We had a fairly disastrous experience at Turf Terrace Restaurant this past weekend, which was only saved by a wonderful manager who genuinely apologized for the service. I get it - the service doesn't have to be great because they have a captive audience. But that still doesn't excuse poor, rude attitudes from staff.
Food: The food is fine for a sporting venue. Nothing fantastic, but definitely better than the hot dogs sold at the ground level. The charcuterie board was unobjectionable - though the bread that accompanied it was a weird overly toasted, processed cracker thing. The turkey club sandwich on a pretzel roll was similarly fine, if not outstanding (but again, that's okay for a sporting venue!).
Service: The service ranged from incompetent to rude. First, though we made a reservation, we were placed way up in the nosebleeds where we barely had a view of the track. After a $20 tip to the host, we were moved to a slightly better position, though still not ideal, particularly given the fact that there were available tables closer to the track. The service at the table was a complete disaster. Our server, Luis, was absent for most of our meal. It was like pulling teeth to order anything from him and we needed to order everything multiple times. Though we were seated in Luis' section for about 6 hours, he actually approached our table - each time at our request - approximately three times. The bussers, while very kind, would take orders from us, pass them to Luis, and twenty minutes later the beer we ordered still would not have arrived. What was an otherwise beautiful day at the track was completely overshadowed by the frustration of trying to get Luis' attention for something as basic as another diet coke, and failing.
On our way out we mentioned this experience to one of the food and beverage managers, who apologized profusely and offered to host us for a complimentary lunch on our next visit to the track. While that was not necessary, it was very appreciated and she handled the complaint very well.
Atmosphere: Gorgeous view of the track (from most seats...) and a great place to sit in a more quiet atmosphere if you don't want to be down on the ground level at the edge of the track! read more