L.A. Girl Way Too Casual for Citronelle
Eddie Gehman Kohan, one of Los Angeles' cheeky Haphazard Gourmet Girls, e-mailed me this afternoon to share her recent experience at Michel Richard Citronelle. She was on the war path, clearly. She wasn't after Richard's head, but that of the maitre d', who stopped Kohan on the way out of Citronelle and said that her young companion's denim wasn't appropriate for the Georgetown institution.
Writes Kohan:
How, we wondered, had our dinner turned into that scene in Pretty Woman, y'know, the one where Julia Roberts, ultra-fetching whore, gets dissed by the shopkeepers on Rodeo Drive because she's dressed "wrong?"
Kohan told me that the Haphazard Gourmet Girls "agree with the loss of that star in the Wash Post dining guide." She went on to say this at the end of her hilarious rant:
Dining, these days, is as much about having a good experience as it is about good food, and Citronelle fulfills only half this equation. We'll not be returning any time soon; the very special Crow a la Hubris tasting menu that's being offered is not to our liking. We didn't get food poisoning at Citronelle, we got mood poisoning. And sometimes, that's far worse.
OK, let's hear your thoughts? Is this Haphazard Gourmet Girl being too harsh? Or is she right on the money? (Oh, and please read her whole rant before commenting. It'll make the discussion so much more interesting.)
9:13 pm
No, they're pretty close, though I am betting they were a little more than ticked about bringing their rejected LA sensibilities into a DC-minded restaurant. My wife and I went to Citronelle recently and gathered much the same opinion, shares with the fact that Richard needs to get back in the kitchen to assure the freshness and quality of his highly original presentations is restored. At one time Citronelle was amongst the best in the country. I wouldn't consider it one of the 5 or 10 best in town at this point. Sad when you consider the cost of 'above average'.
3:49 am
I've always been irritated by restaurants that have a dress code. If you need me to dress up to create the ambiance for your establishment, you're not doing your job.
If I'm going to blow $300 on a meal, I want to feel like a movie star. And what do movie stars wear out to eat at fine dining establishments? Denim.
10:25 am
The La blogger's experience seems right in line with why Citronelle lost a star. Clearly the PR person you interviewed and restaurant management simply aren't working fast enough to correct problems. 20008 is so right, too. And besides, if you're requiring diners to live up to certain out-dated standards of formality regarding dress, your entire staff better be highly trained "formalists" themselves. It's too bad about Citronelle. My parner and I don't go there any more either, but had some excellent meals when they first opened.
10:48 am
The behavior of the maitre 'd--the inappropriate touching--is disgusting and pejorative. Would he have done this to a male member of the party?
And the fact that it didn't occur to him that the party had just dropped a big pile of cash seems to indicate that he doesn't have the interests of the restaurant NOR the contemporary customer in mind. He's thinking about a couple of old school customers whom denim MAY have offended 30 years ago.
Atmosphere plus food = great dining experience. The maitre d's behavior clearly nixed the entire experience. It gives me pause. I'd like a gracious dining experience where I am confident that the matire d' not only knows his place--serviturde--the customer is always right-- and also knows that good manners were invented to keep everybody comfortable. He needs a refresher in etiquette.
3:38 pm
Tim,
You ask if the haphazard girl is right on the money, and the answer is yes. The maitre d's bizarre rudeness is just one of many reasons they're no longer one of the best restaurants in town. Big staff turnover, a tired menu, etc. The idiocy of following the group out of the place and giving sartorial instructions is almost beyond belief. What was that man hoping to accomplish, other than fury? He got that, and yet he's lucky the bloggers were even handed, because certainly they could've slammed the food, too. Perhaps if Citronelle focuses on the details within their restaurant rather than insulting customers who have paid a lot of money for dinner, it will return to its former glory. Or perhaps they have just become completely passe, as a dress code seems to indicate.
5:05 pm
Okay, I'll be the odd one out.
I think it's perfectly acceptable for a place to set their own dress code. I don't think that any denim is "dressy", no matter what whatever fashion house says, and I think the maitre d was nice, if a bit clumsy in execution, by not turning the young lady away at the door to start with.
Citronelle is Citronelle. If ya don't like it, don't go there.
Oh, and I also found the random (or whatever) gourmet's rant to be incredibly self-absorbed. It was difficult to finish.
9:51 pm
Dress codes are one thing, but inflicting them upon children is certainly another.
I grew up in Los Angeles, where Michel Richard had a tiny little patisserie on Robertson Blvd, which was THE place to get your desserts. So of course when Michel Richard opened Citronelle, I was enchanted.
But each visit has had something wrong with it. And twice, it's been the attitude of the staff.
The attitude of staff should NOT be noticed. When service is good, it's a delight; when it's poor, or rude, it ruins the whole meal.
Taking away the star is a good spanking.
Taking away custumers--customers taking away themselves--is a better spanking.
10:42 am
Damn impudence. The strangely emboldened maitre d’ ought to be reprimanded. To think the poor woman traveled all the way from LA to be subjected to this. I shall not set my foot in Citronelle as long as I live.
