Sunday, November 20, 2011

What Is All the Fuss About??





Holeman & Finch, that's what.

This restaurant has had so much buzz for so long that it actually started having the opposite effect on me. I thought it could not possible live up to the hype. And there was the issue with the wait. It is well-known that H&F does not take reservations. And those in the know talk about the wait as though it were some badge of honor. "One time I waited an hour and a half!" "We once waited for an hour and couldn't even get to the bar to order a drink." None of that appealed to me. I don't like to wait.

But we finally caved. (I finally got tired of my friend Brad's endless rants on the virtues of H&F and decided I had to experience it first hand.) We went on a Sunday for brunch. We got there early, or so I thought. Turns out, everyone else got there earlier. So we bravely put our name on the list and prepared to wait.

As I waited (and waited), I noticed something interesting about this tiny restaurant. Every 20something hipster and 50something foodie was there. Kind of an odd mix. And everyone seemed deliriously excited to be there. (Well, the 20something hipster don't really want to show that much excitement, but you could feel if under their unfazed, cool exterior.)

As the wait wore on (we waited an hour), I began to get impatient and then annoyed. But there was no turning back. We had waited too long to jump ship before we reached our goal (of being seated.) At one point, one of the very hip servers walked past me and said "Trust me, it's worth the wait." Somehow, that brightened my mood.

And a few minutes later, we were seated.

Was the server right? Was it worth the wait?

Hell yes! The okra and smoked red pepper appetizer lives on in my heart and I hope to be reunited with it some day. L's burger lived up to its reputation as the best in the city. The cocktails were a whole other area of expertise. I could actually do a whole post just on the cocktails. And the bacon. OMG! I didn't know bacon tasted like that. Everything we had was mouthwateringly delicious.

But what no one had told me, what we found most surprising, about H&F, something that really sets it apart, was how happy the staff was. We learned that not one employee has quit since the place opened. (And the restaurant biz is notorious for high turnover!) Our server (the aforementioned hipster) kept a picture of the burger as his phone's screen saver. He couldn't say enough good things about the food, the restaurant and his job.

Now I know what all the fuss is about. And I've become a convert. Blabbering on to everyone I meet about this great restaurant. And I'm dreaming about the next time I get to wait in line to eat at the exceptional H&F.