It was an awe inspiring evening in the Tampa City Council Chambers tonight! Cappy's got the zoning change request and the waivers needed to stay open!!
Seminole Heights should be very proud....our three neighborhood association Presidents did a great job speaking before council. And the friends of Cappy's (our great S.H. residents!) turned out in and filled up the room!! There were at least 50 people (more?, did anyone count?) and we were all ready to talk if we needed to fight, but it wasn't necessary...our leader's did a good job, and so did the Land Use representative for Scooter and Natalie.
Linda Saul-Sena was great and well spoken about the need to plan to implement changes so future business owners won't have to go through the red-tape wringer that Cappy's owners did. It was a good thing, and thanks to Scooter and Natalie for being our 'pioneers' in the truest sense. Now hopefully it will be easier for others to change use on their business properties and start bringing the kinds of businesses we all want to see come here!
I, for one, am very grateful that they hung-in and went through all this...they have done the neighborhood a favor in pursuing this! This process cost them alot of money however. So we need to continue to support Cappy's, Scooter & Natalie, so they can recover from the financial hit from all this.
So, it's a tough job, but we're up to it.....c'mon Seminole Heights......Eat more pizza at Cappy's!!
Congratulations Cappy's and neighbors! The turnout was impressive. John Dingfelder was right. Don't mess with our coffee or pizza. Thanks to Cappy's and thanks to everyone who showed support.
ReplyDeleteThanks to everyone who went, I couldnt make it last night but will be sure to do my part by eating even more Cappy's pizza!
ReplyDeleteCongrats Scooter and Natalie -- and congrats Seminole Heights. I hope upon hope they have opened the doors and made it easier for more neighborhood services to find their way into our neighborhood.
ReplyDeleteAlso, let's not forget Elizabeth of Forever Beautiful. She's also battling with the city to get her restaurant open. Another urban pioneer that needs our help and support!
Has Elizabeth requested help from OSHNA and South Seminole Heights? I'm unaware of it, if she has.
ReplyDeleteIf she wants to go it alone, that's her business, of course.
A BIG thanks to everyone that showed up at council,signed the petition or even wished us well. This would have not been possible had it not been for all of the neighborhood support. I think the entire neighborhood is eternally in debt to Gary Ellsworth, Randy Baron, Sherry Simons, Sherry King Susan Long and several other people who work tirelessly to make this a better place for all of us to live in. I can't stress enough how helpful everyone was in attending all of the meetings downtown prior to the city council meeting. So again, thank you all and we hope to see you all soon! Scooter, Natalie & everyone at Cappys Pizza Seminole Heights
ReplyDeleteAs excited as I was about the turnout last night, I was equally disappointed soonafter.
ReplyDeleteA group of us decided to have dinner at Cappy's, why not ... seemed like a great place to celebrate such a neighborhood victory. And after sitting ... er ... standing in council chambers for almost 2 hours, I was really hungry! So off to Cappy's we go. We saw quite a few familiar faces there, others who, like us, decided to make their way there to celebrate and eat, two things that so often go hand in hand.
Parking? Not a problem. We parked across the street at southprint. Got a table right away, outside in the "greenspace" ... first time I sat out there, and the weather was just right for it. The restaurant was busy, but not hysterically packed.
So after quite some time that we sat there, our waitress finally came out and took our drink order, came back with our drinks and took our food order. Soonafter, our food came out ... well, almost all our food came out. I ordered the calzone (first time ever), and apparently, they must have to go to Italy to get it, because my dinner never came out. Everyone in my party ate, and finished, and were waiting for their check, and I still had no food. My diet pepsi had run dry about 30 minutes earlier, as did everyine else's, and no sign of our waitress, checking to see if we needed refills, or if our food was even okay. Never came out to tell me why my calzone had not come yet.
Finally, at just before 9pm, one of the guys in our party decides to go hunt down our waitress to find out what the ETA of my dinner was. She seemed oblivious to the missing calzone situation and told him she would check on it. So another 15 minutes or so go by, I see her going around dropping off checks and picking up money from a couple other tables, never as much as coming by to give me the update on my dinner.
