Great place for family and friends. Love the antipasta salad and pepperoni pizza.    [22 Jan 2006 19:27:47]

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     ­Gary   

Good food, too many house rules
The Alibi has a lot going for it. Good food, good location, warm atmosphere. The big problem? Too many little rules and regulations.

In an area hard hit by job layoffs (the Detroit metropolitan area), rising gas prices and small work staffs folks just aren't eating out as much. I notice it in every restaurant. One hardly waits anywhere, except the newly chic and trendy eateries.

Why then is Alibi still requiring full parties to arrive before seating them-- in their way-less-than-full -- restaurant? A group of friends (me included) meets regularly there for lunch -- I'd say twice a month.

But no more.

The hostesses are like soldiers who without smile or finesse do you the grand favor of seating you, but not until your party is complete. Now, I understand when a couple of years ago the restaurant was bustling and, understandably, the people who hold up tables just make the service slower. I get it.

We never liked the attitude but accepted it for a long time.

But recently when I brought in some leftover party sweets (not intended to eat at the restaurant, but for my friends to take back to the office), the waitress immediately, without even knowing what was in my package, informed me that no homemade food was allowed. When I explained to her that I was giving the package to my friends to take back to their office, she then ordered us to remove it from the restaurant altogether-- forcing one of us to take it to the car on a rainy afternoon.

It wasn't so much the message, but the snotty delivery. As the waitress walked away, she informed her manager, "I told them."

The manager said something about "state requirements" or rules or something. I'm sure this might be true, but I've brought in candy, birthday cakes, anniverssary cupcakes, you name it, to restaurants before to a myriad of other restaurants (nicer than this lunch spot) and have never been so rudely told the rules (in fact, most places bring plates and forks whenever I bring in cake -- gratis). The fact that I wasn't even serving anything and the rude treatment ... it was too much.

For all our group -- this treatment was the last straw. As much as we like the food, no more Alibi for us. As paying customers, we deserve better treatment.

A footnote: At the end of the meal, someone at our table needed change for a $100 bill. The waitress immediately said they did not have change for a $100 bill. We asked her to check and in moments was back with the change.

As is Alibi's modus operendi, their first answer was an unaccommodating "no."    [12 Mar 2007 14:15:42]

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     ­Anonymous   

So-so food and RUDE service ruined our night.
My husband travels a lot and so when we do get to share a dinner together, we try to enjoy it to the fullest. We are in Michigan on a temporary basis and we like to try all the local fare to really get a sense of what the area is about; when our friends come to visit, we take them to our favorite local spots so they can get a taste of something they can't get elsewhere.

Alibi is one place that ruined one of our rare nights out together, and we sure won't be coming back with any of our guests.

The server was super rude and kept forgetting things. Despite being middle-aged, she acted like she was waiting tables for the first time in her life (forgetful, RUDE and inefficient). After ten minutes of waiting for our drinks (very basic gin & tonic and a screwdriver), I politely reminded her and she completely snapped. "I'll bring them TO YOU when they are READY!"

She was so far out of line. I've waited tables before and I know how not to be a burden on a server, trust me, we are always an easy table to wait on- we never ask for anything special and we're always polite. I was so floored and embarrassed. I don’t go out to eat so that a bitter waitress can yell at me like an angry mom.

She continued to be a lousy waitress for the rest of the meal.

To say the food was nothing special would be too kind. The salmon was rubbery. The fries were of the frozen bagged variety and soggy. “Alibi Famous” battered fish fillets were dry and there was ONE TABLESPOON of tartar sauce in a plastic cup for all three battered fillets. We asked for more sauce and the server said she'd bring more, but she _never_ did (although she passed our table empty-handed several times afterward). I was a little afraid to ‘remind’ her about it after being chastised for asking about the drinks earlier, so I went without. We choked down a little bit because we were hungry and took the rest home to the dogs.

I'm sorry one of our rare evenings together was totally _squandered_ on our first time eating at the Alibi. We won’t be going back and I would be embarrassed to take any friends or family there. I suppose if you grew up here and your friends grew up here and you are used to it and know what to expect when you go, it is fine. But as an outsider this place is bad news. We’ll keep going to Shield’s.    [28 Mar 2007 18:03:57]

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     ­Anonymous