Chef Proud He Threw Lobster at Fussy Diner

Y'know, folks... I've worked in restaurants, I've cooked in them, I've dealt with obnoxious customers and I've been an exacting (not obnoxious) customer. I'm not a rival of Neil's, I've never met him, I'm not in the industry anymore0--not for decades, in fact. But he clearly (based on other stories, too) is NUTS. Perhaps there are substance abuse problems--I do not know. Perhaps there is just an anger issue. But he clearly should not be doing this at this time. He needs to get help, fast.

Neil Ganic isn't a customer service rep, he's a chef. If you love seafood and aren't looking to be coddled, you can hardly do better than Petite Crevette. It's a seafood lover's paradise, but nobody's going to fawn over you. It's all about the food. A lot of newcomers around our neighborhood ARE looking to be coddled, and enjoy being pains in the ass. Not passing judgment on these people, since I wasn't there at the time, but I've been eating at Ganic's various restaurants since '97, and even sent back a dish once or twice, but never had a bad meal when he was doing the cooking. I really doubt that the cioppino was "gloopy", it's more likely that the diner was expecting the kind of grossly overcooked crap that passes for seafood stew in many places. That's not how he cooks. I had another great meal there today, and can't wait for the next visit.

Thats quiet a mess and hilarious.

I think it's clear what happened at Petite.

Perhaps what is more concerning are the posts here and elsewhere.

For those of you writing here and hiding behind their "logins":

A word of advice.

Hiding and writing internet reviews (here or elsewhere) is no way to live a life.

At least put your real name behind what you say.

And frankly, despite what Yelp tells you, no one really cares what you have to say. Anyone who is in the service business knows who their real customers are and who they are not.

But whatever you do with your pathetic, sad and miserable lives, stop living as, Social Darwinist would call, Genetic Fodder, people whose genetic cards are just one bad dead end.

Get some serious Social Skills and Intelligence or leave the rest of us alone and go live under a really large rock.

Tomas Anthony

Founder

everyday athlete ®

www.everydayathlete.com

Wow, You kids are mean. Neil created a groovy place

to eat often amazing food. This hate is such a bummer...

man. Woah.

Bwa haa haaaa. This story has been recycled a bajillion

times about silly Neil. Support the Crevasse and support his lovely children! Neil runs a tight but chaotic ship.

He is a master chef and has perfected the art of comfort/

seafood. Yay Neil!

@ Matty How do you know the customers didn't do anything wrong? Why do you assume that? How do you know that they did not exaggerate? How do you know they were not rude and snide? Other diners from that night have a different story and also side with Neil. Regular customers don't buy their claim either. Think about WHY this is.

Neil Ganic has never had a "you're lucky to eat here attitude" HA! Totally opposite!! Why do you assume that too? Swing by and see for yourself. You be the judge. It's a pretty humble place. Down to earth staff too. Then maybe you would see why few people believe them. Two sides to everything.

Closed in a month? Hardly.

Their intent seems malicious. The story seems exaggerated. That's why they come across like a pair of self important twits with inflated egos.

Well, it backfired. More people are defending him and it's attracting even more business (go figure, PR people take note!)

Paging Dr. Zoidberg! Paging Dr. Zoidberg!

The whole attitude of "your lucky to be eating here" is a joke. And anyone who does it does not deserve to be in the restaurant business. I don't care how much new york bravado he or she can feign, either.

And lastly, the customers didn't even do anything wrong! They asked it to be cooked again. It wasn't so they decided to pay the bill and leave.

How, pray tell, is that bad customer behavior!?!? They were paying for a dish they didn't even like!

What a complete asshole this guy is.

And now it's all over the media networks. Nice work. I bet this draws throngs of customers to eat your not cooked lobster.

Fuck this place. It will be closed in a month.

Anyone who dines there is promoting this behavior - let's hope they don't get undercooked lobster, god forbid.

A person who claims to have been in the restaurant says the complaint is exaggerated. As if most of us in the neighborhood didn't already suspect it.

http://cobblehillblog.com/archives/3151#comments

fish stew? Yuck.

You know how they say "never eat seafood on Monday"? Well, never eat Cioppino on Tuesday.

I love the story about the Park Slope diner. Thanks for sharing that one!

This is not the first story on Neil? Big deal. There are not two sides to every story? I would say sometimes even four, five, or six! And then there's the truth. I know for a fact another restaurant owner was behind some of the other negative "stories" on him. I have lived in this area for over 14 years and have known Neil for 5 years. Perhaps you have noticed many people from Carroll Gardens, Red Hook, Cobble Hill, and Brooklyn Heights who have known him for many years come to his defense. Hmm I wonder why?