Okay, so now the restaurant is going through it's "shut-down" procedure, and my calzone is apparently on a slow boat from italy, making customs somewhere, possibly at the Statue of Liberty. By this time, my blood sugar has bottomed-out, and annoyance sets in. I get up, GO to my waitress, and inform her that I no longer want my calzone. She gives no explanation, no apology, but rather tries to sell me on taking it home in a box. Yeah, right. "Ahhh, no" was my reply, I think. Oops, pushed wrong button. Seems the button I pushed was the "SMUG and CONDESCENDING" button. I got this snarky half-assed apology (more like excuse) about how the tickets go to the kitchen and she has no control over when the food comes out and they don't have computers so that's just the way it is and that's it.
I'm not sure how many other people she's used that logic on, and of those people how many really bought it, but I was not about to. No thanks, keep the calzone, we're all going home. Out come all our checks. All I had was a soda ... ONE soda, no refill, cause I was never offered one, nor was anyone else in our group. But HEY ... cool! I get a ticket for my $1.75 diet pepsi. That, to me was like the final insult ... the ultimate f$%#k you. Seems to me that Scooter and Natalie could have let their waitstaff know there'd be a good chance that people who took time out of their busy schedules and went to Council would be coming to eat there later, so how about making them feel a little "extra" special for their efforts? Apparently, that detail was spared.
I've been to chain restaurants where if you're not the slightest bit happy with your meal, the manager will even come out and literally bend over backwards to make sure you leave happy ... a complimentary dessert, perhaps? A coupon for a complimentary appetizer next on your next visit? Whatever. I didn't expect any of that, but also was not prepared to be treated like crap, either. Or to feel obligated to pay for a soda that literally cost them a couple pennies to serve me.
We talk so much about supporting mom and pop businesses in the n'hood, and so much opposition is voiced upon the mention of chain stores coming in, but really, Cappy's did not prove to me last night that I'm going to be treated better there than if I were at Bennigan's, or Outback, or Chili's etc....
I'll keep supporting Cappy's plight to stay in business on Florida avenue. It is through this support that I hope other businesses will come in, open and prosper in our wonderful neighborhood. I will gladly patronize those new businesses. Will I patronize Cappy's again? Sadly, probably not.
Thanks for letting me vent.
Gee Shrekswife, did you go to Scooter and Natalie with these complaints? Or is airing it in public more satisfying?
ReplyDeleteSince the hearing was that night, I'm sure they weren't there working that night, so they may not be aware of what happened....oh, except for all the people who tell them they saw it on the blog. Real nice.
Scooter and Natalie did not go back to their business after the hearing - at least for the 2 hours I was there after the city council hearing. Many of those that were there in support did make a point of going to Cappy's to celebrate but the owners were nowhere to be found - how would Shrek's wife be able to say anything to them.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, any time I have gone I've only gotten a refill if I got up to ask for it or went to find the server to request it.
I appreciate the "Mom & Pop" business and will continue to go but service is definately a big weak point there.
Yea Shrekswife. How dare you denigrate our little piece of SoK Cappy's.
ReplyDeleteDon't you know badmouthing is reserved for places like Ybor Pizza that are on the official "We don't like as neighbors" list.
Yea, add to that list those darn awful car repair business' too.
ReplyDeletei went to Cappy's once, got the same waitress who, at closing time, asked if we lived nearby and wanted to go cups....for our pitcher of beer. seems that 30 mintues before closing time was encroaching on her personal time. i've been a few times and the service has ALWAYS been poor to the point of non-existent. i want them to survive but i don't think neighborhood loyalty should have to be sacrificed with poor service. every time i think of ordering out from cappy's i remember mal carne's excruciating experience with the chick on the phone who told him to look them up on my space....duh. we have every right to "EXPECT" good service from any place we frequent and every right to voice frustration when we don't get it. as owners or managers you should expect to hear it...and oh, i don't know, encourage your employees to treat people like crap...especially when people went out of their way to go downtown, sit in council chambers, go to your restaurant afterwards to support you and talk up business in general. but hey, that's just me.
ReplyDeleteI talked to someone today who owns a business in the neighborhood and is pro 'hood and pro business that they will not go to the restuarant because of bad service and only order take-out. This is coming from a person that is typically very tolerant of these kinds of situations.
