LOOKING to try out one of Chester's home-grown restaurants for a belated Valentine's meal, boyfriend Jon and I decided to go to Club Globe - one of those places we've often walked past but never got round to visiting.
And, as luck would have it, the night we wanted to go - Tuesday - offers a very attractive set meal, giving two courses each plus a bottle of wine for £30 a couple. Surely worth a try, we thought.
The first decision of the night was taken in front of the wardrobe - what to wear? Eventually I settled for something on the smart side of smart-casual and it seemed like the other customers - a family of adults quietly celebrating a birthday and a student couple - had concluded the same.
To listen to the staff, though, you would have thought Jon and I had strolled into the Ritz, swung our muddy trainers onto the leather seats and snapped our fingers calling for 'gah-son.'
You see, we dared to turn down their offer of a drink in the bar before going into the restaurant, saying that as Jon was driving and we were hungry, we would prefer to go straight to our table.
Bad move - as we settled down at our table, the Maitre d' hurried across to tell us that customers should sit in the bar to look at the menu, and are to be brought through when their food is ready.
Feeling completely unabashed at not conforming to protocol, we stayed put, and wondered why it really mattered to them where we read the menus?
The staff also managed to spoil an otherwise perfect meal. There didn't seem to be any system assigning one waitress to each area of the restaurant.
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