Here's why. He is a good chef that has a solid track record as a fantastic host and for cooking great seafood at fair prices. And guess what? How about this for another side to a story. The residents and natives over here constantly encounter some of rudest/clueless diners EVER who travel from all over the metro area to our once quiet and simple neighborhood. Neil simply does not put up with b.s. Don't get it twisted. If the food was truly off he would offer to fix it or offer something else. I don't buy this guy's story. Sure, if you are paying, you should get what you want. But within reason!!

There is NO WAY Neil presented food that was undercooked or not fresh. Notice that people who eat there regularly don't buy it either? I HIGHLY doubt that person was as polite or experienced when it come to good food. Neil has always taken a sincere interest in his patrons and serving fresh and simple seafood dishes.

You can't please all of the people all of the time anyways. Why should Neil, his staff, or other patrons be forced to put up with another patron's b.s.? The restaurant should not revolve around this one clueless patron. So yes, kudos to Neil. His strong following, food reviews (from REAL food critics), and track record speaks for itself. So a few people dislike him. There are hundreds more who do like him. Both as a person and a chef.

Ho come on.... if you know Neil, you know he is a crazy lunatic! How can you excuse him and blame the customers!

I'll abstain from prematurely judging the diner and assuming that she is an uptight, passive-aggressive transplant now happily living in Park Slope where she can grandstand at regular intervals...

But for what it's worth, LPC is one of the best restaurants around. A local favorite, an incredible value, with orgasmic food (the fish is indeed, as the diner found out, quite fresh), and BYOB to boot. The chef, Neil, has a lot of personality. Some more stoic people might take it the wrong way, but he is genuinely welcoming and accommodating in a way that so few other places are these days. I am happy to go back there as often as I can. In fact, I just did a few days ago, and it was excellent as always.

Bravo, Neil! I hope this publicity works out for the best (although, it is a small space and already quite crowded!)

Recently, at a respected Park Slope restaurant, a diner at a neighboring table sent back an appetizer. (They were very accommodating.) Before sending it back, the diner, who had some volume control issues, talked and talked to her dining partner about what was wrong with the dish, then while she waited for a new order, she talked about it some more, and then when it came, she talked some more about how it still wasn't quite right (but didn't send them back again). She obviously was self-conscious and felt like she needed to justify her actions. Finally, the sweet old man dining with his wife at the next table asked about it, and she went through the whole rigamorole with him, clearly glad to have someone to validate her. When she finally came up for air and asked him how his meal was, he said, "Oh, I'm very satisfied. I'm in NY visiting my son; he's the chef here." She turned so red and started backpedaling so fast I thought she was going to implode!

Amazing!!!!

I really dislike how sites such as Yelp contribute to this obnoxious sense of self-importance in the customer. Yes, everybody should leave happy, and most restaurants, chefs, managers, and waiters will do everything they can to make sure you do. Having dined at Petite Crevette myself several times I really cannot imagine this not to be the case here.

Really, who cares if you go home and Yelp about your experience anyway? Most of the people who write reviews could not be less qualified. I'd love to see less attention and merit placed on sites like this and more on sites where the reviewers actually know something about food, the business, and manners.

Who even knows how the customer sent his food back? If he was obnoxious he deserved to be kicked out. Who needs that negativity in a small cozy environment when others are enjoying themselves. He could have asked for a different dish since obviously he and the chef had different ideas about what was raw. Siding with the chef here...

Isn't fish stew supposed to be kind of "gloopy" and probably a little weird? I mean, it's a French restaurant, right? Who orders a fish stew and minds it being "gloopy" and filled with lobster?

Ganic is a HACK. I would love to say he is a one trick pony, but even his Cioppino is sub-standard. Anyone who is that abusive to paying customers has no business running a kitchen. Anyone supporting that kind of business is truly supporting those in the industry that get by on hot air and not by hard work and integrity.

they didn't send it back twice, as commenters keep suggesting. they sent it back once, it wasn't to their liking, and they asked for the check. i would imagine that at that point their intention was already to never return, but i'm guessing that ganic sealed the deal.

"chefs" like neil ganic think that killing something and presenting it all fancy on a plate is artistic ? no respect.

Here's how it works: Chef tells someone to "fuck off" or "get the fuck out of my restaurant" or criticizes someone who works outside the food industry ("fucking so and so...) Chef then gets mentioned on a blog. Anthony Bourdain (someone who, incidentally, obviously has never been in a fight in his life but sure likes making people think he has) says aforementioned chef is a "total badass". Chefs all get together and get drunk and talk about how they work longer hours than anyone else and are really, really important.

This story is getting old.

And lastly, the customers didn't even do anything wrong! They asked it to be cooked again. It wasn't so they decided to pay the bill and leave.

