On Monday, June 2, my boyfriend learned of Milwaukee’s Downtown Dining week. It didn’t take long for us to peruse the menus and agree on a dinner location that would set the stage for a rare evening out in downtown--something typically reserved for very special occasions. We both shared a craving for red meat and we decided Butch’s Clock Steak House would be a great venue for our Thursday evening. That was a horrible decision.

Not very familiar with the downtown scene, we thought the Downtown Dining week would be a great opportunity to get to know the area better and have a fun evening out with a great meal. When we arrived at the restaurant at 6 p.m., it wasn’t very busy and we were pleased to be seated right away. We promptly received our water, breadbasket and relish tray and our meal started off with a pair salads. That’s when our experience began its rapid downhill descent.

The two iceberg salads arrived with blobs of dressing, carelessly dumped on the plates. I laughed it off and attempted to distribute the dressing. My boyfriend’s salad had French dressing pouring off the plate, onto the table. It’s not that we’re sticklers, demanding pristine and impressive presentation, but really? The staff couldn’t manage to put more care into two diners’ experience? (And I should add the restaurant wasn’t even half full at this point.)

The busboys were attentive, but perhaps too overzealous with the water pitcher. Water and ice cubes were dumped on the table more than once as they quickly/abruptly refilled our glasses.

I was still working on my salad when the entrée arrived. Our salads weren’t finished. We were still enjoying appetizers and no plates had been cleared from our small table-for-two by the window. Aware of the importance of eating food while it’s still hot, we relinquished our salads in hopes of finding greener pastures. I opted for the filet and my partner opted for the Steak Sicilian. He shot me a look of disgust as he took his first bite: all he could taste was the grease as he chewed the lightly breaded meat.

The remainder of the dining experience was more of the same: inattentive server, sub-mediocre food, overzealous busboy… By the time we finished our entrees, I already had my purse out to reluctantly pay the fee for our experience, completely forgetting that our three-course meal included dessert. When offered, we accepted dessert and were once again disappointed. The caramel sundae had ice cream and caramel sauce smeared on the side of the serving mug. Sticky and obviously prepared at least a day in advance, its only redeeming quality was the caramel sauce. The chocolate Bundt cake was acceptable—but once again—the toppings were poured on and no care was taken for neatness.

Finally, our disappointing dining experience had come to a close, just 30 minutes later. We took full advantage of the Downtown Dining survey and marked down our evaluations, complete with comments regarding the rushed dining service. At the time, I was unhappy with our evening, but I understand these things do happen. I should have asked to speak with a manager on site, but I was willing to put it behind me—that was, until we left the restaurant.

As I mentioned earlier, we had a window table. No sooner had we left the restaurant and started walking back to our vehicle did we see the busboys, reading our comment cards and gesturing. It really upset me. Not only did we have an extremely disappointing dining experience: the unprofessional attendants, poor service, sub-par food, but there was little chance that our comment cards would actually make it back to the people who needed to see them. For all I know, they were tossed in the trash with the rest of our unfinished food.

I called the restaurant when I got back to the car. Luckily, our printed directions had the information we needed. The polite hostess answered and I asked to speak with the manager. I began by asking him why he chose to participate in the Downtown Dining event. I figured he’d say something like, “it’s a great opportunity to share our charming dining experience with the people of Milwaukee…” or something like that. He must have assumed I was a member of the press (I am not) because he asked me to call back tomorrow. I identified myself as a diner in his restaurant that evening—after which he was very pleasant—and I began describing our evening and the treatment we received in his restaurant. He sounded surprised, but replied saying, “Well if you don’t bring these things to our attention when you’re in the restaurant, there’s nothing I can do about it. Have a good evening. Goodbye.” He hung up without assuring me that he’d speak with the rude wait staff, or sincerely apologizing for the upsetting evening.

I was shocked and angry. Dining downtown is not something I do often, and spending $50+ on a meal is a rare treat and I expected a better experience. I promised myself I would take advantage of the venues available to me to voice my displeasure with my dining experience. I think the Downtown Dining is a great promotion and I plan to participate again (after more thorough research), but unfortunately there are some restaurants who are choosing to participate and are giving the whole thing a bad rap. I know there are reputable restaurants out there who are giving their diners are truly great experience, but this isn’t one of them. 

Again, I want to express my appreciation for offering this promotion, but please note that Butch’s Clock Steak House should not be permitted to participate when they treat their customers so poorly.