We finally tried Oolong and were pleased. The food was very good, although the atmosphere was a bit loud on the evening we were there. Unfortunately-My first two wine choices were sold out-luckily the third time was a charm and that bottle opened quite nice. Oolong reminds me of TenPenh a really good pan-asian spot in DC.

I'm looking forward to my upcoming dinner at Fore Street. I hope it turns out as delicious as yours!

I went to Oolongn for lunch today. Couldn't have been nicer.

I tried Oolong twice and the duck wrappers, again, were the only decent bit. I'd rather save my Asian fix for Chinatown.

OH MY GOD--JOHN GOLDEN ATE AT FORE STREET?!?!?!? Please tell us more!!!!!

mmmm ... carrot cake ...

Jes,

Great to see that after such a short time at your new job, you've already found time to post during business hours. Welcome back!!!

groooooooooan, brett weir is back too

After hearing reading so much about Front Room, my wife and I finally decided to give it a go Saturday night. Knowing that they don't take reservations, we waited until about 8:30 to walk through the doors. I tried calling a five or six times beforehand to check on the wait, but they never answered their phone. This was frustrating, but whatever. So, we walk in at about 8:30, survey the scene (at least 10-12 people waiting in their small waiting area) and turn right around before speaking with a host/ hostess. Maybe I'm missing something, but is there a legitimate reason why a restaurant like this doesn't accept reservations? Can someone help me out here? I can understand keeping a certain number of tables available for walk-ins, sure. But the only thing you're doing by not allowing reservations is excluding a certain segment of the population who would rather not be bothered by such a nuisance. This practice seems no different than trendy new bars creating buzz by letting lines unnecessarily build up outside. It's annoying, and, frankly, it seems transparently juvenile. We went to Duckfat and enjoyed their new Friday-Saturday night menu, which is definitely worth checking out. Front Room may be great too, but is it really worth the hassle?

Restaurants not taking reservations is not new and trendy and very different from the "velvet rope". Many small restaurants are not willing to take reservations because, and please don't take this personally, because all too often restaurant patrons are inconsiderate when they have changed their minds and decide to go somewhere else and don't bother to call. Even large, popoular places like Fore Street use this policy so as to maximize their revenue. A few years back it was becoming common practice for restaurants to take reservations only with a credit card and then a cancellation fee would be imposed if no one called to cancel. Obviously it was not a well received policy although some places till do this on major holidays (Mother's day or New YEar's Eve). Small places in particular need every seat filled since the profit in restaurants is so tiny. Think of of it as retail space and maximizing your sales for every square foot of space. For a seat to go empty due to an incosiderate patron is not worth the risk. Yes, there are often people waiting who would eagerly take the seats but not always.

Another reason a restaurant may not take reservations especially when new is that they are still learning timing of courses as well as understanding how long their patrons like to dine ( I am sure there are studies on this somewhere). Therefore, it may be better to wait without a reservation then to have one and wait longer then the specified time. I can see that angering people a whole lot more.

HR, you sound like you know your stuff, so I'll accept your explanation to a degree. It obviously makes sense that restaurants would rather have guaranteed patrons than empty seats caused by rude would-be diners who don't show up for their reservations. (For the record, people like this disgust me). BUT, why not devote, say, 25 percent of a night's tables to reservations? Then, if people don't show, you slot the people who are waiting into their spots. If the food is good and reliable -- and by all indications this is the case at Front Room -- then a policy like this would be the perfect solution. Or maybe don't accept reservations until after a certain time, when business is usually dying down anyway. Maybe Front Room is still working out the kinks, figuring out how long the courses take, etc., and then they will re-evaluate the reservation policy issue. I hope so. My wife and I would like to try the place, but we refuse to force-feed ourselves a meal at 5 p.m., and it's not always convenient to wait until 9 p.m. or after. I can't imagine we're alone here ... oh, and by the way, maybe I read your post wrong, but Fore Street does accept reservations.

What I meant to reference with Fore Street is their hardline approach to reservations. It is my understanding that if you are more than 15 minutes late they will not honor it.

I could see manipulating the Front Room policy to allow for 25% or after certain times or hours of the evening. The problem with it however is asking the general public to decipher and remember what those policies are. That is even more work than asking people to pick up the phone to reserve.

I'm a fan of reservations. I like to know where I'm going and when to arrive. ON the other hand a place like The Front Room will always be hard to get into with or without reservations. Yet Caiola's, which is very popular and 555, use the reservation system to their advantage. I agree. It's annoying. but so too is not being able to get a reservation.

I have no quarrel with the Front Room's reservation policy. They have deemed themselves as a neighborhood restaurant and I think they have been true to this. If you live in the area and you stop by and the place is packed - you come by another night. While this may be frustrating for people from out of town, it is clearly working. The place is packed and usually with people from the area.

