AFK Tavern Review #2c- Rub-a-dub-dub, let's talk grub

This is part of an ongoing series, launched by this previous entry. We were given a verbal glimpse-behind-the-curtain tonight at AFK Tavern, in regards to the preparation of their food during our hour-long chat with AFK co-owner Kayla. Here's some great news: food prep times (and in turn patron wait times) should be drastically reduced in the immediate future because the kitchen just got permission from the fire department to start using some new equipment that I'm not at liberty to divulge. I can tell you that the additions sound extremely exciting. I can also tell you that there are some inherent time issues that probably can't be easily overcome.

For example: we learned that the Orc Burger takes 12 minutes to prepare-- bear in mind we're talking about two fully cooked, thick patties of fresh beef. I think that's information that people may like to have up front. I am warned when ordering certain items at other restaurants (like steaks... mmmm steeeaaak) that it will take X number of minutes. I know how long beef takes to cook at home, I guess I just never thought much about it when I've been in. While it's a $13 burger we found out just how tight the margin is on these bad boys. No, I won't divulge specifics but I will say that the standard practice of keeping patties warming over is cost prohibitive with this item, and it would detract from the quality of the product (which has improved recently, see below). Plus their Cordon Bleu Chef (yes, really!) probably just had an aneurysm from reading the words "patties warming over" so I'm willing to bet their food will always be cooked-to-order.
We knew that they used fresh ground beef for all of their burgers. We didn't know that their ingredients are sourced locally (except the jalapenos which come from Mexico, as I recall). We didn't know that they get their meats delivered three times per week from a ranch out of Oregon. We didn't know that they were so dissatisfied with the early results of their cooking that they called the rancher into the restaurant to do some explaining. It's no surprise that fresh beef patties bleed, so it's also no surprise that the patties on the bottom will absorb blood from the patties above. This made the blood soaked patties nasty (and those on top probably got dry). They now flip their boxes of meat every 8 hours, and yes that means they have an employee come in during their closed hours just to flip boxes. Fresh meat also cooks differently than frozen, it's much more fragile. They made a few adjustments to their equipment and the overcooking issue went away as we can attest to. The Mrs was eating a couple of patties with cheese (no bun) last night and commented on how much better the beef tasted than when we first ate there.

One of the complaints that we were told about was the size of the menu. Some patrons have come in expecting a big, grandiose menu like they were going to an Applebee's or something. These folks are apparently not familiar with "pub grub." Hang on- AFK is several steps above standard pub fare, but the point here is that most pubs I've been to have a fairly limited menu (even the vaunted McMenamins pubs don't have extensive menus). The real purpose of the food is to moderate the patron's alcohol absorption. I assure you, if hard liquor serving establishments could not serve food, they wouldn't go through all the trouble of opening a kitchen, making a menu and dealing with the food issues. Pubs and Taverns are not usually known for being destination dining establishments, I certainly can't think of one. So it's unfortunate that these folks saw the layout of the establishment, got the impression that they walked in to a Ruby Tuesday's and then were disappointed when the reality of the situation made itself known.
Here's the good news: the menu will be expanding in the next couple of months (as the new equipment comes on line). Again, I can't divulge what we were told-- nothing was set in stone and I don't want to contribute to unrealistic expectations. But if you went in and thought, "you know, four pastas (including vegetarian), four sandwiches, a half dozen burger options and a half dozen LARGE appetizer plates really isn't enough" then YOU are the person they were thinking of when they came up with the menu expansion pack.

I've always enjoyed the food at AFK. The portions have been generous and the prices have been good (now that I know what goes into the food, I feel like I'm getting a hell of a deal).  If you ate there when they first opened and had an issue, I encourage you to go back for a second try. If you're the type of person who wants a little nosh with your drinks and you've never been there because of a bad review I absolutely encourage you to try it for yourself.

AFK Tavern is located at 1510 41st Street in Everett- take the 41st St exit from I-5 in either direction and head west about 3 blocks. It's on your left next to Ivar's. They're open 3P-3A except on days that they're not (see website for days with non-standard hours).