ReplyDeleteCappy's is only hurting themselves if they can't take 10 minutes to impart the knowledge for a minimal level of service to be expected from their wait staff. You would think that the wait staff would have a clue if their tips are minimal or non-existent that they may need to reflect on the job they are doing - or not as the case may be.
I've had mixed service, but the times it was poor was always the tallish, thin chick that was kind of spacy and aloof. She hasnt always been bad. Just sometimes and the other servers I've had were decent.
ReplyDeleteThe fact that the owners did not have the grace and class to be at their business to thank any of the 100 plus group from the neighborhood for going to City Council say it all. Gee it reminds me of Angelica at Viva la Frida. Pat at Front Porch...and Tiffany's Tea room before that.
ReplyDeleteWhat a shame.
Meanwhile over at the big evil chain known as Starbucks service is good, the staff is always pleasant and friendly, and I have yet to have a disappointing experience.
12:31,
ReplyDeleteI've only been to the Starbucks twice. I've ordered the same thing both times. Despite the fact that I speak fluent Italian, I cannot bring myself to order in any other way than "my I have a LARGE COFFEE, please".
I have a complicated method for adjusting my LARGE COFFEE to my liking; I put some milk and some sugar in it. Both times the milk and the sugar containers were empty. The first time, they were completely out of sugar in the store.
With my rather esoteric way of preparing my coffee, I can see where they just might not have the supplies on hand to accomodate my request. Probably won't be a 3rd opportunity to spend way too much on a LARGE COFFEE .
Man you said it. Cappy's is an eyesore with overpriced food. I still can't believe they took a pefectly good building and turned it in to that dirty shack. I have only been there once and I was shocked to find that caviar was not an available pizza topping. Then when I they told me that I couldn't get a decent glass of champagne with my pizza I told the maitre d' that I would not be back. I for one am thrilled at the news that Berns Steakhouse will soon be opening a Seminole Heights location at the intersection of Nebraska and MLK. The food and service will be the same but the prices will be much lower to suit the needs of the local residents. This should be a welcome addition to an area where the best food available comes out the side window of a bus.
ReplyDeleteBeing a single mom in Seminole heights I find myself and my daughter going to all the better places we have.
ReplyDeleteCappys, Starbucks, and especially Marinos deli. They are all great!
Try not to be so critical toward cappys as they have been through some real scary times recently.
If they had lost the city council battle they would have been closed down.
I say, go directly to the owners and tell them your beef.
If they dont aplogize then give it to this blog.
Gymmom
Re: the owners not being there for the after-party. Unless this was a scheduled event I can't see where there was an expectation of their attendance. I would imagine this was a cathartic event after some pretty stressful months, let them enjoy their night. I attended the council meeting for more than just Cappy's and their owners. It was for my neighbors and neighborhood, it was for the future of businesses here, and it was for me because I like to eat there. I suspect others were similarly motivated. We have had both good and very mediocre service, but more good than not. It's just part of going there and we factor it into our plans. I'd say address concerns with the owners and move on. It is a huge addition to our neighborhood, and one I hope is a forerunner of many more to come.
ReplyDeleteYou ‘FIND' yourself going to those places. What are you doing, daytime sleepwalking?
ReplyDeleteAre you the same one that takes her kid S of K for piano lessons but insists on tramatizing by making her live here?
Keep your nose up and your head in the clouds, but watch that curb. You may trip and find yourself in the gutter
It seems to me that shrekswife wanted her ass kissed for voting in support of Cappy's. I've been to Cappy's many times and I cannot imagine anyone waiting an hour for a calzone.
ReplyDeleteI was there that night and this group of high rollers all had to have separate checks. This can confuse any even the finest kitchen's and many restaurants do not allow it. This is probably the reason her calzone came out last. What the waitress was trying to explain was that many chain restaurants use computers that not only place orders but enables the kitchen to see the order for the whole party at once and adjust accordingly. These systems are simply out of reach for Mom & Pop restaurants. I assume shrekswife probably knew this but she would rather bitch and belittle people trying to serve her. I hope she realizes that shreks wife is a fictional character and she really isn't a Queen.
She ordered something that took longer than the others, that was the simple reason but that was not good enough for her. By the way, the waitress brought out a wrong salad and rather than bring it back, offered it to the table, which I believe shrekswife ate.
