Tapas Restaurant
 

Just noticed a new tapas restaurant opening in Feb in Laconia. Looking forward to trying it out.

http://www.tavern27.com/

Cool! Right up the road. Previous tenants were not worthy of my restaurant dollars, and they let the chip n putt go all to pot. New owners looked like they mowed in Oct when I last was up.

Menu Items From $1 and Up
 

Greetings neighbors. This is not a rumor. Tapas is coming to the Lakes Region. This post is straight from the proprietor. We hope to open for a grace period with limited seating in late April. This grace period is intended to provide our staff the opportunity to refine its skills and our neighbors the opportunity to share their feedback with us.

The grace period may be lengthy and will be experienced by invitation only. All who wish to be on the invited guest list should visit http://www.tavern27.com and follow the instructions for consideration to be added.

We will post to this forum once we are officially open.

Seriously?
 

Really? You would turn away business that might casually stop by?

There's no way I would make an appointment for CONSIDERATION to TRY an establishment!

Invitation only? I feel UN-invited by this post, and have no idea WHY on earth you would post such an un-welcoming thing!

I hope you have a long list of people waiting to get in, because unless you do, this post was a BIG mistake!

A 'lengthy' period of 'Invitation only'... Oh my word! (If your employees need that long to get used to serving, you might want better employees!)

I hope you're kidding. Businesses already struggle, so I really hope that they are beating down the door. Where are you again?

Our Team Will Do Much More Than Serve
 

As I stated; the grace period will have limited seating. Very limited. There has been an overwhelming interest in what we are doing. I'd hate for you to drive out and find you can't be seated. We have additional seating that we plan to expand to as we get closer to summer season.

The grace period is not only for our staff to work out the kinks, its a period for us to get a complete understanding of what our local market desires.

I do not intend to insult those who'd rather not be on our list. I do intend to reward those who choose to.

Soft Opening
 

Perhaps a better term for what you are doing is soft opening as opposed to grace period. Regardless, best of luck.

Most quality restaurants do this. They offer a limited menu to select local area patrons and have a few trial runs. This ensures most opening issues have been taken care of and the customer gets what they deserve both food and service wise from the get go.

I commend them for doing this and wish them well.

Dan

I understand the want/need to do a soft opening. What offended me was their website asking me for a "brief paragraph stating why" I should be invited.

How else would someone new to the area try to find people who might actually be able to offer useful and constructive feedback?

I thought their offer was pretty generous. They want to do things right, and are using resources like this forum to get the message out there.

Personally, I find it disappointing that another new restaurant owner comes on here and before they have even served their first dish people are bitching about petty things.

I’m not “bitching about petty things”. In fact I wasn’t trying to bitch at all – really, I wasn’t. I was honestly trying to let them know how I felt. When I first read it yesterday, I didn’t respond because I wasn’t sure if I was being overly sensitive. Then I saw A4D’s response and realized I may not be the only one to feel this way.

They said they want honest feedback and that was all I was trying to do. I was honestly offended by having to prove myself to get on the invite list. The way I took it was if they approve of me, then I can come to their restaurant. It just makes me think that I wouldn’t be welcome when they do open to the public. If I took their message the wrong way, I apologize.

Maybe they could choose at random from all the responses they get. Or they thanked the boys and girls club and other volunteers that have helped them get things going (which is great), maybe they could use these volunteers or their families?

When they do open to the public, I will certainly give them a try – if they’ll have me! :laugh:

baygo-
best of luck! No hard feelings?

That's how I took it, as well. I can understand 'soft opening'... standard practice, but having to complete instructions with a "brief paragraph stating why"? I just have this vision of being stopped at the door and asked who I am and why I expect to get in.

The tone taken leaves me turned off.

Don't back down.....some of us happen to agree with you. ;)

Tapas
 

I think some of you may be a little over sensitive. Seems to me that the restaurant is trying to do their best to prepare themselves for the general public with a soft opening that will include other than new employees and perhaps some of their immediate family and friends who perhaps would only offer a biased opinion.
Opening a new restaurant is one of the most difficult and risky ventures in a good economy, never mind the present economic climate.
I simply see this as another step to help insure that when they do open to the public, that they are comfortable that they have taken every possible step to eliminate as many "surprises" as they can.
I may agree that some of the "wording" of the invitation may be poorly chosen, but I have to applaud their intent as I percieve it.