AFK Tavern Review #2b- the staff

Let's discuss the main issue of my previous post: the waitstaff at AFK Tavern. There have been definite improvements.  Drink service is soooo fast last Monday night that I wasn't sure they had brought our beers to the right table (turns out they had-- yay for us). We had a bit of an issue last night with a distracted waiter- some folks were smoking weed in the vicinity and it was wafting into the restaurant.  Weed is apparently a severe allergen for one of the owners, so this was turning into a major problem (one that we didn't know about at the time). Our waiter went to apply his police training to take care of it (I didn't ask for details, he probably just told them to stop). My wife went to remedy her lack-of-water situation and met the new waitstaff consultant. This lady is -awesome-! (Yes, I remember your name but I'm not posting it out of respect for your privacy). She's clearly been working in food service for several years and was able to strike a good balance between hands-off so we could play our Trivial Pursuit game in peace, and hands-on so that our drinks stayed filled.

During the somewhat lengthy conversation with Kayla (one of the owners) we were told that they had begun using "secret shoppers" (or the equivalent) to time the activities of the staff. The process is as simple as it sounds and the staff knows these people are around, though not necessarily who they are. The shoppers will call or text the owners at the end of a scheduled transaction to report how long it took to complete. Early reports show improvements, and some aspects of the serving process are taking half as long as they did before.

Kayla was quick to point out (and rightly) that they're NOT running a Denny's, Red Robin, Fuddruckers or whathaveyou. You can't bring a board game in those places and play for three hours. If for no other reason than the staff won't leave you alone for five minutes (unless I actually need something, then I can never find a waitress at a chain restaurant). Do you think you could walk in to IHOP, seat yourself at a booth, lay out maps for Gamma World, play for four hours and NOT buy anything? Apparently, that's happened several times at AFK-- and they've been alright with it. Yes, they prefer paying customers but they have only had to ask one person to leave, and that was for unruly behavior.

From the conversation I expect we'll be seeing the main food-ticket computer near the front doors in the near future.  I think this will have a twofold benefit. First, incoming customers who have a question will immediately see an employee. Based on what was said last night AFK will still clearly note whether they are running self-seating or assigned seating so customers do not have to interact with the person at the computer, but it will be an option. Second, and perhaps more importantly, the staff will see the customers walking in. Provided the staff has good communication, the benefits of them knowing when new customers are coming in, and how many there are, should be obvious.

I know no one wants the "hard sell" like you get at national chains. I don't want to sit at my booth and have wait staff descend on me with their rehearsed script about tonight's drink specials, the dessert special and today's soup-- all while shoving a menu in my hand and covering the table in branded coasters and napkins. And just as importantly, no one wants to be ignored. Fortunately, the staff at AFK know that people who are playing games need refreshment and game time in good balance. I've seen improvements, I'm glad to see them and I expect that things will continue to improve.

AFK Tavern is located at 1510 41st Street in Everett- take the 41st St exit from I-5 in either direction and head west about 3 blocks. It's on your left next to Ivar's. They're open 3P-3A except on days that they're not (see website for days with non-standard hours).

AFK Tavern Review #2a- Let's Clear the Air

Apparently people have been reading sections of my previous entry/review about AFK Tavern and have jumped to some unintended conclusions based on partial information. The problem is, even if you read the ENTIRE post you'd still only have partial info because I don't know any of the inner workings, and as I said I was making suggestions based on my observations.

Series-long tl;dr: It's hard to believe it's only been 2 weeks since my first entry. I've been in at least four times since and the improvements have been remarkable.

I went back to AFK tonight with the Mrs and S C S for a little Trivial Pursuit and tots +2. I ended up having an interesting conversation with co-owner Kayla. It sounds like some of my faithful readers took my previous post to be an indictment of my favorite local watering hole. It was also interesting to learn that they have been brought printed copies of the first review and have been told both, "this is why you guys suck" and "I think this guy might be on to something" (or maybe she said I was ON something...). Fortunately the staff took the post in the spirit in which it was intended, as constructive criticism. I'm sure the readers in question are familiar with the second term, the first maybe not so much.