I guess she felt she deserved a free soda with it too. Isn't it illegal for her to want gifts from people she voted for.
My favorite part is "Finally, at just before 9pm, one of the guys in our party decides to go hunt down our waitress to find out what the ETA of my dinner was." Did they bring out the dogs & Swat Team to find this elusive waitress. Was she hiding her calzone in the large convention room. Quit being so dramatic and get a life. Most of you have living rooms bigger than Cappy's.
Cappy's is a Pizza Parlor not a fine dining facility. They have 2-3 servers waiting on everybody and it works out fine. If you want your ass kissed there are plenty of Italian restaurants in Tampa where the servers only handle a couple of tables and you can spend $30 for an 8" pizza and soda's.
Cappy's had a larger than expected crowd that night but instead of showing a little understanding for your waitress (not your slave)you prefer to bitch and belittle. Even someone in your own party had something to tell you about your attitude.
To the person who commented, "the tallish, thin chick that was kind of spacy and aloof." Are you the creepy guy with the long nosehairs that likes to hit on young girls? Since your into character assassination you should understand the comment. It sounds like the waitress has a higher level of education than you do.
Cappys sux! You're right shrekswife. I ate there last night and it was awful. I took my son because a friend told me it was a great place for kids. My son has shoes that turn into roller skates and I've heard the place has a good floor for skating. So we tried it. First off, apparently they don't like kids. When my son was skating around enjoying himself, one of the staff rudely asked me to tell him to stop. Don't be fooled about it's fun appearance, they don't want you to have fun. Then came the poor service.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing I've heard about Cappy's was that they had great salads. I've never had their salad dressings so I asked the waitress for samples of their different dressings. So I waited for what felt like an eternity,upward of almost five minutes for her to bring me the samples. I wasn't sure if I liked any of them but I really wanted french so I sent back the salad. What kind of restaurant doesn't have french?
On to the pizza...
I ordered the deep dish. When the pizza finally came out, at this point I've been there for a half hour, it was absolutely unacceptable. I've had deep dish pizzas in other restaurants (pizza hut ect.)and they looked nothing like this. The sauce was on top of the toppings! When I tried to send it back for this reason, I was told that this is how they are made .Is n't the customer always right? The entire time we were there we probably only got two refills. I refused to pay and we left. I'm with you shrekswife, I WONT BE BACK!
12:45, I truly hope that you are being sarcastic. Letting your kid skate in a restaurant?
ReplyDeleteAnon@12:45
ReplyDeleteChicago Style Pizza
The customer isn't always right, that attitude of entitlement is one of a myriad of modern problems.
I've gotten decent service at Cappy's. Not great, mind you, but not so bad as Viva la Frida's. The restaraunt is always very clean, unlike Ybor Pizza. The beer selection is quite good.
ReplyDeleteWhen we want pizza, we prefer Cappy's over any other in town. Their Florida-style "greek salad" is delicious.
9/11 WAS AN INSIDE JOB!
ReplyDeleteAnon 12:45
ReplyDeleteYou went to a dining establishment to let you kid play among the tables and other diners and you bitch when they ask you to have you kid stop???? They probably waited too long to do that - wrong place - wrong time.
I've never had a greek salad served with French dressing and the Chicago style pizza is prepared as the pizza was served. 2 refills is plenty - did you want a personal hose connected to the dispenser??
I think you are right - Pizza Hut is more your style - stay there and enjoy. Leave Cappy's to those of us who appreciate it for what it is.
Slow down. Anon 12:45 was being sarcastic to make a point.
ReplyDeleteOh WOW!
ReplyDeleteI read it all. I waited until I could not stand it any more to says something.
Here are my qualifications for weighing in on this discussion.
I live in SH
I have eaten severak times at Cappy's (including the city council night)
I went to City Council in support of them.
I spent 20 years in the food service business(4 as a server putting myself through school and the rest in management)
I am a human being.
First, it was just an unfortunate over site of young, inexperienced owners to not have guessed that if 100 people, who are customers, go to city council for almost two hours, to support them, instead of home for dinner, they might be hungry afterward and think the perfect place to satisfy that hunger was the place they just supported.
