September28
Last night we made our second trip to NaBrasa, a fairly new Brazilian steakhouse in our area. Between visits, it went from very good to out-of-the-park. But at the end of the night, I completed their rating card and only gave them a 9 out of 10. They asked what they could do better or what services they could add, and we had no suggestions at all. Instead we said we were open to surprise improvements.
But now I wonder, does that actually help? That was hardly constructive criticism, and we didn’t offer any useful solutions to reach a 10. And yet, we both felt that with the improvement we saw between visits, there was a distinct possibility that they could find something to improve to really make it a jaw-dropping value for quality of service, food, and atmosphere. Maybe turn down the music a little, I’m not sure.
What improved between visits were little things that I never would have imagined before. For example, if a Brazilian steakhouse want to maximize their profits, the cheapest meats make the rounds more frequently and the higher quality meats would be harder to flag down. Well, I love their leg of lamb and lamb chops. The server who had the leg of lamb took note, gave me extra slices, and he stopped back by our table when he came out again even though we didn’t have our little card flipped up just because he knew I might want another slice while he was out on the floor. Yes, we noticed when it came time to tip.
Our main waiter for the evening tried a little too hard at first, and that was a little awkward, but he relaxed as the evening wore on, and he did a pretty good job of keeping the wine and water glasses filled. And, though he was a little excited when telling us, he does get credit for knowing that the first wine we ordered was out of stock, but going to check with the bar anyway while giving us a chance to find another bottle.
I guess I feel a little bad for not being able to make specific suggestions for real improvement to hit that 10. They shouldn’t feel bad that I didn’t give them a 10. We will definitely make trips to NaBrasa again. They even have the added benefit of being connected to a bar with a decent selection of beer so Sebastian can grab a drink and we can relax after having just stuffed ourself on incredible meats.
If you’re anywhere in the Philly area, you should absolutely try NaBrasa. At $34.95/person (only $29.95/person on weekdays), it’s a great deal for Brazilian steakhouses, especially for the level of service and quality meats. Just don’t fill up at the salad bar. (I only go to the salad bar to get things that will go well with the meats – a few cheeses, one bread slice, some mushrooms, etc.) In fact, the best solution is to not eat all day, or just have enough in the morning or afternoon to keep your stomach from growling. Leave lots of room for the good stuff.
In the meantime, I’ll try to figure out what they can do to make me rate them a 10.