Here's the situation: This place is new-- wet behind the ears kind of new. Even under ideal circumstances there would be kinks to work out and this place is absolutely one of a kind- there's no template to work from like there would be if it were a Denny's or Red Robin. Gamers in general are hard to pin down as a "type" (c'mon, you know there's more to this subculture than the stereotype of MTNDEW and poor hygiene) . Yes, I know the earlier post is loooong, but I really encourage everyone to read it in its entirety before passing judgment on AFK. I don't take back a word, but I think it's important for readers to know that I wasn't trying to tear this place apart.

To address some of the topics we discussed last night, I'm going to do a short series of reviews, each covering a different topic (hopefully without a lot of overlap) and each will be mercifully short.  If you don't want to read the entire series here's the

tl;dr: I LIKE AFK. I keep going back and I've enjoyed all but one visit. I will continue to support them because they deserve support (not becasue I feel like I'm donating to a charity).

AP Headline: Boomers Fear Outliving Medicare

Tough shit. Frankly, it's your generation that made the decisions that have us in the mess we're in now. How about a follow-up headline: Gen-X, Gen-Y and GenNext are pissed that their tax dollars are going into a program that they'll never see becasue they don't get to retire until age 72 (or later. . .)

Who's the 4E Commie now, bitch?!

Several weeks ago S C S and I were at AFK tavern in the smoking area outside (I was enjoying a pipe, he was along for conversation). We ran into a local legend-in-his-own-mind who goes by the handle "Porkfry." Another guy just randomly asked what games people played, and I mentioned than in addition to some X360 I had been playing D&D since the 2nd gen Red Box, then 2E and lately some 4E with my wife. Pork cries out with "Communist!" which pretty much made everyone look at him like he just shat himself. Conversation continued and he was more-or-less ignored.

Imagine my surprise at today's Penny-Arcade (12/29/10 if you have to search the "archive" such as it is) in which Gabe recounts that Pork was playing a game of Warmchine that Gabe had retooled to use 4E style rules, and will be run like a 4E style campaign.

Allow me to repeat the title of this post: WHO'S THE COMMUNIST NOW, BITCH!?

Fueling my Ongoing Distaste of College Athletics...

Yes, it's from The Onion, but it's true nonetheless:

http://www.onionsportsnetwork.com/articles/report-100-percent-of-college-football-players-rec,18653/
INDIANAPOLIS—An exhaustive three-year internal investigation has confirmed that a full 100 percent of college football players receive the advantages that come with being a college football player, the NCAA reported Friday. "We were frankly stunned at the benefits athletes received when it came to classwork, housing, transportation, tuition, even food. There appears to be no part of the college experience in which one doesn't receive special treatment in exchange for playing football," the report read in part. "In truth, it's inaccurate to use the term 'student athlete' in describing these young men, as one of the benefits of being a college football player is never having to cram for tests, attend a study group, or take out a student loan. It's shocking that these practices are tolerated at our nation's institutions of higher learning." The report ultimately concluded that while a litany of unfair benefits are rampant in NCAA football, this year's Auburn-Oregon championship matchup does look like a pretty amazing game that surely can't be missed.

 

Aikido misconceptions

This article on Slate (I know, you're shocked) talks about dealing with angry customers. It references "A Complaint is a Gift" in which the authors advise managers and store owners that, "Masters of aikido [sic] do not resist the physical force of their opponents... [R]ather, they turn with it and let it pass them."

Um, well, maybe. I actively practiced Aikido for about six years and continued to read books and articles about it for a couple years after I completely stopped. I took my 2nd-degree brown belt (ikkyu) test once, failed it miserably for a variety of reasons, and (I think) sufficiently improved my technique and attitude to the point that had the school been in operation long enough for me to take it a second time I would have passed. I still practice the occasional fall, stretches and some of the footwork. I've seen internationally recognized "masters" (a term that wasn't used when I was training, and I doubt has come into fashion with Aikidoka) in motion and under certain circumstances it's fair to make the "dancing" comparison that some insist on. However, to say that Aikido is all about "moving with the flow" isn't exactly fair to the martial aspect of the art, most authors make it sound like Japanese TaiChi.

