Eating Out: Joe's American Bar and Grill

There are bad meals, there are awful meals, and then there is Bostonist's experience at Joe's American Bar and Grill. This mini-chain restaurant covers several spots in Massachusetts and even has a location as far down as New Jersey. We chose to try out the Boston waterfront location in an attempt to take in the last days of summer with some patio dining. Two words: big mistake.

Historically, Bostonist has found the nachos at other Joe's locations to be a treat, so we decided to start with that particular item on the menu. Our waiter was immediately flustered by our presence, which was a bad sign considering the number of patrons on the patio. We specifically ordered the nachos without any guacamole thinking this would be a simple request, but when the nachos arrived loaded with extra guacamole, the trouble began.

Having worked in the restaurant industry, Bostonist knows that mistakes do happen, and no waiter (at least not at a reasonably priced restaurant) is perfect, but it is appreciated when the waitstaff at least attempts to fix things. After pointing out the problem to him, our waiter said that "it looks like someone screwed up" and took them away. "Fixing" the nachos apparently meant scraping off the guacamole with a spoon (at least we hoped he used a spoon) and dumping the cold nachos back on the table and running away. That would be the last time we saw our waiter.

About ten seconds after Carl Lewis left us, another waiter brought out our meals. We told them to take the abused nachos away, since they still had guacamole remnants and were now soggy and cold. Steeling our stomachs, we began to dig into a Cobb Salad and a Chicken Club, with honey mustard instead of mayo for the dressing. The good things: At least these were warm. The bad: The dry chicken was coated with both mayo and honey mustard, and the Cobb Salad was smothered in dressing and was served in a hard greasy cornucopia-like shell that could be described somewhere between stale and musty. Needless to say, we skipped dessert.

After multiple failed attempts to signal the waiter to perhaps get more bread or refill our bottomless sodas, Bostonist gave up. We amused ourselves by watching waiters create unique routes to specifically avoid our table as if we had leprosy. We eventually got the manager involved, who was magnificent as he compensated the entire meal, stating "We try for the perfect customer experience for every customer, and I apologize that things went so poorly for you."

While the restaurant's management was professional and pleasant, they should have never been involved. Perhaps the waiter assumed he wouldn't be walking away with a big tip, so he decided to burn us. Whatever the reason, Bostonist has had better service at McDonalds, better meals at sausage carts, and the waiter was the Mike Remlinger of restaurants. While Bostonist has had decent meals at other Joe's locations, we're more likely to roll the dice elsewhere for a $40 meal.

Bostonist Gives Joe's American Bar and Grill: 1 Yankee Hat

(The newly established Yankee Hat symbolizes that something went terribly wrong: inedible meal, spoiled food, fistfight with hostess, wild cougar let loose in kitchen ... etc.)