How, pray tell, is that bad customer behavior!?!? They were paying for a dish they didn't even like!

What a complete asshole this guy is.

And now it's all over the media networks. Nice work. I bet this draws throngs of customers to eat your not cooked lobster.

Sorry that wasn't for you, gotham1004.

lol. perfect.

>>>And I told him to go ahead and blog about it. If you're not happy, you have the right to complain, and I have the right to throw you out.

And I have the right not to patronize his clip joint.

www.forgotten-ny.com

I would encourage people to do a simple google search on Mr. Ganic before declaring him a hero. This is not the first time that his name has come up in instances of conflict.

He was just trying out a Gordon Ramsey recipe:

Lobster à la Ramsey

Take one lobster.

Curse at lobster.

Shake lobster into face of nearest cook.

Curse at cook.

Insult lobster purveyor.

Threaten lobster purveyor.

Kick nearest member of kitchen staff.

Insult same staff member.

Carry lobster into dining room and throw it at a diner.

Curse at diner.

Return to kitchen, slamming door on the way.

Throw a dish onto the floor.

Collect royalty check from television network.

Laugh at how easy it is to fool the rubes.

Don't forget 'smell bad, sweat a lot, and 'ave a fag afterwards'.

Being fairly familiar with Petite Crevette, I find it hard to believe that the lobster was raw in the stew. I also notice that the couple said the lobster was raw and that Ganic tells a slightly different story that they claimed the lobster was not fresh. It makes sense that he would bring a lobster out to prove that it was fresh not if it was raw.

I'm going to have to believe that the couple in question are a couple of snobby morons that think sending food back over and over is acceptable. If the food comes out as described and you do not like it then don't come back or don't order that dish again. Good for Ganic for kicking them out. I think I'll go and eat there later this week.

For the record, I've had plenty of cooked telephones masquerading as lobster.

http://lisawallerrogers.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/dali-lobster-telephone.jpg

i worked for too long in one of manhattan's top-rated restaurants to know NOT to send something back OR to be an annoying-as-fuck customer. nobody spits into the food when the health inspectors come in, but on a normal day, spit is the least of your worries once you've disgruntled a chef or even a waiter. i've even seen the sommelier stick his hand in his ass-crack and fondle the bread basket before it goes out.

Sorry, Applebee's doesn't count as a top restaurant.

I have worked back of the house in, at least, 3 of the top restaurants in NYC and I have NEVER seen anyone abuse a customers food! I wouldn't say it doesn't happen, but I feel sorry for you if that's the environment you've chosen to work in. That's pathetic dude.

Like some other commenters, I agree that if the food isn't prepared well you have every right to send it back. However, attitude & delivery is everything. If you come across as a self-important asshole, well, people are human. Service industry or no, most humans don't like dealing with assholes. You can be low-key about a complaint and still get your point across. If that had happened, I'm sure the guy would've wound up having a very nice meal & this whole stupid non-story wouldn't be a topic for discussion.

Food doesn't meet your expectations...send it back. Food still is bad...don't come back. Simple.

Poor lobster, being thrown around like that! I hope the diners took him home and gave him a nice boiling water burial. Yum.

There has to be more to this story. Anyone should feel free to send back a meal that isnt cooked properly, (as opposed to sending it back because 'I dont like it'.) But, its the WAY to go about this that matters. Sounds to me as if the man sending back the meal was an obnoxious know-it-all who probably made a big scene because he wasnt satisfied. Believe me, there are SO many self-important idiots out there who think nothing of behaving in an obnoxious and loud manner to get what they want, especially in restaurants where there is a built-in audience. Why would a busy chef come out of the kitchen to tangle w/ a guest over a simple request.

"I blog, so Im really important and know more than the chef'. Stay home, asshole.

Who cares about losing one LOUSY customer. The best thing about having your own business is being able to *every once in a while* throw a live lobster at a customer. I think Mr. Ganic is a hero.

I'm a regular at Petite Crevette and the staff and chef have always been delightful and the food has always been fresh. In fact, since I'm a vegetarian and my husband is not - they always ask me multiple times if everything is ok.

customers ARE lousy and most times kinda 'touched.' If it was my place I would have tossed him through that nice plate glass window and then said "don't forget your hat" and thrown it at him and everyone would have cheered and had a round of free drinks because they all hated that customer who was so loud and obnoxious and thought he was a Top Chef judge and felt entitled to send his food back with a nasty comment 3 times in a row even though he ate at least half of it before the waitress came to check again. Then kept looking to his friends for applause or something every time he deemed the waitress with his 'wit'

These people don't deserve to be guests there, let alone write reviews on food they don't understand.

