A few insights to the blogs written on Vinology. I also worked at Vinotecca like “a. waiter”, and have suspicions that, he or she, is management, and not floorstaff.

The management, especially the Jonna family, are concered with making money…period.

What you got foodwise is Chef Maggie’s personal assumption that if she does not like it, then it will be not put on the menu. Her berating of staff and menu items, since she is not wine savy, shows that her pairings to match the wines are far off. They use the same menu items in all of their restaurants and do not intend to reflect on what would go best with wine and food pairings. She tried pairing the same garbage in Royal Oak and after the staff went over her head on menu items, she was forced to stay away from Vinotecca and leave the menu to a more knowledgable chef.

The old maxim, “Build it and they will follow” does not apply to the two Jonna family establishments. It should read, “Build it and take their loot because, as P. T. Barnum said, “There is a sucker born every minute.”

Why did Duane leave as wine director at Vinotecca and go to Eve?
Why are the staff at Vinology so uneducated in the food and wine knowledge?
Why is it that 90% of the original staff has left Vinotecca and gone on to greener pastures?

Simple.

The Jonna family does not care about customer satisfaction, just customer dollars.

When anything was said to improve the guest’s satisfaction level, the bottom dollar was analyzed to make the decision. Staff training is on a volunteer basis, no pay involved.When certain customer requests for certain food or wine offerings are put to the cost/per ratio and if they cannot make an exorbitant profit, they are ignored. Staff are forced to work charity benefits unpaid, where the owners will only benefit. And, the owners grossly overcatered to customers who spent megabucks in Merchant of Vino stores, leaving the general public to pay for these excesses.

I have also moved on to “greener pastures” and hope that those of you who are looking for an enjoyable dining experience, will still patronage the Earl and Eve. They have stood the test of time because they do honestly care about their guests and are not concerned with emptying your wallets, as Vinology does.

I’m a big fan of Scandinavian Modern and thus Eve is attractive to me. But it’s not cold or harsh – the bar area even has some comfy chairs and low tables. Give it a try if you’re over there. They have great wines by the glass and the food is excellently prepared and interesting. Last time I was there, they had pommegranate martinis – very tasty, even to this martini purist!

Our waiter that first visit was a gift: he was at least very knowledgable about the wines and steered us toward two excellent choices. The fries and tarragon mayonnaise that came with our mussels were other-worldly, and I’d gladly return just for those. Some of the other small plates, notably the smoked meat/cheese platter, were less successful.

The Earle has been a long-time favorite, but like you, I’d welcome having more choices for a glass of wine and a couple of appetizers. I’ve been hesitant to try Eve, being somewhat shy of cool, open interiors and having heard mixed reviews, but your recommendation is encouraging.