Since there is so much talk of the Front Room, I figured I'd post their new website address which features their menu.

www.thefrontroomrestaurant.com

Let's face it, call it what you will, but the Front Room is a Bistro in a near classic sense of the term. As such, a reservation policy is out of place and simply won't work. If you were to, say, leave 25% of the seats available for walk-in traffic, that's a mere 10 seats in a 40 seat room. Not a lot of real estate to service the do-drop-in market that great neighborhood joints rely on and bend over backward to create. Moreover, in such a small and casual room, if you were to reserve a table for 6:30, the restaurant wouldn't seat that table between 5:30 and your impending arrival. Do that to the rest of the room, and you've chopped this tiny Bistro's ability to make a dime until it's convenient for you. Not to mention all the folks in the neighborhood who now have to plan ahead to drop in. Besides, "First Come, First Served" is awfully democratic, egalitarian and all that, don't you think?

I'm sorry revCo but that is no way to run a business. The restuarant business is about customer service. While I agree the food is good there must be some sort of reservation policy. By the way Ribolita's takes reservations and has thrived at a similar size. "first come, first served?" that sounds more like wild Bills bbq barn than a bistro. how can you plan a night out not knowing if you can get in?? I just don't get this logic at all. what we need is a restranteur with deep pockets to come in open a nice size room with great food. also, caiolas takes reservations. it works trust me I know

All this talk! Wow! I see many size restaurants taking reservations. If a restaurant doesn’t that is there business however if a place is more then 40 seats and expects people to pay good money ($50+) a couple then it should. Besides, any service industry should, with-in reason, accommodate there guest needs.

Personally, I like Uffa!, Back Bay Grill and 98 Provance(sp?). They all take reservations, treat their guest right and have great service and food.

Uffa! you can eat for cheap, do it up big or go for desserts. They take care of there guest regardless of the size of the bill. They take reservation and are the only one who take them online (uffarestaurant.com). Uffa! has been doing good solid food at all prices for three years, way before it was the in thing. I eaten there so many times and it is always good, affordable and with a focus on treating the guest right. The Chef even comes out and says thanks. I’ve yet to see a chef anywhere’s else walk into his dining room and thank each table.

When I want to spurge “98” and the Back Bay are the best. All of the above are have talented chefs, take reservations, you leave full, great wines and you feel the truly care about your dollars.

I believe "not taking reservations" IS a reservations policy. Don't like it? Don't go.

Uffa takes care of their guests ?(as long as they are not children)

By the way, Sam at Fore Street is often seen talking with customers.

The same at Back Bay Grill

I believe, as the vast majority of people do, "not taking reservations" IS NOT a reservations policy. If the Front Room is that paranoid about an empty table, they should have looked for another business in which to make a living.

This is absurd- you have no right to insisit that people run their business the way that you want them to. If it means that much to you to have a reservation go somewhere that takes them- or, better yet, open your own restaurant then YOU can do whatever you want. I don't know a business where people offer more unwanted advice than to restaurnt owners. I have owned restaurants in S.F. and here in Maine and this obsession with reservations is ridiculous. We live in a time where no one wants to wait -hurry, hurry, hurry and everyone wants to have it their way- try making EVERYBODY happy. There are as many people who like to eat out last minute and are thankful that there is somewhere to get a seat on a Saturday night at 6:00 as there are people who want to know two weeks in advance what they are doing. The funny thing is, is that everybody wants to eat at the same time on the same 2 nights- and don't understand why they can't- figure it out and stop whining!

Why in the world should the Front Room consider another line of business. To make you happy??. Norm's, Blue Spoon and The Front Room all do not take reservations and they all do very well. Their main market and concern are the regulars that live and eat in their neighborhood. For most of us who are not so god damn uptight and in a hurry, we do not mind grabbing a cocktail and mingling with our neighboors and friends as we wait for a table. If this does not interest you, then do not come. There are plenty of people who are willing to wait and take your table.

The best proof of how why not taking reservations works, is how packed these places are each night.

It's about time someone said it. Thank you Daphne. However, as long as there is a soapbox, they will continue to whine

Saturday night at 6. HA. Good luck with that ... the whole "neighborhood restaurant" thing cracks me up to. If The Front Room relied exclusively on East Enders for its business -- like E. Johnson seems to think is the case -- it would be out of business within six months. With the restaurant market as competitive as it is in Portland, it seems like appealing to all foodies (by taking reservations, for instance) would be a smart thing to do ... but again, maybe I'm just sour because I don't have the patience to wait for an hour at 8:30 on a Saturday.

Nobody goes there anymore, it's too crowded.

