I almost forgot...and that would have been an injustice to my fellow yelpers. But I was reminded by a recent article in a SF mag- boasting how great this place was...I tell you it was NOT! Please bear with me at this tirade of dissatisfaction and disgust.
First we ate at the restaurant Tao- yes the food was very good and the service of our 1 waiter was excellent. He was funny, informative, and accommodating- and he was the only one.
Service of the restaurant host- unhelpful. We were a bunch ladies there for a bachelorette party and just spent $800 + tip on our dinner and requested to be placed on the guest list of the club Tao. He said that he could only get us on the VIP line; therefore we still had to wait and pay the club entry fee. A few months before- I was at Tao again for another bachelorette party and that time they comped us our entry and just let us walk into the club, but this was before their renovation and subsequent high falluting attitude.
Service of the club host- arrogant and insulting. We realized 10 mins into club Tao the only way we would enjoy our stay there was to do "table service". We asked a club worker to please send the host to us. After 30 mins he showed up and asked us, "You want a table?" --- No hello, no thank you for coming to Tao, just "you want a table?" We said yes, and he said haughtily that it was a two bottle minimum and its $500 a bottle, we deliberated with the girls and said yes. He lead us on a maze to another room where they were playing house music and said here was our table- we were a little disappointed because we wanted tot stay in the main room where they were playing hip-hop and R&B, but he said this was all he had, although it seemed to us there were many available tables in the main room- like 15 or more mind you! With annoyance, he said he had other people to help and did we want the table or not- we said no and he took out the envelope where he placed my sisters' credit card and flicked it in her face- really.
Over all service: in a place where service is everything because there are so many choices- how are you going to differentiate your establishment from the others. Taos choice was to treat their guests as if they should be lucky we got in and not that Tao was fortunate we chose them.
Ambience, dcor, and overall presentation: disturbing. The name Tao: Tao n. In Taoism, the basic, eternal principle of the universe that transcends reality and is the source of being, non-being, and change. Taoism n. A principal philosophy and system of religion of China based on the teachings of Lao-tzu in the sixth century B. "The way of life" according to Lao-tzu (book) --- he would be "sadden by this tragic perversity."
With a giant Buddha in the main dining hall- a symbol of detachment from materialism among other things, you are surrounded by opulence. Candles lighting your dining experience to evoke peace and serenity, you are bombarded with the Paris-look-a-likes and her mother- Mrs. Hilton who truly was in the ladies room talking it up (celeb sighting). And as you walk to the bathrooms you are exposed to a gallery display of Buddhist monks- people of whom are the epitome of asceticism. AND when you go up stairs to the club- you have Asian 'girls" dancing on stage in a "pick & choose" line reminiscent of any TV show Investigation like 60Minutes or 20/20 Special- "Thailand & Prostitution". Have you seen the naked girl in the bathtub? My impression, she was put there to be enticing but in reality it was depressing.
Irony: I wanted to go to Babylon. I enjoy my time in Babylon. And furthermore, I enjoy contradictions which is what Tao is...but Tao doesn't get it right- if your pedaling Asian "services" and exploiting their culture, at least in a Thailand Brothel no one leaves unsatisfied.
GO TO TRYST AT THE WYNN- YOU WILL THANK ME!