Originally posted by Emibubba:
I don't think you can throw a dead cat without hitting a Grumbler in Atlanta. Or however it is that Ron so eloquently puts it......
That quote makes me laugh every time I hear it, but the credit goes to Mark Twain! Ok, Ron gets credit for making it mainstream Grumbleeze.
Mike, I think the same place. McCormick and Schmick's was a good place, and convenient. It was easier to move around and visit with others than the seating arrangements at Pitty's. Food was good. Later, some of us simply moved upstairs to the bar and continued conversations, so that was convenient. The staff was very professional.
I heard last year that some thought it was too pricey for their wallet, but you get what you pay for in my opinion. After tax and gratuity, dinner ran about $45. per. I don't think we could do much better in downtown Atlanta for quality and convenience.
The only 2 hitches last year were these: there were a lot of last minutes drop outs and add-ons to the dining roster which made it challenging. We ended up short about 5 seats and it took a while to find extra seats as the restaurant was full. It turned out OK, and I realize some people can't give a definitive answer until the last moment, but if one more person had shown up, we would have had to turn them away, due to our contract. I'll try to secure extra seats this year a couple of hours before dinner so that we don't have people standing waiting.
The other was some were confused over the bill. They will only break down the bill by table, but dinner is a set price for everyone PLUS your "drinks". So, someone at each table needs to be the accountant and let the waiters know how much to charge each credit card. Not as convenient as individual tickets, but I assure you, NO ONE is going to give individual tickets to a party of 40-50.
This is my personal preference, but I'll take the party wherever the majority wants. If I hear an resounding appeal for another place, we'll go!