How does lobster in a stew arrive raw? Simply not possible. Sending it back again? Him and his wife have balls of steel and a palate of cocksmooch. Thank god they didn't order any wine, they'd probably mix it with soda.

Please stick to the garbage you're used to eating and leave this guy alone. There's a McDonald's just a few blocks away, tell them they're shit is greasy and send it back 3 times.

They didn't send it back twice. They sent it back once and it still wasn't good enough so they got the bill and tried to leave.

At what part this crazy person had an apoplectic shit fit is unclear.

seriously? you have no idea how a raw lobster could arrive in a stew? lobster is usually put in at the end of the cooking cycle. it's not something that is stewed from the beginning along with the root vegetables, onions, or even a longer-cooking meat like beef. lobster is tossed in at the end, and perhaps it was tossed in at the VERY end, in a way the diner didn't find appetizing.

The way to properly cook a lobster is to immerse it in hot water (doesn't even have to be boiling) for 30 seconds to 1 minute. French Laundry cookbook.

well, no, that's not exactly true. it's the start, as far as keller's butter poached lobster is concerned, but it's not the entire process. he says to blanch it in boiling water, just enough cooking to kill it. then you can remove the meat from the shell and cook it the rest of the way (while it's sitting in butter).

if you're going to say something like "thomas keller says to cook lobster for 30 seconds", and then say it's from his cookbook, you ought to tell the whole story. no lobster is cooked through after 30 seconds in boiling water. sorry.

Thanks for the backup here. People need to see that this douche bag is just a prick with a blog. Now we're all talking about it, goal achieved.

So, I'm assuming that whenever you're served a bad or off meal, you just lie to yourself about how good it is and happily pay the bill?

love that Dali quote! but back to the 'meat' of the matter, food should ALWAYS be sent back by the customer if it doesn't meet their expectations in any way. and it should always be sent back AGAIN if it still doesn't work for them. this chef is an egomaniac and an idiot. if i had been dining there at the same time, at say, the next table, i would have walked out in protest and started blogging as well. this is a SERVICE industry, and no chef is going to demean ME when i'm paying their friggin bill.

"this chef is an egomaniac and an idiot."

Actually, I've known him for about 14 years, and he is neither.

The chef and staff are working hard for your enjoyment, but they're not whores who should take any bad behaviour thrown at them. Yes, the chef over-reacted, but it's just as likely the patron was unfamiliar with fresh lobster - I'd believe that over a seasoned and celebrated chef cooking it incorrectly twice in a row. But anyway, your attitude is rather bad, as frankly they owe you nothing, one customer very rarely means anything, and even the "word of mouth" people covet so much ("I'll tell all my friends about this!") means very little. There are always customers, my friend, and if you treat them like creatures for your amusement instead of people, you will get paid back one way or another.

who says the definition of 'whore' is someone who should take any bad behaviour thrown at them?

they have just as much right to respect by their customers as the chef

I don't think they meant being a paying customer gives you the right to be an ass, but you are paying and if it's not satisfactory you have every right to send it back.

They may not be whores, but I'm not an ATM, either.

Sending back food for being gross is such bad behaviour.

I bet you are one of those customers that make me cringe when I'm forced to sit next to them. Just because you are paying gives you the right to be obnoxious and disrespectful, right? The customer may always be "right" but they can also be a moron.

"Just because you are paying gives you the right to be obnoxious and disrespectful, right?"

Doesn't sound like they were either.

If the food sucks, it should be sent back. Ganic is a chump and anybody with any taste knows that he is unstable to say the least. A bunch of people have jumped to his defense, but I have met the guy, eaten his food, listened to him pontificate on his own greatness and I have come to the conclusion that he simply is a insecure, mediocre, cook.

His track record SUCKS. Four Restaurant in, like, ten years is kind of scary for a chef.

actually i'm not obnoxious at all. i can't even think of a time i've sent food back, and i'm pretty picky. BUT it's ABSOLUTELY MY RIGHT to send back ANYTHING i don't find acceptable for ANY reason. it's not the chef's place to tell me how i like my food, unless it's a dinner party and it's free. if i'm paying, i'm going to eat something that is to my taste. i agree, the customer shouldn't be rude about it, but then again, the chef certainly shouldn't either. but thanks for assuming you know everything about me from one post.

While I can appreciate you're justified in reserving the prerogative of returning a plate of food to the kitchen, I cringe at your overuse of the word 'right' in this context.

Certainly, it's your prerogative to do so. Just like it's the owner's prerogative to eject you from the premises. Common courtesy doesn't preclude either action, only that either be performed without aggression or insult.

People in general would do well to not be so quick to say something is a 'right'. It diminishes those things that actually -are- rights. It also makes one sound like a whiny douche bag, which is unfortunate because I don't think that's the case here.