Part of owning a successful restaurant or other service business, is exactly that...SERVICE. Good service shows itself not only in efficiency but also in attitude. It is amazing how many bad things can happen that will be overlooked by the customer if the server has a great attitude. Refilling glasses, clearing off dirty plates, extra napkins, conversion about when the order will be up...these should be included in basic good service. A good server is not a reactionary, but rather someone who is prepared and sees things not only as they are, but how they will be, and plans accordingly. If one person at a table orders a calzone, and on that particular evening a calzone can be expected to take 45 minutes or more, and everyone else at the table has food that will come out quickly, then a good server will tell the table that, giving the person a chance to order something else or at least be prepared for the wait.
As to the computer excuse for bad service, it is right up there with my dog ate my homework. Get a grip people. Remember when we did not have computers in restaurants? Was the service always horrible? Of course not. The computer excuse was just that...an excuse. For haphazard, service from someone who did not care and probably always thinks the reason she gets poor tips is that all her customers are cheap!
A good server will also ask a table, before taking the order, how the check is to be written. All together or separate checks. Considering that the order was taken on a napkin, I do not think asking for separate checks should have been much of an issue. By the way, no one at that table insisted on it. The server asked, at the end, how it was to be and she was told.
A good server returns to the table often to check on it. If this one had, it would not have been necessary to send someone out to find out about part of the meal.
None of this is anything more than very basic good service. If a server is unable to do these things the either the restaurant is insufficiently staffed or this person is simply a poor server. There are no other reasons!
As to the salad. Amazing that this is somehow turned around to be a kindness by the waitress. Actually it was nothing more than an error. So rather than taking it back, she left it at the table. Those at the table who wanted salads, already had one. So no takers there. One other person did not want one, two were drinking not eating. So the salad had no home. When everyone was eating and Shrek’s wife had no food, she decided to eat it. Oh shame!
One last thing that bothered me greatly. I absolutely understand getting slammed all at once and the service suffering because of being understaffed to handle the onslaught. But the two stooges comedy act in the patio area showed a complete lack of understanding priorities. If the waitress is too overwhelmed to give good service, one of them should have helped out more. Making the leaning tower of Pizza Boxes and clowning around loudly, only irritated the guests. Glad they made pizza boxes for “tomorrow” but it would have been far better to give a darn about the customers of “today”.......otherwise just might not need those pizza boxes tomorrow!
(Oh yeah on a more personal note. I too had this same waitress. On three of the several times I have been there. She is disorganized and flippant. Neither are good attributes for a service person!)
The best service in SH is Merino's Deli! Forget the fluff and get the Stuff!
ReplyDeleteNot to pick on Merino's, but they aren't perfect either. I appreciate the fanboy support, but my one time in there they completely botched the service so bad we felt forced to leave. They took the orders of the people in front of us and then the orders of people behind us and acted as if we weren't there.
ReplyDeleteThat said... I already complained. Merino's already apologized. At some point I will give them a second chance. But no restaraunt is immune to these sorts of problems, especially those that rely on unskilled labor as small, inexpensive places must. So be fair.
Cappy's and their people rock! Best pizza in Tampa.
ReplyDeleteI like Cappy's ok. I know it is just a pizza joint. But, sorry, good service can make or break a place, and although I will continue going there, I would hope it would take this all to heart and fix it! Once in a while is to be expected,,,,,over and over,,,well that is a problem!
ReplyDeleteToo wiped out to cook after painting the house this weekend, my wife and I just wanted to order a pizza last night and not worry about anything. Due to the untimely demise of Ybor, our only choices were frozen(just as good as domino's or pizza hut) or Cappy's. We decided to give Cappy's another try.
ReplyDeleteLacking a menu, and not wanting to search for them on myspace (I'll be nice), we just called and pulled something out of the air; NY style pepperoni. (fingers crossed that they had that)
It was pretty good, not stellar. Crust too thin for what I've come to know as NY style, as much residual corn meal on the crust as you get at Bella's (just don't like my pizza to be crunchy with burnt corn), but they didn't cheap out on plastic pepperoni, didn't kill it with said pepperoni as the chains do, the sauce was nicely balanced and it wasn't as expensive as when I used to work next door to them in SOHO. $12 for a large pie is quite fair.
All in all, it's worth a trip back.
