Huckleberries Online

Short-changed Customer Makes Point

Posted by DFO

Dec. 14, 2009 9:55 a.m. • 6 comments

Retired police officer Rich Townson stands with his girlfriend Denise Raymond and the Ruby Tuesday restaurant sirloin steak he thought was smaller than the advertised weight of nine ounces at their home in Swansea, Mass., Saturday. After Townson filed a complaint with Massachusetts consumer officials, Ruby Tuesdays was fined $700. (AP Photo/Gretchen Ertl)

Question: Which Inland Northwest eatery provides the smallest portions? The biggest?

Six comments on this post so far. Add yours!

moscow_minidoka on December 14 at 10:47 a.m.
You buys your ticket, you takes your chances. What a whiner!

I’ve never understood people who determine the quality of their meal based on the sheer amount of food. That’s one of several reasons I don’t go to buffets - who cares if I get “all I can eat” if it’s all lukewarm and tasteless?

I can’t honestly answer DFO’s question because I base the quality of my meal on taste, presentation, and the ambiance of the place - not whether or not I get 3 lbs of food on a plate the size of an Alaskan halibut.

I almost never get too little food at an Inland Northwest eatery - I usually have to split an entree with my wife, because most places around here really pile it on.
Arpie on December 14 at 11:36 a.m.
There’s a sports bar in Rathdrum- I think it’s called O’mally’s. The place is always packed. It’s got an exciting vibe The food is always heaped high on the plates. I’m surprised OTV hasn’t written about it.
mike_s on December 14 at 12:01 p.m.
Real friendly service at O’Malley’s too. On occasion I’ve used their wifi and gotten a free Diet Coke out of the deal. Other times, of course, I’ve paid.
fortboise on December 14 at 2:27 p.m.
The guy went out to dinner and wanted steak. It came to the table, he looked at it and said “that ain’t 9 ounces!” He asked for a doggy bag, and didn’t eat any of it, so he could take it home and weigh it, take this picture (apparently with the wall mounted security camera in his kitchen) and proceed with his complaint to government officials.

I guess that’s one way to work for income in the Great Recession…
hhuseland on December 14 at 2:33 p.m.
Restaurants use the weight before cooking to advertise the size. There isn’t any accurate way of determining the weight of a meat serving after being cooked. Was it ordered rare? Medium? well done? Each of those categories have different ending weights. The story wasn’t well written, since the weight before cooking was the key. The restaurant probably just settled to avoid legal bills. those are called nuisance claims that cost more to defend than to pay. An unfortunate look at today’s morality.
Bent on December 14 at 10:00 p.m.
That place should have been fined for calling that grey hunk of meat a steak…geez, that looks blahhh…

As a former grill cook (in my younger days) I agree with Herb, most steaks are weighed raw. But cuts like prime rib are usually eyeballed because it is cooked whole and cut to order … looks like that is risky business these days…

« Back to Huckleberries Online

You must be logged in to post comments.
Please create a profile or log in here.

About this blog

D.F. Oliveria is a columnist and blogger for The Spokesman-Review. Huckleberries Online was judged the best 2008 Idaho newspaper blog by the Idaho Press Club. And the best 2007 news blog in the Pacific Northwest by the Society for Professional Journalist. Print Huckleberries is a past winner of the Herb Caen Memorial Column contest by the National Association of Newspaper Columnists. The Readership Institute of Northwestern University cited this blog as a good example of online community journalism.