Wild Rover - Manchester, NH

We took Billy and Lanie to lunch at this Irish Pub/Restaurant today. It was really cute on the inside, and the food was good. I had a steak tip salad, and the tips were cooked to perfection and they melted in my mouth - they were so tender! We seemed to have two waitresses, and neither one was overly friendly or attentive. They weren't rude, but they weren't quite perfectly fine either. Their service rating is a 2.5.

Sheraton - Portsmouth, NH

We stayed at the Sheraton in Portsmouth last night. We'd stayed here before, and it's a fairly nice hotel - nothing extraordinary, but nice enough and right downtown, so we've enjoyed staying here before. I saw it was pet friendly, so I booked it again. Unfortunately, when I arrived, I leared it's only pet tolerable, not pet friendly.

Upon checking in and signing a release about the dog, they handed me a piece of paper saying I couldn't leave the dog in the room alone, and if I did, he would be send to the pound. That's terrible! We had plans to see a concert and go out to dinner, and we had to change all of our plans. It was fine, and we still had a nice time, but it was unfortunate they didn't make that clear either when I booked the room or when I signed in.

The person who checked me in was perfectly fine, but she glossed over the pet rules so she wouldn't have to answer to them, and so she earns a service rating of 2.5.

Goldenrod - Manchester, NH

The Goldenrod is a very well known ice cream (and fast food) drive in joint in Manchester. My Dad loves visiting, several times, when he's up here. We stopped in for an ice cream yesterday on the way to the beach, since it was Darcy's birthday. I ordered her a large, knowing it was too big, and trying to be obnoxious when I brought it out to her, but the man behind the counter talked me out of it. He said that no one orders anything larger than a small since their sizes are so big. He was very nice and cute about it, and while he won't win any sales awards this month, he gets a 3.5 from the service rater.

Fratello's, Manchester, NH

We took Krissy out for lunch today to celebrate her birthday. We went to Fratello's, a small Italian restaurant family in NH - I believe there are 3 locations. I've had some good meals there, and I've had some not so good meals. It's nothing like the north end, but they have a good range of foods if you're going with a group.

I ordered the Veggie Formaggio panini - a brilled vegetable and cheese panini. It was *really* good. Krissy and Darcy had raviolis in red sauce, and they enjoyed their lunch too.

The waitress was perfectly fine. She introduced herself, as most waiters/waitresses do these days, saying, "I'm [whoever], and I'm going to be taking care of you today." Where did this phrase come from? I think it sounds funny, and it's ridiculously overused. It's not a regional thing - I've heard it in 3 of the 4 corners of the US. It's like the laughable "It's a great day at [insert company] today..." that you hear when you call into too many businesses these days. Who thinks of these silly catch phrases, and then SELLS them to organizations? I can do better - I'm sure of it. :)

Anyway, she was friendly, prompt, and perfectly fine - a classic service rater 3.

Rita Mae's, Manchester, NH

I know that picture isn't overly aesthetically pleasing, but it does serve a purpose, I promise! Rita Mae's is the local diner we frequent weekly. They buy good quality food, the food is very reasonably priced, we love the staff and it's always yummy!

It's not really fair to include them in this study, since I'm biased, but my bias is only due to repeated positive experiences. When my parents come in from out of town, they love visiting Rita Mae's too - it's not just me!

The picture above is of our breakfast table on Sunday. I just LOVE their freshly brewed iced tea, and they know this. As soon as I sit at my table, they bring me a tall glass. They even leave the whole container there so I can have as many refills as I want.

When I was young, my parents used to make fresh brewed iced tea, and I thought it was delicious. I can never make it quite as good as they used to, and while no one has ever been able to, Rita Mae's comes very close!

I enjoy the waitstaff at Rita Mae's immensely. If I go to breakfast without Darcy, they always ask where she is. If one of us isn't there at breakfast but we order something to have brought home with us, they always write a note for us on the containers, wishing us well.

They definitely go above and beyond, and they get a 5 on the service rater!

