nom nom: Pizzeria Lola

Business:  Pizzeria Lola
Location:  Southwest Minneapolis
Did they earn a wink? NO

The Occasion:  An early start to the weekend (Thursday is the new Saturday)

The Food:  {pizza}  Sweet Italian (server's favorite) and The Forager.  I felt the pizza's tasted pretty good and were well priced for being a "fancy" pizza joint.  I would take this over Dominos ANY DAY.

via

The Service and What Went Wrong:  First off, Pizzeria Lola does not take reservations or accept call ahead seating.  I see the reasoning behind this policy (how long does it take to finish a pizza?), but I have come to the realization that where liquor is served, dinner will likely be prolonged by at least 20 minutes.  Obviously this is an important factor when quoting wait times for diners in a restaurant.  My friend wasn't meeting me until 7:30 and I arrived around 7:10 to claim a spot on the wait list.  The hostess quoted me a 30 minute wait time and wrote my name down on the list.  I decided to grab a glass of wine at the bar. 45-50 minutes later, my date arrived and all the other parties who had been waiting were seated...except for us.

Pizzeria Lola's Le Panyol wood-fired oven
Photo by Pete Sieger

I walked back to the host stand and looked at the list.  There were three other parties of 2 written down below me that were now crossed off.  Either these parties came and decided to leave OR they were seated before us.  I addressed my concern with the hostess in which she replied that there were now 2 other parties who were still ahead of us also waiting to be seated.  I looked around, and didn't see any other parties who had arrived before/after me.  She could tell we were upset and asked if we would like a drink for the inconvenience.  Instead of offering us a complimentary drink like we thought her direction was, she pointed us to the bar and said we could get one for ourselves if we wanted, i.e. NOT complimentary. Really?!

photo booth wall of fame.  see anyone you know?

In the midst of all the waiting, I had been tweeting about my experience and shortly after my tweet's, we were seated.  Service during dinner went well and I was satisfied with the servers' attentiveness.  Although the wait time was frustrating, Pizzeria Lola has many attractive qualities that have made it a popular restaurant destination.  The charming decor, the photo booth and the imported Le Panyol wood-fired oven (a rare thing to find in the states) are all attractions to be seen at this pizzeria.  Would I admit that I was unsatisfied with my experience on this night?  Yes.  Would I dismiss the restaurant entirely?  Absolutely not.  Here's to hoping my next experience is a bit more pleasant.

{winkMSP}