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| - We were lured to experience dining at the Downtown Grand because of the impressive and generous locals discount being offered for the month of January. Last night we were browsing our restaurant options and we came across The Commissary. The coffee/gelato barista/attendant was very welcoming and friendly. We skipped the bar because we don't drink. We were very impressed by the look and layout of the tortas area, the burger area, and the rotisserie chicken area. We were admiring the cleanliness and merchandising of the space, but somewhat confused about how/where to order. In 5 minutes of checking the space out at about 8:30pm on a Saturday, not one person greeted us to explain how/where to order. We ended up giving up and electing to go eat at the Chinese restaurant in the east building. As we were making our exit, one of the guys in my party overheard a line cook in the burger area finally motioning us over and telling us we had to order in the burger area. He shook his head disapprovingly and called the youngest member of our party "Stupid" under his breath. The guy in my party who overheard the comment went over and told the line cook to watch himself and to not insult guests like that. Personally I would've just reported the incident to the manager so the guy learns a lesson, but I'm just telling it like it happened.
Better design and way finding signs would have made things much more self-evident to anyone who didn't work there and know the flow. Just sayin'.
Tonight, we returned to The Commissary to try the tortas and chicken and burgers (finally realizing that all three counters are actually one dining experience with one ordering point-of-sale station in the burger area).
The cashier in the burger area took our order and then the rest of my party went to sit down while I remained up there to pay. The cashier coughed in her hand at least three times and my OCD mind immediately started taking mental notes of everywhere and everything she touched with the cough hand afterwards. There was a hand sink conveniently located immediately behind her which did not get used once during our entire visit, despite about 20 more coughs into that same right hand over the next 30 minutes of my dining experience. Just some of the many things that were touched by that G-d forsaken right hand off the top of my head - my local ID, my players card, my plates, the point of sale register, every drinking cup handed to my party, the entire counter area (she was extremely tactile), very part of the countertop menu that she pointed out to us -- you get the idea. I tried to give myself piece of mind by reminding myself how resilient our bodies are to bacteria and germs and how it's almost like target practice for our antibodies so maybe this whole experience could actually be a good thing.
To make matters worse, she experienced a POS error and needed me to restate my entire order which I could not do because everyone in my party had ordered their own items prior to going to sit down.
While waiting to pay as my order was re entered into the system, I noticed that the line cook who got reprimanded by my buddy last night recognized us and was staring at my buddy with a concerned look on his face (as he should). I just hope he recognizes that he was called out privately for inappropriate behavior and should knock it off and represent his employer better.
We were disappointed to learn that they don't serve the delicious sweet potato fries that are pictured prominently in their digital and wall signage. Instead they are sweet potato tots. If I wanted tots, I could have just eaten at my mother's house.
The chicken torta was delicious. The bread was soft and very flavorful due to the avocado and black beans that complimented the crispy chicken. The jalapeños were a surprise, but not overly powerful, even though obviously from a can. Highly recommended.
The double cheeseburger was also very good and everyone enjoyed it (our party of 4 shared everything).
The brisket was very good but the portion sIze for the half portion was not worth the $10 cost. Those of us that tried the rotisserie chicken said it was very good.
The roasted potatoes were AMAZING! They surprised us with some sort of mango or pineapple (or both) pieces mixed into the roasted potatoes.
The cilantro rice and Mexican rice were both okay. The cole slaw was not good. Don't get the cole slaw. The fries and sweet potato tots were forgettable. We wished that we had instead not ordered the fries and saved room for gelato, but live and learn.
Overall, I wish the staff working the hot counters at The Commissary were as refined as the beautiful design of the place and as professional and courteous as the staff at the gelato/coffee counter and the Chinese restaurant. That would have earned them another star.
Zero sanitary concerns would have earned them even another star. Could've been a 4-star review but I have to leave it at 2 stars.
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