Hey Anon 4:18 they probably ignored you for a good reason!
ReplyDeleteI wish you would all grow up! This is a family run pizza joint. If you want clone servers who are willing to put up with your crap because you had a bad day go somewhere else. Attacking a waitress because the place is busy is just plain childish. Getting mad because others are served first is the equivalent of not wanting them to play with your toys. If it was one of your kids there would be a time out involved.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, she could have taken the salad back, I've eaten in some of the finest restaurants in NY and I don't remember any freebies.
You should be ashamed of yourselves. This all stems from some overbloated egos looking for the help to verify their superiority.
I eat at Cappy's often and will continue to do so. If I have a problem with a waitress, I'll ask her what's wrong. If that doesn't work I'll go to the manager/owner. This gutless wonder called the blog seems to be perfect for people who just want to whine without accountability. Hey, isn't that what politicians live for!
If you want to atack someone, grow a pair and do it face to face.
Hey anon 8:34 you are nuts. Good service has nothing to do with egos. What the hell kind of world do we live in where we just accept bad attitudes and the general lack of good service that seems prevelent everywhere? She didn't take the salad back as it was an error and once on the table what should she have done, served it elsewhere? And in order to ask a waitress about a problem she needs to be there, AND she needs to give a damn!
ReplyDeleteBTW where is your pair, anon?
I am thinking that in some of the finest restaurans anywhere the "freebies" as you call them are not offered and the service is good! Not a freebie anyway, was more of an apology! But instead what was offered was attitude and excuses.
ReplyDeleteFrom the way it sounds, the waitress was not "attacked", I think she actually needs to be present to be attacked, which seems she wasn't. I agree with anon 8:52 and all the others who are not willing to accept shitty service anywhere anytime. Anon 8:34, either you are willing to accept this type of service or you are in some way connected to cappy's, whether it be their owners or waiter people. If that's the case, good for you. You go there, they are your pals and therefore give you good service. This blog is a venue to discuss, and share information, opinions, comments and ideas.
ReplyDeleteI stand behind those who have the courage to voice their opinions in spite of the self-righteous malcontents who are just waiting for their chance to rip them to pieces.
Anonymous 4:18 (aka ABC Pizza group)Nobody says anybody should be perfect, it just seems as though a little common sense, basic intelligence and the willingness to take care of a situation is all anyone is asking. We at Merino's apologized to you for our oversight in not keeping track at who hit our counter first, unfortunately you didn't give us the chance to do it that day while you were there. How long could it have taken? Certainly much shorter than the drive to ABC. Instead you went right to the blog. When we did read it we apologized and invited you to come in and let us know who you are (anonymous doesn't really identify you though does it) and we would gladly make it up to you. And before you do come in please realize that we do not promise 'immediate' service, but prompt and as quickly as we can't without any undo delay. We have had them lined up at our door for lunch, yet everyones 'fresh made' sandwich gets to them quicker than any fast food drive through. So listen, why don't you just give in and come in and get your sandwich and be done with bashing us as not being 'perfect'. Guy Bala, Sandwich Designer
ReplyDeletePlease re-read. No bashing in that post. Simply a warning that every restaraunt has bad days, even the good ones.
ReplyDeleteAs I said, I will return. I will, however, not identify myself. I expect to be treated like every other customer, which also means not embarassed for having spoken up in the midst of bad service.
I went to Cappy's last night. (previously, had only eaten there once before) I had a guest in from NYC so was a bit nervous of comparing the two. She put it up with NYC's finest. THEY WERE ONE THE MONEY LAST NIGHT...THANKS CAPPY'S. However, the service was almost embarassing. The waitress sat our drinks down and said she'd be back to serve, never came back. We finally started tasting and handing out. The pies were amazing, bread stick awesome and salad very good. If they took service up a notch it would be the best by far.
ReplyDeleteI have to say I am a bit dissappointed in Merino's. The sandwiches are pretty good, but the soup is worse than campbells. I was hoping for a good soup and sandwich deli. Cmon Mike, get some good homemade soup. The best Deli Tampa has ever seen is either the loading dock when it was in westshore with Annie, the Soup maker (her cheeseburger soup was amazing) or best sandwich shop...Old world cheese shop in Temple Terrace.