King Kone, Merrimack, NH

King Kone is a staple of summer in Merrimack, NH. Only open spring through fall, King Kone is known for cheap prices, only serving soft serve ice cream, and their foot tall large ice cream. I remember coming here as a child after sports games, with friends in the summer, after church, any time I could manage to convince someone to take me...and it usually didn't take much convincing.

Nostalgia aside, King Kone has been under new ownership for the past several years. The prices are still quite low, but the ice cream is less dense than it used to be. The more air you add into ice cream, the more you can stretch your money. I don't mind the airier mix, though. It's fewer calories.

Darcy and I each ordered a kiddie cone, and we ordered a hot dog to split. We haven't had a hot dog in ages, and I love the hot dogs at King Kone. Darcy asked for ketchup on the whole dog, and a side of mustard (for her side). The young girl at the counter was very polite and accommodating with our condiment requests.

Her service rating is a 3.

T Bones, Bedford, NH

I hadn't been to T Bones before, as it just seemed like another chain restaurant, and I have been to plenty of those. Recently, I discovered that it's just a local chain with four restaurants, so when I drove by one the other night, I decided to pull in. Neither Darcy nor I had eaten there before.

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I ordered the prime rib, which is one of their signature entrees. It was very good. Darcy had baked haddock that she enjoyed as well. Our waitress was nice and perfectly fine and well on her way to a 3 rating, until I overheard an interaction she had with a customer not in her section.

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A man sitting near us rudely questioned our waitress about something. She curtly replied that she wasn't his waitress, and she walked away. I think he was being rude because he had been waiting for something, and that behavior is not okay either. As a representative of the restaurant, however, she should have been courteous and professional rather than snapping back at him.

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I've gone back and forth between giving her a 1 or a 2, and I've decided her service rating is a 1.5.

Airport Diner, Manchester NH

We had breakfast at the airport diner today. It was cute - I love diners. The food was okay, not great. I couldn't figure out what I wanted so I ordered a b52, which is bacon, sausage, eggs, hashbrowns, bread and pancakes. LOL. I had half an egg, 2 bites of the bland soggy potatoes, a nibble of the dry biscuit they brought me (I didn't want it - I don't like those in general), one piece of flimsy bacon, and three bites of the overcooked pancakes. I'm spoiled with Rita Mae's for breakfast!

The waitress was friendly. The service was very prompt. She gets a 3 on the service rater, though I probably won't return to the Airport Diner.

Doctor's office - Manchester, NH

I had a doctor's appointment today, and it had taken about 6 weeks to get it in the first place. I arrived 10 minutes early for my appointment. I told the receptionist my first name, and my appointment time. All of the day's appointments were printed up right in front of her (including last names that all patient's checking in could read easily) - a big HIPAA violation, as was asking me my last name, which she then proceeded to do.

I waited a few minutes past my appointment time to be brought to the room, which was fine, and I was told the MD would be in to see me in a few minutes. Over promising and under delivering is a huge no-no, especially to people when they are already feeling vulnerable as patients.

I waited 45 minutes with no updates from anyone, on why it was taking so long. I finally went out to the waiting room, so they would see that I was still there (and to get a magazine because I was bored to tears), and I went back to the room for 10 more minutes. Finally, I went to the front desk to ask what the hold up was. They told me they thought I had already been seen. Ah, no. I told them I had a meeting to get to, so if I wasn't going to be seen soon, I needed to go.

They said I could reschedule, and I told them it took 6 weeks for me to get the appointment in the first place, and if it's so common for the MD to be an hour late for an appointment that they don't even feel the need to update the patient (I kept the second part in my head), then I would like to find a different MD.

They said she'd be in to see me within the next 10 minutes, so I reluctantly waited. After a few minutes, they popped in and told me it was going to be a lot longer than 10 minutes after all. I heard the MD leave the room and go see another patient who had arrived after me. Knowing I had been waiting so long, they should have made certain I was seen next, or at least given me an explanation of why I wasn't.

They were not helpful, not as apologetic as they should have been for the giant inconvenience, and they didn't even follow healthcare policy. The MD office staff receives a 1 for my service rating.