused that to happen.........but ............you still were in awe that a replacement was not offered.......no one was attacking you, we were just stating facts.........it is what you wrote. i think where the confusion is...................that you felt even though your husband said it was ok you think they should have pursued it farther and said something like..........no, no, we insist on replacing that!!!!! but then you say that even if that had happened you would have still refused.........sort of like saying........i got wet cause i did not put my umbrella up......so......i will never carry that umbrella again

 

[Euphoria027]

 

[fla4fun]

Sorry OP that your Valentine's dinner wasn't up to par.

It could have been worse. A story to illustrate . . . . .

One day our office (about six people in all) went out to lunch at a new eatery here in Orlando (which shall remain nameless, since it's no where near Disney). We all placed our orders. When the food came out, the server said one meal was taking a little longer, but would be out in a minute. So that person told the rest of us to start eating anyway so our food wouldn't get cold.

As we started eating, one of the five took a few bites of their sandwich and commented that it wasn't exactly what they expected - not bad, just different. You know how it is with a new restaurant - you order something you think you'll like and it may be different than what you expect.

About that time, the server comes out with the last plate. The server went to the person who had commented about their meal being "different" and took their plate away (giving them the new plate) and said "I gave you the wrong plate" and proceeded to give the partially eaten plate to the person who had been patiently waiting! We were all just stunned - absolutely speechless! There had probably been a 15 minute gap between when the first plates were dropped off and the last plate arrived. The server hadn't come back to the table to see how everything was, so there wasn't an opportunity to ask about the "different" sandwich. Obviously, the two people involved switched plates back and ate each other's selections - and we haven't gone back to that restaurant since.

Just sayin' - at least you ordered steak and received steak, and it didn't have any bites taken out of it!

 

[cluvsdisney]

You are right. There are great people on this board. I was just surprised to post something about my trip and then be criticized for something that didn't happen, all because some people weren't reading the posts carefully. If you are going to criticize, read the posts carefully first. This experience won't stop me from posting on the boards, as my first Shula's experience won't stop me from eating there. I'm pretty easy-going and don't hold grudges.

It's easier to get the most objective responses when all the information is stated up top - the original post didn't state the waiter wrote down the wrong cut of steak.

I am sorry you had a disappointing meal. I am not exactly sure what else you expected the restaurant to do after your DH said the meal he was served was ok. They won't just take his plate away. If he wanted a replacement, he should have said so. They would be happy to oblige and would have taken both plates away and prepared new meals for both of you. It really doesn't take too long to make steaks, it just seems so when you dine because they space the courses. As it was, they apologized and gave you a free dessert which I think is appropriate.

I hope it won't deter you from giving it another try one day. We have been there a couple of times and always had an enjoyable meal without any issues. If you want to try another local steakhouse, I can recommend Charlies. There are a couple in the local area...very good!