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Alleygater
Citizen
Username: Alleygater
Post Number: 2417
Registered: 10-2004
| | Posted on Monday, August 7, 2006 - 11:59 pm: | 
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I would have to agree the HEAVY HANDED first time posters are a dead give away. Also if you want to pad a thread with rave reviews, may I suggest SPELL CHECKING first -- and I'm not talking about in just this thread. The other Sona threads have the same tell tale mistakes.
I also was insulted about the "nickel and dimers" comment which was clearly directed at me. I eat out plenty (I suspect more than most people in this town) and I enjoy fine dining. I also love and respect high quality food. I am sorry that I was disappointed that the Indian restaurant was going to be a bit more expensive than I would have liked. But I have a right to my opinion. But I haven't eaten there yet. I can't even say if the food is worthy of the money. AND I will be the first one to state VOCALLY if the food is worth spending a little extra money on. Having said all that, with the obvious and rude spoofed user accounts run by the owners of the restaurant, I am leaning towards not bothering to give them even a try. MOL isn't some anonymous food review website. We are the same people returning over and over again and we aren't easily duped. We usually spot the planted moles on MOL. |
ajc
Citizen
Username: Ajc
Post Number: 5375
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 8, 2006 - 8:06 am: |
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Welcome to Maplewoodonline Saule,
First of all, very best wishes with Sona. From the majority of the posts we've read so far it would appear Maplewood has a winner in your new restaurant.
Listen, don't be embarrassed by some of these nickel and dimers or negative comments, this kind of thing goes with the territory. Our town has long needed a more upscale and non-Italian eatery. Every new business venture around here gets these diverse reviews, trust me, I know.
I’m sure all this close scrutiny will pass soon. Give it some time and your good food and service will speak for itself. Again, good luck and Libby and I will try to stop in for dinner sometime this week...
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mantram
Citizen
Username: Mantram
Post Number: 252
Registered: 8-2003
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 8, 2006 - 9:17 am: |
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Who is Saule? Is he the owner, a co-owner or what? If he is -- why didn't he disclose this fact in his post? This is highly disingenuous. As Alleygater said -- we are not some random posters. We are the friends, neighbors and well wishers to many of our local businesses. |
Alleygater
Citizen
Username: Alleygater
Post Number: 2422
Registered: 10-2004
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 8, 2006 - 11:53 am: |
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...and AJC, can you cool it with Nickel and Dimer comments already?!?  |
ajc
Citizen
Username: Ajc
Post Number: 5376
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, August 8, 2006 - 6:51 pm: |
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"We are the friends, neighbors and well wishers to many of our local businesses."
Dear Mantram,
Let’s try to follow Alleygater's good advice and leave well enough alone. We’re all friends and well wishers, right? The man owns the building. I don't know to what extent or even if he has a financial interest in the business. The truth is shouldn't matter. Give him some time to figure things out. This was his first post, different people were giving opinions, he gave us his.
Trust me, there’s nothing disingenuous or dishonest about anyone posting with their real name… Let's support our local businesses and wish him good luck...
BTW Alleygater, I know you enjoy fine dining and high quality food. I also know you appreciate someone finally opening up an ethnic restaurant that we all have waited for for so long. Now we're waiting for your review...  |
Robert Livingston
Citizen
Username: Rob_livingston
Post Number: 1995
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 9:32 am: |
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Art: You're entirely wrong yet again. It is deceitful, bordering on fraud, to come to Maplewood Online posing as an ordinary Joe -- not identifying your vested interest in a particular business -- to offer a frankly rather lame, uninspired positive review for the sole purpose of lining ones pockets. This integrity is what separates this site from myriad others. Shame on you for condoning this behavior. |
Joel Janney
Citizen
Username: Joel_janney
Post Number: 75
Registered: 6-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 10:00 am: |
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He starts off saying that "after reading mixed reviews and uninformed statements" he "decided to give Sona a try" - he OWNS the building - and you state there is nothing disingenuous about his post.
Disingenuous means not straightforward or candid, insincere or calculating. His post is the very definition of disingenuous.
That being said, I'm looking forward to trying Sona out. I would be thrilled to have a good Indian restaurant in town, and I don't fool myself that the owners of all the restaurants I eat at are wonderful people I would trust with my life. I just want to trust them with my dinner. While this post was dishonest, it's minor, whereas something like padding the checks would be major. I would hope no one stays away from Sona solely because of Saule and Art's posts. |
Robert Livingston
Citizen
Username: Rob_livingston
Post Number: 1998
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 10:08 am: |
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Can anyone confirm whether rice comes with a dinner, or if it is a separate charge (and order)? There seems to be a discrepancy between the original post and that of the building's owner.