3:34 am
Uh oh. Found this little tale of woe when googling for fine places to dine for an upcoming college-visit trip to DC. It seems that the Los Angeles people and the Washington Post food critic are not the only ones who are less than enthusiastic about Citronelle, if the blogosphere is any indication (and certainly it is). I personally agree with the idea that this was a ridiculous display of terrible manners on the part of the maitre d. What part does dress play in an overall experience of dining these days? It seems especially ridiculous in DC, where you've had multiple terms of people who wear cowboy boots to state dinners in the White House. Sounds like Citronelle needs to spend less time insulting and disappointing patrons (and overseeing their clothing) and much more time working on their own problems. We'll be eating elsewhere. Thank you for the alert on this one.
3:36 am
And PS--I'm the father of the prospective college student. And I certainly hope she never runs into such nonsense when she's old enougth to be enjoying restaurants on her own!
9:31 am
Yes, yes, yes. The maitre d’ sure came across as a rude despiser of good manners, transgressing slave who caused offense with his behavior. Such rudeness should be universally opposed because it sets a dangerous example. First wayward maitre d’, then what, kitchen pot-scrubbers revolt?..
12:13 pm
Gee - I think there is only one person's side of the story here. Crazy. But, to join in, with only this information to go by, I'll have to agree with 'feelings bruised much?', if you don't like the dress code, don't go there. It's not the only place with a dress code, and yeah, I bet there are lots of people in Washington who do like the formality. Now - how many bottles of wine had they drunk with dinner? Could this be a slightly distorted rant?
2:08 pm
Mardou--missing the point. And implying drunkeness is just plain stupid, since the "mis-dressed" person was a child. Dress codes are outdated, even in a city that "likes" formality. It is what blogger Gehman Kohan says--some kind of hold-over from the days of discrimination. Why should a restaurant care what patrons wear, as long as they are covered? How does this improve the dining experience, other than in the preening egos of people who want to show off their fine clothes and apparent status? Food tastes the same whether you're in jeans or silk. So does wine. But bad manners are bad manners no matter what you're wearing.
2:41 pm
they should lose 2 stars- one for the decling quality of the food, one for deplorable treatment of diners!
2:58 pm
The blog post states the "child" could "have stepped out of the pages of Teen Vogue". Most teens are minors, but does that make them children who are not accountable to standards? It's not that difficult. My 4 year old (in DC Public school) complies with a dress code.
But that's beside the implication Mardou (for whatever reason) was making: that the blog-post author was drunk, not the teen.
9:06 pm
Are YOU PEOPLE drunk? It's a satirical piece of writing about a timely subject. And btw, "Read Much," your child attends a free public school and MUST follow dress code. The writer was paying for dinner, paying for what should have been a pleasurable experience. And she points out that they weren't told a dress code existed. Apparently you DON'T read much. Management was wrong and rude. Dress code or not, you don't chastise diners AFTER they've dined. You turn them away up front, or keep your mouth shut tight.
9:57 pm
I see that you take my view of things, John. It’s either the maitre had ideas above his station or drank too much of Citronelle’s good wine as to forget himself. If latter, the Somalia should be reprimanded just as well, or fired even. Quite frankly, the entire joint can go to the devil for all I care.
7:13 pm
Actually, I did read. Way too much, actually.
According to their own story, they called and were given the dress requirements for men. If you're honest with your self, you'll admit that to be the practice of most discerning places. The woman's dress code, rightly or wrongly, is traditionally inferred from the mens'.
Think "black tie" invitations, in case you still don't get it.
7:58 pm
What are you, “read much“, an idiot?
Restaurant certainly can turn away a party up front, if it chooses, but you don't reprimand the diners
a f t er they paid for the meal. This is not done.
You seldom read, do you? Actually.
2:59 pm
Sure I do. I read enough to know that: "The Teen Vogue child arrived with her real parent fifteen minutes after the rest of the party was already seated." At that point, the obviously greater offense would have been to turn the whole party away, or to put a "child" back out on the street by herself. Heck, the other members of the party had probably ordered drinks and/or appetizers by then, anyway.
So, rather than commit either of those offenses, the maitre d chose to try to try a little friendly education- after serving the entire party what they "agreed that it was the best dinner we'd had anywhere, in ages, forks down." Unfortunately, that turned out to be a counter productive waste of his valuable time.
Earnest: It's obvious we don't agree on what constitutes good manners or taste. I won't continue wasting my time trying to explain to you what I think those are. But I imagine we can agree that we're both much happier knowing that there are places where we can indulge our different senses of good manners and taste- separately.
6:39 pm
That will work. Let's meet as little as we can. Goodbye.
7:02 pm
I would encourage the above posters to inquire about dress codes at other DC restaurants, which include CityZen (jeans are discouraged, jackets required) and Prime Rib (tie required), for example. You shouldn't single out Citronelle. Also, it is a highly regarded restaurant - regardless if it known by the Washington Post as 3.5 stars... I believe Zagat and other raters still rate Citronelle as one of the top 20 restaurant in the country - therefore, it should be assumed denim is not permitted.
11:04 pm
Donning denim for a night in Georgetown is wholly inappropriate, unless one is going to a Western or rodeo theme party. A jacket & tie are de riguer for men; women must wear short dresses or miniskirts. Dress appropriately or stay in your suburban home or community. Thank you.
Signed, the Fashion Police