The Origin Story of Aikido is that Morihei Ueshiba was a cocksure kid who issued an open challenge to the passersby in the town he was in and almost had his ass handed to him by a swordsman. He had, as the story goes, "a divine inspiration" that peace was the path of righteousness. Or, to put it another way, he found out that all of the direct-attack sword work he'd been studying for years put him a little closer to the edge of a sword than he was comfortable with. He decided it was time to modify his Daito-ryu Aikijujutsu (loose translation: when some dumbass tries to grab your sword, here's how to kick the shit out of him, and it works pretty well even if you're not holding your sword at the time). But with his new found appreciation for not dying, and based on the assumption that others felt the same way, he wanted to develop something that was effective but not necessarily deadly.
The early techniques are sometimes referred to as "diamond" (they are in the Shirata-ryu/Classical Aikido) and are little changed from the Daito-ryu that Ueshiba had studied. From there the periods of technique are referred to as "willow," "water," and "ki" each representing a progression toward flowing and harmony. Sure, by the time you get someone who's expert at all four schools they can dance away from an attack and it looks like they've "used their opponent's energy against them." But for the most part, once a grab is initiated, or if there's a close-quarters punch or kick incoming, there's little to impress an outside viewer that there's much "harmony" going on, especially if the attacker is determined to complete the attack. Pins, joint locks and throws are just not as friendly as authors like those above would have you believe when they say "just flow with it, like in Aikido!" I am certainly not a fan of Steven Seagal, but the reality is that in the close-quarters real world, fast, sharp techniques are more effective, efficient and reliable than trying to smile your way out of an attack while doing a pirouette (sorry, Ki Society- don't get attacked on a bus : |   ). Those big, flowey, "use your opponent's energy against them" techniques look great in the dojo when everyone knows approximately what to expect in terms of attack and technique, but are frequently impractical (impossible?) in the grit that makes up the real world.

AFK Tavern Review- A Work in Progress

Updates here, here and here

Arrrgh, I have to get this out of my head and I can't bring myself to tell the folks at AFK Tavern directly so here's the passive aggressive approach in full effect. I really really want to like this place so I'm going to start with the good. The food is good for this type of establishment (a one-off). The burgers aren't Red Mill but they're tasty, the burger patties are made on site, and very sizable helpings of sides accompany each. The food prices are lower than what you might find at a national chain of sit-down casual dining (e.g. Red Robin). The drink prices are really very good. For example, I paid $4 plus tax for a Skyy and tonic (not a well-drink, I asked for Skyy and watched her pour it). That same drink would cost between $6 and $8 in downtown Seattle. The strength of the drinks appears to be about average, though I have had both a very weak rum and coke and a very strong vodka tonic. No points lost/gained on overall drink strength. It should be noted that they routinely run drink specials and have happy hour discounts. Something new that I liked: on Epic Game Day they had a person at the door carding people and stamping the over 21s. This is the first time I've seen them do this and I would encourage more of that for the Friday/Saturday crowds. Having been there during the week, I think it's safe to card at the table.

What about AFK's atmosphere? If you've been in the video game/RPG world for more than a few years it feels like what you'd imagine a huge gamer house party to feel like (or a con if it had liquor and food). I have yet to feel even slightly hassled by the staff for sitting there for hours on end. It may have something to do with their knowing that my tab will run over $50 if I'm there for more than two hours- bearing in mind my wife doesn't generally eat or drink there because of dietary restrictions. Or, more liekly, they -want- people to come in and plant themselves so long as they're not just ordering one cup of coffee and trying to stake a claim for four hours. The lighting is a lot brighter than you might expect for a bar, but many people are there to play games and the text on Magic(TM)(R)(C)(whatever) Cards is really quite small. I would not consider AFK to be a meat market, though I would not rule out that the occasional hook up could happen. Again, most people seem to go there with an agenda of gaming or gathering with friends, and this place is really conducive to that.
They do have WiFi and encourage gaming. The wireless signal has been spotty at times and the router does not appear to be fully set up (it asks if I want to set it up about 80% of the time). Overall this is a plus and if the network reliability gets to the 95% range I would start to encourage MMORPG groups to look at this place as a regular meeting location. I do not have any reports about how the network fared during the Cataclysm debut, so the issues I've experienced may not affect MMO play. That said, outlets are limited to a nook near the kitchen with three 2-person tables and two 6-tops. Demand may dictate change, but that remains to be seen as laptops aren't a commonly seen item, yet.

