The owner of Fire and Vine, George Melissourgos has hit back after a scathing review on his new Adelaide restaurant which opened just eight months ago.
The SA Weekend review, by respected Adelaide food writer Simon Wilkinson, said he experienced long service delays, including an hour wait for entrees, at Mr Melissourgos’ steak and seafood restaurant at Glenunga.
The reviewer added that there was also a “hostile” atmosphere from unhappy customers who ended up walking out before the end of their meals.
In response, Mr Melissourgos conceded there were problems on Friday night when Wilkinson visited, but added the bad experience was a “once-off.”
Mr Melissourgos said two staff members called in sick about 30 minutes before doors opened. The pair were unable to be replaced at short notice. This left just the chef in the kitchen, and Mr Melissourgos on the dining floor, as the only members of staff serving about 30 guests – 20 of whom also booked at the last-minute.
Mr Melissourgos implored diners to give Fire and Vine a chance.
“Our focus is on the food so if the service does suffer sometimes, then we more than make up for it with the quality of the steak,” he told The Advertiser.
“If you’re looking for faults, you could justify it [the review], but I wouldn’t say it was fair. There could have been more of an emphasis on the steaks because steaks did come out looking spectacular. But it is what it is.”
Mr Melissourgos opened Fire and Vine in late September 2023 in the same spot where popular fine dining restaurant Cork and Cleaver run by Stratos Pouras was located before it closed after 43 years.
Source: The Advertiser.