ReplyDeleteCmon you pieces of crap. Merino's is a good restaraunt and I'm sick of people ripping on a new establishment. Do you have any idea what it costs to open a business in this area? Is there a long line of rest. waiting to open? Show some appreciation or would you rather more auto businesses.
ReplyDeleteOooooohhh Nooooo, Absolutely CANNOT
ReplyDeletehave the dreaded Auto Repair Business'... that is on the official neighborhood won't support list. Must have more restaurants only.
Official Neighborhood Won't Support List:
ReplyDelete1) low grade product
2) bad service
3) poorly maintained facility
4) illegal business
Gonna have to point out the obvious here, 12:58. Up until Thursday, Cappy's was an illegal business.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing that changed that was asking forgiveness when they should have asked permission from the gitgo.
Exactly, Selective-Support for Sure!
ReplyDeleteIt's all selective support. Where is the problem with that? The city council meeting was open to the public. There was not one voice in opposition. Tell me anon's are you going to put your time in and speak up in support for something you don't want? Would anyone?
ReplyDelete"Illegal Business" isn't exactly correct. They are a legal business in the correct land use and zone missing some parking.
ReplyDeleteUnlike, for example, the 5606 swinger's club on Nebraska that was "illegal" because it was operating without a license in an area where no license would ever be provided and remained open even when code enforcement finally conceded to the neighborhood and began fining them.
Cappy's was a legal, licensed restaraunt with, ahem, one parking place.
And, to be very clear, the support for Cappy's was more support for an overall solution to the problems Cappy's and Marino's and Elizabeth faced than "we want our pizza!" Many of the people that went before city council did so in support of future businesses that have yet to locate here. We diminish the action at city hall if we reduce it to simply "support for Cappy's". It wasn't.
Oh you kids. Is there anything nice you have to say about anything or anyone? What would you do with yourselves if you couldn't find so much to complain about? Why do you take it upon yourselves to decide whether or not a business in the area ought or ought not have the right to succeed? These restaurants probably shudder when you walk through their doors. Were you picked on mercilessly as children? Don't take your role-playing "I'm the bully now!" games to small businesses. Go home and take your issues out on the people who chose to be around you instead of waging a passive aggressive assault on strangers. This is embarrassing.
ReplyDeleteUhhh, like the success of a business depends on its customers, so I'd say that yeah, we (the consumers) DO decide whether or not a business will/will not succeed. In all these posts, I've heard alot of complaining about less than stellar service at Cappys. In fact, there seems to be more complaints than compliments, and the compliments sound more like probably to owners or the people that work there just bashing everyone with an opinion, just for the mere fact that they HAVE an opinion.
ReplyDeletePlaces like Viva la Frida's might still be around had it not been for a lack of good service. Cappys would be wise to listen to the complaints and rather than take offense to them, they should use them constructively and make adjustments according the what has been said. If their product is as good as everyone says, they need to have service to match.
Remember, we live in a country where you can get just about anythng you want. What sells and keeps bringing customers back is how you treat them when they are there. This goes for ALL businesses in the service industry, not just Cappy's. Your customers are your livelihood; realize this and treat them as such.
Just an outsider's humble opinion.
I drove past the place last night and they seemed to be doing pretty well, despite whatever issues some people seem to have had with service. I've personally never had a problem. Relax. I've looked over this site a little bit today, and I haven't seen a lot of compliments to any businesses. There are far more complaints than compliments PERIOD, not just in reference to this particular business.
ReplyDeleteIfly--you seem to always have a nice, reasonable outlook. Thanks for your input! Seems like you've got a good grasp on things.
ReplyDeleteI just have to comment on shrekswife dated 3/23 and to the resident blogger dated 3/26. I was there that night after the meeting. The utter lie that she states "she got up from the table" not hardly she sat there never moved and acted like she was a queen and the watress was her slave. The waitress came to our table more than once checked on our drinks and went to their table afterwards. Looking at shrekswife the salad was probably better for her. We eat at cappy's because the food is good you can sit outside and we don't expect five star service its a pizza joint!! As far as the two men folding boxes, I don't believe they were on the payroll one of them does work at Cappy' sometimes have seen him there waiting tables. I think helping out Cappy's by folding boxes was pretty nice they could have just sat there and bitched about the service instead they did something to pass the time and had fun, even helping to bus tables, more than I can say for shrekswife, the resident blogger and their parties I never saw anyone of them get up to help or would that be beneath them. Whats up with people and their snobbish attitudes do they not have a life and if they do is it only fulfilled if they can bitch about something. Life's to short, don't worry about the small stuff, no one died because you didn't get your food with the rest of your party. I for one will continue to support Cappy's.