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Costanza
Supporter
Username: Vandalay
Post Number: 1740
Registered: 8-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 10:45 am: |
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Rice now comes with dinner. The food is not bad. I ordered the Chicken Piazzi ( in honor of Mike's return to Shea) and the Chicken Marsala. Sauce were spicy, flavorable and thick. They actually called me when my food was ready for pickup. My request to Saule would be to add Murg Tikka Saag ( better know as chicken with spinach) to the menu. |
Alleygater
Citizen
Username: Alleygater
Post Number: 2433
Registered: 10-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 11:04 am: |
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Well it SEEMS that it is included now, except for the one discrepency where someone said they had 6 diners and SOME of their rice was comped but they still paid for three rices. I meant to ask for clarification. However, it seems pretty clear that rice isn't being used as a means of overinflating your bill. When I go, I plan on ASSUMING that rice is free with my dish (where it is appropriate to serve rice). And if the charge shows up, I will then question it.
Also, the owner of the building is different from the owner of business. Yes the owner of the building has an invested interest in the business' success and probably should have been mentioned, but I don't see a problem with the owner of the building saying that there is misinformation and mentioning the he decided to give Sona a try. Those can all be true statements. |
Kevin
Supporter
Username: Kevin
Post Number: 829
Registered: 2-2002
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 11:30 am: |
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Well, at least Saule used his real name in this thread to post.
Some people just don't get it. It would have made a world of difference if he was upfront from the beginning and introduced himself as the owner of Sona.
I can think of at least 4 proprietors of shops in Maplewood village (and a number of others around the two towns) who introduced themselves here as owners, and welcome feedback - be it good or bad.
Best example is Helen and John from Freeman's Fish Market.
Also Pete from Terra, the owners of Crane's, AJC and Libby....
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saule fischer
Citizen
Username: Retro
Post Number: 2
Registered: 8-2006
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 12:14 pm: |
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Hi everyone---
I cant believe the controversy my comments have created. I love the food at Sona and will eat their as often as time allows me. Their is nothing fraudulent or mysterious about that. I did not realize it was necessary to divulge my personal information before voicing an opinion as the rest of you do. Perhaps I have no right to an opinion until I examine the critical mass of the ingredients but then Im probably not as sophisticated as most of you. Sorry.
I would suggest to all those who have nothing better to do who worry and wonder who Saule is-- get a life
To Art-- Thanks for your classy comments and good wishes to our new tenants. |
Kevin
Supporter
Username: Kevin
Post Number: 830
Registered: 2-2002
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 12:46 pm: |
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I now realize that Saule owns the building - perhaps with others, which I didn't pick up on before posting. I hope the owner of the restaurant checks in. It sounds as though they are already either reading or hearing comments and making adjustments accordingly.
Looking forward to trying it!
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Robert Livingston
Citizen
Username: Rob_livingston
Post Number: 2000
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 12:47 pm: |
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Saule: Do you then deny having any financial stake in the success of Sona? Is Art wrong about who you are?
Do you fail to see how not disclosing your ties to the restaurant while writing a positive review (and landing some nice little jabs at the community in the process) if indeed you are the landlord or owner might be contrued as, shall we say, less than honest?
Is telling prospective customer to "get a life" the best business plan, or are you following the AJC School of Marketing where belligerence and open hostility is the first class taught?
Thanks in advance for your honest answers.
Signed,
An Unsophisticated Diner
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bak
Supporter
Username: Bak
Post Number: 830
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 2:05 pm: |
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We ate there late Saturday night. Summary: we'll try the restaurant again, but will wait about a month until they get the kinks out.
Food: very good. Portions were fair to good.
Service: inexperienced and poorly managed
Decor: Very nice
The wait staff served our appetizers and dinner together. They began breaking down tables and setting up for the next day's brunch around us, while talking casually with each other like there were no customers present. One woman must have asked us 15 times "is everything OK?". The wait staff hovered in the opening to the kitchen near where we were seated, cracking jokes, and complaining about this and that, with a few expletives thrown in for fun.
My suggestion is that whoever is managing the waitstaff needs to set a higher standard for service for each waiter/waitress, and ask the diners for feedback.
We want this place to succeed, but if when we return we don't see an improvement, we may get take-out once in a while like we did with Dasti's.
Good luck Sona!
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ajc
Citizen
Username: Ajc
Post Number: 5381
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 2:17 pm: |
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...RL, why take out your hate for me on a new business opening in our town?
You really need to get a life pal! You of all people have no place to criticize anyone. Posting garbage and not identifying your real name is as low class as it gets. Listen, if you want to continue your pissy little rant with me why not bring it over to one of my Bed and Breakfast threads where you’ll feel more at home with your trash mouthing comments.
