Well, I'd never been there so I called ahead to get the details. It seems the Asian restaurant has some Latin dancing on Saturday night, which was supposed to start at 11:00pm, so the kitchen will close then. No big deal, we'll be out of there way before then.
So, my date and I arrive at about 9:15 and the guy asks us for our names and $10 each. I'm confused and ask, "Seriously? Is that for some kind of buffet or something?" Turns out, they were charging tickets for the Latin dancing that would happen 2 hours later. Ok, I'm not staying for that, just dinner... please proceed to the next step.
So we get taken to our seats right away. We're put in a dark corner next to the dishroom, with only a screen divider between us and that. It was litterally so dark I had to use the light from my cell phone to see the menu. There were several other free tables, so I asked to be moved and was accomodated. (Incidently, a couple of ladies were later seated at the same table later, and we chuckled to see them both using their cell phones to read their menus.)
The server, Lance, took our drink and appetizer order. About 15 minutes later my drink is empty and the wrong appetizers arrive. The server and food runner have a bickering contest, and the food returns to the kitchen. After 10 more minutes, the correct appetizers arrive. I request a refill, in vain, and place our dinner orders. I ordered the ginger soy salmon and their In & Out Roll. The waiter raves about the roll, claiming it's one of his top three favorite rolls. No refill.
A food runner brought our dinners, less the sushi roll. I thought maybe he needed to make another trip, so I didn't ask about it just yet. I never got the roll at roll at all. In the mean time the band started coming in. It was cold out, near freezing, and they propped the door open while they carried in equiptment. We were shivering and our food was instantly cold. It was only 10:00pm (yes, we were there 45 minutes before getting served our dinner) and they were already beating drums and tuning up.
That was the end of our ability to have any conversation at the table. Within a few minutes, the band was so crowded they were actually bumping into our table. We were seated in non-smoking, but several of the band members were smoking, and one was attempting to be courteous to the person he was talking to, by holding the cigarette behind his back and in my face.
The food was actually pretty good. My salmon was slightly overcooked, but I wouldn't have even mentioned it, except for everything else. My date got the Mongolian Beef which was awesome. I wish I'd been able to try their sushi, which was the entire reason I went.
At this point, we just couldn't wait to leave. Our server, Lance, had not returned to the table since taking our order, although we frequently saw him at his other tables. We tried to catch his eye, even waved to get his attention. Finally, we stopped another server and asked them to retrieve Lance. When he finally arrived, having stopped at several other tables on the way to ours, he didn't even say a word - just looked at us expectantly. I asked for the check, and he said "okay" and walked away.
It took another 10 minutes to get the check, and 10 more to get my card back once I'd paid. I tipped Lance 99 cents, hoping that he'd know it was intentional and I hadn't just forgotten to tip.
After leaving the restaurant I called and spoke to Dave Evans, the manager, from inside the Levee. I recanted the story I've just told you, and he responded that he didn't know how to make things right. I left my name and number for him to call me back on Monday. No call. I left messages on Weds, and on Friday. No call. Finally, I called on Sunday and he offered me $30 in gift certificates. At that point I just wanted my money back. He told me he'd check with the owner and return my call within a few hours. No call. This week I've been leaving messages for Alex Chin, the owner. No call.
At this point, I'm just never going back there again.
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