What about crowds/events? This past weekend the first Epic Game Day took place and I think it's safe to say the crowds were as large as I've seen there. I'm generally anti-social and even start to feel claustrophobic in some places but that was not the case at any time on Saturday (we were there from noon until about 7:45). Handling customers is, however, where AFK as an establishment starts to show some strain.

S C S and I went in there on a Sunday afternoon when he was in town. We were two people at one table and there were probably three other tables occupied in the whole establishment. The problem was that all of the groups were about as spread out as they could be and they only had one waitress on staff. She did an admirable job, considering the circumstances, but I can't say that our orders were right, that the food was warm or that our server was friendly.
But hey- that was a fluke, right? Not exactly.

The Mrs and I have been in several times since and the waitstaff always seems overtaxed. We went in on a fairly slow Saturday night, sat in an area where there were other people and waited. For a half hour. Without a waitress asking if we wanted anything. It was about three minutes after I'd packed up my laptop and told the wife I was ready to leave that a waitress finally asked if we'd been helped. At which point I told her we had not, but that I was on my way out the door. Did I mention above that I regularly spend over $50 every time I go there? I think my cheapest tab has been $32 (before tip). Heck, at Epic Game Day we didn't really eat much considering we were there for eight hours- between cash at the bar and our table tab I was at $50 before tips. My point being on the night in question there was a waitress in the area, and they lost out on orders from people who really order food and drinks simply because she didn't ask if we'd been helped- even after I'd made eye contact. I suppose I could have waved her over, but it's a restaurant, she's a waitress and we're customers- it didn't seem necessary at the time.

Here's where I begin my "being helpful" turn phase. Bear in mind that my grandma owned a restaurant/bar for nearly 20 years and a good friend of mine has worked in catering and as a bartender. These are suggestions from my POV and they may be completely worthless in the overall context that I don't have access to.

1) On days with only one waitress, the seating should be assigned. The white board should have big block letters that read "Please Wait to be Seated." This will keep the one lady from having to run to the far corners of the joint to take care of customers. Managing each table becomes a lot easier if all she has to do is turn her head to see who needs a refill or wants to place an order, instead of physically walk the 60+ feet around obstacles and a stage to get to her next nearest table. [edit: the wife wanted me to mention that her preference is for the laptop area, so that nook should also be an option for those bringing machines. That said, even with a couple of tables in this area which is right next to the kitchen, and a few in the main dining area it's more manageable than letting gamers spread themselves out, because you know we'll stay as far away from each other as possible unless directed differently.]

2) On days with limited waitstaff, the bar needs to be self-service. This works best in the above example of limited patronage, not so well if the place starts to fill up unexpectedly. I know the bartenders know how to get food out of the kitchen. I've seen all of them do it. Patrons seated in the bar area would walk up to the bar, order a drink and a burger, and the bartender could then take the order back to the kitchen. Hell, the bartender could even walk out TO the customers and take an order. From there, the kitchen staff could bring the food to the bar and announce the order for pickup (and hopefully the patron orders another beer while they're there). Patrons in the general seating area would walk to the bar to order anything more complicated than a Jack and coke, or anything requiring layering. The waitress could take orders for anything off of the beer/mead side of the drink menu.
If customers are there to eat: sit in the dining area. If they're there for fancy drinks: sit in the bar. Seems easy enough, but let them know what's what before they choose.