Dave, RL’s form of insulting personal character assassination is totally out of line, especially in this area of the board. It’s a refection of YOUR business as well as any other that wants to do business in our community...
I believe most people online will agree that taking the high ground and speaking decent to each other is the better choice especially when referring to someone’s livelihood? We would all be better served if we were as gentle with others faults, as we are with our own.
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Robert Livingston
Citizen
Username: Rob_livingston
Post Number: 2001
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 2:37 pm: |
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Art: I am a seeker of truth and am only trying to get to the bottom of some dubious posting. Nothing would make me happier than to see a great restaurant succeed in our fair town. However, if someone with a vested interest in said restaurant comes on a message board I enjoy, and more importantly, trust with suspect intentions to mislead and misinform then I will strongly question the logic behind this marketing strategy. I do not believe I have posted anything more out of line than calling me and many others a "nickel and dimer," "unsophisticated," and to "get a life," especially if these character assassinations are coming from an owner or operator of the establishment. A little clarification was all I was asking. To that end, I ask you directly, do you have any vested interest in the operation or building it inhabits? |
Dave
Supporter
Username: Dave
Post Number: 10391
Registered: 4-1997
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 3:16 pm: |
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It's just food, guys.
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ajc
Citizen
Username: Ajc
Post Number: 5383
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 3:32 pm: |
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I have no business interests in any manner shape or form with him or Sona. The truth is I've never met Saule in person, or have I ever said one word to him other than my welcoming post on this thread.
Listen, you and I have a lot of bad blood between us. You know as well as I there's more than one way to get to the bottom of the truth you seek. IMO, your abrasive and insulting manner is enough to piss off the Pope..., but that's just me.
As a first time poster and probably with no clue of the rules or what to expect from the regulars online, it would be nice if we could give him a little slack. Yes, I jumped into this thread when I recognized his name and realized he had made a mistake. Who among us has never made a little mistake now and again?
FWIW, I'm asking you and others to back off the personal comments, and if there's anything negative to say about Sona, I'm sure it will be taken as corrective criticism and adjustments would be made... Thank you.
BTW, this was not just about the food Dave! Go back to sleep, I think we've got this handled... or at least I hope we do. Right, RL? ;-)
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Robert Livingston
Citizen
Username: Rob_livingston
Post Number: 2002
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 3:48 pm: |
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"I recognized his name and realized he had made a mistake."
What mistake was that, exactly? |
ajc
Citizen
Username: Ajc
Post Number: 5386
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 4:31 pm: |
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...what he said, "I did not realize it was necessary to divulge my personal information before voicing an opinion as the rest of you do."
This is exactly what the majority of other posters do by NOT posting using their real names, just like what you're doing. The only difference here is he used his real name. Are we ready to move on now Robert? |
Dave
Supporter
Username: Dave
Post Number: 10395
Registered: 4-1997
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 4:42 pm: |
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They sell something other than food? |
Robert Livingston
Citizen
Username: Rob_livingston
Post Number: 2004
Registered: 7-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 4:53 pm: |
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"Are we ready to move on now Robert?"
Yes. But now I understand. AJC's marketing plan 202: If you are going to write schill reviews for a business you have a personal stake in, it's best to use a psuedonym. |
Alleygater
Citizen
Username: Alleygater
Post Number: 2445
Registered: 10-2004
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 5:07 pm: |
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Well it's certainly the strategy I used here on MOL. Unfortunately I can't find anyone to invest in any Alleygater LLC stock. |
ajc
Citizen
Username: Ajc
Post Number: 5387
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 5:25 pm: |
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Thank you Robert! And, you can be sure when I open my chain of B&B's I'll have a dozen or more psuedonyms... |
saule fischer
Citizen
Username: Retro
Post Number: 3
Registered: 8-2006
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 5:37 pm: |
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Hi Bob------ "seeker of truth" duh?
Truth is self evident when using the proper tools. as an example a moral truth is just conformity of mind and heart and when both agree it becomes a simple truth. Sometimes determining truth from falsity becomes a little more difficult. I would suggest 2 years of epistomology while pursuing simple philosopy. At that point you may understand the very simple premise that I love the food at Sona-- therefor I will eat there. Sorry its so difficult for you to comprehend. The truth can be obvious
who I am or am not requires no explanation to you------- get it
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Gregor Samsa
Citizen
Username: Oldsctls67
Post Number: 586
Registered: 11-2002
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 6:06 pm: |
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"Art: I am a seeker of truth"
That's the funniest thing I've heard all day! |
jamie
Citizen
Username: Jamie
Post Number: 588
Registered: 6-2001
| | Posted on Wednesday, August 9, 2006 - 8:35 pm: |
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Sona is a great addition to town - had the lunch buffett last week and a few things tonight - very tasty. It's great to have an Indian place so close by. |
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