The last time I was this nervous was just before tee time for a US Open Qualifier.
 

We would simply like to have a sense for whose opinion we are subjecting ourselves to.
We hope to accumulate a list of individuals with discerning palates and who articulate well so as to trust that when they write their reviews in this forum, the public can rely on their findings.

We are receiving many requests to participate.

Sorry, I couldn't resist.....
 

Do you mean discerning palates, maybe.:liplick:

I wasn't going to get into this either and for those who have read my previous posts I am pretty non-confrontational. I really like to eat and probably have what may be termed a "sophisticated palate " (although I am not so sophisticated myself.) HOWEVER, I did go to the website and the "tone" of the website really was off-putting, particularly writing a paragraph to be deemed acceptable. I was not offended, but it just didn't make me feel very comfortable. I wish the new owners the best of success, but as a constructive criticism, IMO the website language is a public relations mis-judgement. Unless the owners were channeling Goucho Marx in his comment that he wouldn't want to " belong to any {club} that would accept him as a member.":):)

Give the guy a break, will you?
 

Man, take it easy on this guy. He's not sitting around collecting welfare, but rather is trying to start a new business in a down economy. Restaurants are tough businesses in a good economy, so he's got guts to push forth with this concept these days.

I commend him on his decision (yes, it's his business and no, you DON'T have to patronize the place) to take it slow and easy prior to an official opening. You guys will surely crucify him if his food and service stink because he's working out opening bugs.

Let's give this guy some support - just think....another business owner who'll probably be paying at least 5% income tax and DOUBLE social security payments.

If you guys are too offended to try the place, then step aside. I'll give it a try and report back.

Yours Truly,

SP

I also commend the owners on the soft opening. I've been to way to many openings that became horror shows because the FOH and Kitchen staffs were not ready. Good luck and I hope to be one of your guinea pigs.

You people are just TOO funny.

OK, I'll spell it out for you: he wants you to write a paragraph in order to determine whether you can manage to link a few coherent, relevant and useful thoughts together.

He'll be requesting detailed feedback from invitees, and if all they can manage to say is "tasted okay," well, that would be time and money down the rathole.

The soft opening is NOT for your benefit, it is for HIS, which is as it should be.

He spelled it out quite clearly: "calling all guinea pigs with great taste and an honest opinion), please email us here with a brief paragraph stating why we should invite you to share your opinion with us."

Riff raff and the McDonalds devotees need not apply.

He wants useful imput from foodies qualified to give it.

Yeah, so maybe public relations or marketing isn't their forte. I'd wager a guess that there are just a few things going on with trying to get the place opened, and writing an eloquent bit of prose describing their process for selecting customers for the soft-opening didn't get all the attention it might have been best served by.

It would be foolhardy to assume that someone is sinking their time and capital into a new business in a seasonal area in a down economy, and then is going to protect that investing by offending their potential clientele on purpose.

I don't think anybody has said he was offending people on purpose and I commend him on both the soft opening and the wish to start a new business. My only comment was on the website and it was made constructively. Certainly a business owner who is soliciting customers specifically to critique his food and business by having a soft opening need not be defensive about a comment concerning the website and I would hope the owner would take the comments in the spirit they were intended.

I look forward to this one, Laconia badly needs some good eats:)

Cut the guy some slack. He sounds like a smart businessman who's trying to get this right.

Absolutely!
 

Couldn't agree more. I have seen so many posts complaining about issues with new openings. This owner wants to dial in to the market and not open generally until he has it right. I think that is very smart and very appropriate.

Jetskier:cool:

I signed-up on the Tapas website to be invited to their restaurant before they officially open. I received a nice e-mail in response.
I think it is great that they want people to try their restaurant out and provide feedback.