ReplyDeleteYou're right.
ReplyDeleteShrekswife is an Oompa-Loompa if I ever saw one.
Why-
ReplyDeleteBecause she went to a restauraunt anbd expected to eat?
Was she asking too much?
And now she is wrong because she ordered food and never got any?????
I have seen bad service close more than one business here.
Good service keeps businesses alive, bad service closes doors.
Owners think they dont have to be nice to their customers but cant figure out why sales are down??
I think she's wrong because she brought her grievances here to the blog instead of going to the owners first about them.
ReplyDeleteIf the owners cared about such things, they wouldn't hire or retain bad waiters. When bad service becomes part of a service business' reputation you're safe in assuming a complaint to the manager or owners is a waste of time.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree with some of the recent posts, shrekswife is way to extreme about what bothers her, I have said that before on other issues and I wouldn't know her if she passed me on the street. The only time I've ever read a positive comment from her was one on the neighborhood Publix. She is not the only one either, the person who went on a rampage about the car repair business' and all the unsightly places on Nebraska picking them off one by one was way to much. I agree, some of these folks just don't have a life or anything better to do than to complain, bitch, and report to the city over every "Little" freakin thing.
ReplyDeleteWell, there's the rub-- people who "don't have a life" are the ones that "complain, butch, and report to the city" things like hookers, right-of-way violation, safety issues, trash dumping, etc.
ReplyDeleteThese are the people that volunteer for the neighborhood associations, crime watches, and other neighbor-supported groups and causes. These are the people that get things done.
So if the whine, bitch, and complain sometimes, is that such a high price to pay?
You know, I live in the neighborhood and heard about this on-going bitch session (aka blog) from a next door neighboor so I had to read it for myself. You've got to be kidding--so much energy complaining about some waitress at a little pizza place. At least she's WORKING for her $$ to pay her bills.
ReplyDeleteHaving worked in the restaurant business for years while earning my Ph.D; god know's I've made plenty of mistakes (took food to the wrong table, forgot someone's water, spilled a drink on the table...) but NO ONE DIED.
And you people call yourself a "neighborhood" that supports businesses-sure doesn't sound like it. Put things in perspective before you get on here and start bashing local businesses that are attempting to improve the community. That is, if you really want to make Seminole Heights an up and coming neighborhod with a well rounded infrasture to support it's residents.
"....she sat there never moved and acted like she was a queen and the waitress was her slave" AND "Looking at shrekswife the salad was probably better for her."
ReplyDelete.....Anon,4/08/2007 10:06 AM
That was Great! LMAO! I believe you hit the nail on the head with that one. Some of these folks are unbelievable, Queen Indeed !! Ha!
Who is this "shriekswife" anyway and why does she think she has so much power anyway? She sounds like an angry, bitter woman.
ReplyDeleteShriekswife is a "B" who loves to "B" on the blog for everyone to see. Angry, Bitter? Yea, I'd say.
ReplyDeleteI really feel the anonymous love flowing around here lately.
ReplyDeleteYou (anonymi, collectively) negated any credibility that you might have had when you resorted to name calling and personal insults.
Having read what ShreksWife posts, I sometimes agree with her and sometimes don't. That's what "real life" is like. Nothing has been said that deserves this kind of dogpile. Smells like someone has an axe to grind but no spine to do it. The rest just smelled some blood in the water, just as bad.
Do try to conduct yourself with some degree of the decorum that your parents obviously didn't instill in you.
And ya wonder why some of has have gone anonymous lately? Who wants to get skewered by a bunch of juvinile pranksters?
ReplyDeleteThe blog does better when people are able to discuss controversial subjects without risking direct, personal confrontation. So "anonymous" has its uses. Take it away and everything slows down to the same grey blandness.
Not sure which is worse.