3) The Bar. If AFK has an Achilles' Heel, it's the bar (or maybe the drink menu). The AFK menu has an entire page dedicated to layered/fancy cocktails that was in need of serious copy editing which S C S and I did, but they have yet to accept our changes despite reprinting an "updated" menu for December. Yes, I'm grumpy about that because we did it TWICE. Once on our own and the second time the owner asked us to go over it because she knew it needed help. I digress... The fancy drinks are problematic. On Saturday I watched one bartender chat on the phone while the other tried to pour a layered drink- for like 3 minutes. Then the phone bartender asked me if I'd been helped, and I ordered my Skyy and tonic- which was greeted with a roll of the eyes. Not cool, Red. The Layered Drink bartender went on to make another layered drink, and a couple minutes later I saw her on the phone, too.
An hour-or-so later I asked my table waitress for my check and was greeted with excuses about how long it would take to run my card because the bar is backed up. I like you, waitress-who-normally-waits-on-us, but this is not my problem. Also, if you take 30-45 seconds per table to tell them that it will be about 5 minutes to run a card, guess what? At 6 tables times 45 seconds, that's already 4.5 minutes spent explaining why it will take so long to run a card, making the task take that much longer. I don't expect anything to happen immediately. If you have my card and it's taking like 10 minutes to complete the transaction, then you can apologize.

So here's what I propose to remedy this  (thanks to catering friend for working on this with me): The bar needs a separate drink menu AND they need a third bartender. The fancy layered drinks should only be available at the bar, and there should be one bartender whose entire night is spent making these fancy drinks. Patrons would be required to walk to the bar, order, and wait. The second bartender should be pouring "standard" bar drinks (G&T, rum and coke, etc.) for the incoming drink orders while being available as backup to the layered drink tender. They also need either a third tender for beer/wine/shots or let the waitresses do that (though I think in WA you need a bartender license to pour a beer). That is all this person does: pour one thing from a bottle or tap into a glass or pitcher. If it requires more than one ingredient then it goes to tender #2- unless tender #1 and #2 are slammed with Mana Potions or something then #3 can do simples- but only then.

Overall, I want to give AFK an 8.5*/10. They really have improved and the atmosphere is great. But there's something that routinely causes snags and I'm always hearing about how backed up the bar is, so I'm looking at that. Checking IDs at the door really helped streamline the ordering/drink delivery process (and the chick with the black/purple hair was cute and friendly- so why wouldn't you show her your ID?) The increase in waitstaff has been noticed and is a good change. The camaraderie of the staff is also noticed and I think adds to the vibe of the place.

I will continue to patronize this establishment and I don't ever expect perfection because I think the employee-NPCs are zero-level human tavern-keeper classed and shit happens (the DC for "smoothly running a restaurant" is like base 17 and is checked hourly, so these folks have to make that roll 12 times a day.) But there's room for improvement. At the very very least, let's get the waitstaff to stop making excuses/apologizing up front, and ask them to continue doing their best. If I'm not happy, I'll let you know (on my blog, but still :\ ) Until you hear about it, don't worry about it.
The take home message: I like this place. There are issues. They won't stop me from coming back, but I would enjoy myself more if they were fixed.

AFK Tavern is located at 1510 41st Street in Everett- take the 41st St exit from I-5 in either direction and head west about 3 blocks. It's on your left next to Ivar's. They're open 3P-3A except on days that they're not (see website for days with non-standard hours).

* the 8.5 is provisional and takes into account that they've only been open for about 5 weeks. If this was an established tavern the score would be lower and I would be less inclined to make the 20 mile drive to get there.

Our Front Line Againt Terror: Wal-Mart

I wish I were making this up. I wish this was April 1, and I could chalk it up to April Fool's Day. But no. The Department of Homeland Security is teaming up with Wal-Mart to spread the "See Something, Say Something" campaign which encourages citizens to contact authorities if they see something they deem "suspicious." Like: black people spending cash? Anyone in a turban or burk(h)a? People with extra melanin who don't make a lot of eye contact or are quiet (because maybe they have a seasonal cold and just want to buy some NyQuil in peace...)?

Corruption Rampant in Afghanistan...

Afghanistan is "monumentally corrupt" according to a report on the latest WikiLinks distribution from CNN.  http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/12/02/afghanistan.wikileaks/?hpt=T2

In other news, water is wet...