These comments for support of a non-reservatinon policy are borderline ridiculous. Every restuarant should have at least some tables you can reserve. It's a customer service issue in my mind something some restuarants seem to lack.for instance I really enjoy the front room but how can I plan to go with out of town guest on a friday unable to make a reservation?? Just take a chance I can get in and than if I don't try another place I may or may not get into?? It makes no sense and is nonsense! some posters are just sophmoric and quite frankly absurd in the answers they give. "open your own restuarant," or "go somewhere else it's a neighborhood restuarant." yeah, whatever...
More restuarants fail each year than succeed even after a grand opening couple of months. i want all portland restuarants to succeed. there are many restuarants that are small and take reservations ie.. ribolitta,caiolas etc.. Not because they have to but because it's a service to part of their customer base. they would still be full without taking them. They are trying to establish goodwill by providing great customer service and allowing walk-ins. By doing so you can make more people content and more likely to stick around longer. As far as being a neighborhood restuarant and they want "the neighborhood" guest to be able to get in; that's nonsense. If it relied on only east end residents the place would be shut down by now. it's a good marketing ploy but it's not the reason for a non-reservation policy. If you go outside of portland to boston or new york very few restuarants have this policy. why??? because they realize the key to a restuarant BUSINESS and it is a BUSINESS is longevity. You create this with good food and great customer service. A non-reservation policy in my mind is poor customer service and leads to many unhappy patrons.

If you have guests visiting make a reservation at your second choice. Try the Front Room and if you get in, great! Then totally forget to cancel at the other place...

I have friends who visit every year in February to basically dine around Portland. The problem is that they always arrive here late on Friday night. Last year Fore Street took us after 10:00 and it was OK. Empty room and tired staff. My guests have never been to Street & Co., but last seating is 9:30-9:45 (if on-time, they land at 9:11). I was thinking Mims or maybe giving Fore Street another try. Any thoughts on the best late kitchen in Portland? Saturday we will be going to Cinque Terre and I was thinking The Front Room for brunch. I would like to take them to Bandol, but the trip is a reunion of sorts and I fear we would be a bit too boisterous.
Thanks

Sad that many only think portland has a handful of restaurants to truly offer patrons.
Branch out, peaople!!

If it's any consolation, I have taken these same guests to Local, Uffa, The Porthole, Becky's, Joe's, Barbara's Kitchen, 100 Congress, etc.

Please name the branches you would like us all to venture out on.

Everyone on this blog is an idiot. The fact that you all bellow and bloviate over such nonsense is pathetic. May you all be seated in the back and forgotten..

bunch a wannabes.

Dear JF- You couldn't help youself, but you just became an idiot! That's what makes this great.

I must be an idiot. I had to look up bloviate. Good word. Too bad it doesn't apply here as I see no one being boastful or pompous. So far, the only bellower is name thrower JF. Bunch of wannabees? Wanna be served and not wait all night? Yeah, I guess so

Fransisco's @ the Blue House Cafe
Bibbo's Maddy Apple
Caiola's
Yokasu

There you are, sir-4 more branches to tread your toes on.

About branching out, some of the best restaurants in the state are in Portland. However, I did say SOME. One of the best that many of you have not yet discovered is Anneke Jans in Kittery. The Executive Chef Charlie has got to be one of the top chefs in the state and maybe New England. I will post another undiscovered restaurant for you Portlanders next week. No disrespect, because one of my top 10 is in Portland (UFFA!) Go Chef James!

About branching out, I’m not a big food critic fan. I sometimes find that most of them don’t understand the operational challenges of running a restaurant and or a hotel. I have been in the restaurant and hotel industry for the last 20 years. Over the last 20 years I have learned that some of the more portentous restaurants are terrible. As a patron to many restaurants a month, I want good food done GREAT. I don’t want to go out with my wife, my family, or anyone else for that matter that needs to ask the server what some funky word is. When people dine out they pick places that they are comfortable with. If they can’t pronounce a menu item, they won’t order it. They may not even walk in the door. Dining in your restaurant should be the best experience in the world. That’s when you know a restaurant is a success. I would have to ask the host of this blog to understand this. Some of your readers have never been to a 5 star restaurant because of the intimidation factor. Owners should be taking lessons from customers and other restaurants and chefs. If you’re serving beef cheek tell them its beef cheek. If you’re serving intestines tells us from what animal. I will never visit Bandol again, because of the portentous crap. We dine out an average of 15 times a months, too you over whelming restaurants, think marketing and dollars. Not you’re EGO!

Every artist has an ego and people like the staff @ Bandol(which I have never dined at not for intimidation reasons--but because of monetary ones) and the like are artists with food as their medium. You may not always understand what they're trying to convey, but you have to--in some way--respect what they're doing.

As to the chefs talking with patrons...have you seen the way chef smith interacts with his guests, it's like they were coming to his home for dinner!!! A truly welcoming vibe

I havent seen this at the Front room yet. Actually, I hardly see chef Smith smile. Was this written by Harding himself? Your email address would indicate so...

Busted!

Ahhhh The joys of reading! Sometimes its best to remain silent and be thought a fool than speak and remove all doubts!