What is Tapas
 

I've had many people ask what Tapas is. Here's a link.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tapas

FYI, We will feature an Americana twist on our Tapas.

Can you share about your experience after you go? I'm intrigued by the concept of this restaurant...

Great Trail Access
 

I for one can not wait to try this place out. For those of you that do not know where it is I will tell you this, it is right near the entrance to South Down Shores. I know this because I was snowmobiling in the area Friday Night. I can also tell you that there is VERY convenient trail access to it. This will be a MUST STOP on the sled place. If you ever snowmobile around the Prison Loop or the South Down Loop you will note that the access to this restaurant is excellent by sled. I wish the owner very very good luck and I hope he succeeds. This will be a great addition to the area!


FYI - We have a Tapas Restaurant in the city where we live and I love it. It is such a great place to go with a group of friends. ESPECIALLY if you are one of those people who wants what everyone else is having. Effectively you all share a bunch of little things so everyone gets to try everything. It is a great concept.

I spent quite a few evenings in Madrid several years back partaking of the food in Tapas restaurants. Being from New England and used to eating before 8 pm, it was hard for me to last until dinner at 11 pm. It was even harder to get to work at 8 am after being in a cafe until 3 am!!!!

BTW, the food was always excellent! It helped to have hosts that knew the area as well.

Good luck, I probably will stop by after your formal opening.

Free Lobster
 

To all who were waiting; Tavern 27 conducted its soft opening yesterday. This is the third restaurant I have opened and I must state that the Lakes Region customers show signs of being the best I've ever served. I am so pleased with the way my staff performed last night, and so flattered by all the great praise received, that I am going to tantalize some taste buds by offering a free lobster Tapas dish (one per table) to every one who asks for it while supplies last (about 35 orders). There are no gimmicks attached. Simple come on by and ask for your free lobster dish.

Where is Tavern 27 located and what are your hours? Do you have a menu that you can put on line for those who do not know Tapas? Thank you and good luck to you!

location
 

We are located at The Mystic Meadows (formerly Tavern on the Green or The Stone House Tavern). Our address is 2075 Parade Road, Laconia. Just north of downtown Laconia on 106, past South Down Shores and Long Bay. We can also be found online at http://www.themysticmeadows.com.

We will be posting the menu online soon. Until then, you are always welcome to stop by and take a peak! :)

Our hours of operation right now are 11am-10:00pm. We hope to open for delicious coffee and breakfast by Memorial Day.

Tavern 27
 

2 Thumbs up!

Stopped by tonight. Ray and Leslie have done an amazing job with this space and the food is fantastic with an extensive menu. If you have been to the old Stone Tavern you will not believe the changes, if you have never been you need to check it out.


Smitty

Terrific
 

We stopped in for dinner tonight and the food (and service) were great. It is nice to see a high quality restaurant in the lakes region with a focus on great customer service. We will certainly be back.

Jetskier:cool:

Concert
 

They are sponsoring a concert this coming Sunday (6/6/10):

http://www.themysticmeadows.com/p_events.php

Jetskier:cool:

Very few reviews
 

So how is this place?

We have been several times, most recently last week. The food is interesting and varied and it does take a little time to go through the menu. We have had a number of dishes ranging from "wow" (lobster salad in pickled cucumber) to very good. The service has been attentive and the surroundings pleasant. The owners are clearly putting a lot of effort into the place and it shows. IMO definitely the best new restaurant of the year and I will go back. Prices are fair and with everything from lobster dishes to pizza and burgers, you really can almost choose your budget. They were packed on a Thursday night. For a new restaurant in a somewhat lovely but out of the way place, this says something. And no, I have no connection whatsoever with the place.

Well put! Can't understand whats so hard to understand!!!!! Sounds extremely reasonable to me to have a soft opening, it would benefit the public in the long run! Stop fighting it people, enjoy the experience!

Looking good
 

I see the website has a couple links to reviews and they are good. I will have to try it out soon.

Baygo, any idea when the Fall menu will be up?

Thanks,
Eric

Check back tomorrow afternoon.