![\"Mr.](\"http:\/\/itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/IMG_5963.jpg\")
<\/a>Mr. C seems to think that sprinkling parsley on this disgusting chicken makes it somehow okay to serve! Photo by Karen Salkin, as is the big one at the top of the page.<\/p><\/div>\n
I have to cut to the chase, and give you the headline: That was the most disgusting chicken I have ever seen or tasted in my whole life! I kept trying to think of \u201clowbrow\u201d places that were better than this, such as dives, coffee shops, places like that, and then I realized just what to compare this food to–I\u2019ve had better food in soup kitchens<\/em>! (I was serving<\/em> the food, not being there myself to eat it.) And then I realized exactly how I can bring home for you just how vomititious it was: I had better food when I was in the circus<\/em>! (When I showed the pictures of the meal to another restaurant-obsessed friend, she asked if it was the \u201cblue plate special.\u201d)<\/p>\n And it was so overpriced for what it was on the regular menu. But the experience I had was even worse than that. Someone had recommended Mr. C\u2019s lunch to me for \u201cDineLA,\u201d which, in case you\u2019re not familiar with it, is a program that happens twice a year in Los Angeles, and is a way to try new restaurants at a reasonable price. I don\u2019t get to do it very often, but when I have<\/em> participated, I\u2019ve usually been quite happy with the meals on offer. Since it takes place during my birthday month, I\u2019m occasionally able to rope Mr. X into going to the eateries with me. He\u2019s not really into it, (because he doesn\u2019t like dining out, and he really dislikes<\/em> getting deals\u2014go figure,) but he has<\/em> to go with me once a year, because of the aforementioned birthday. Because DineLA takes place only two weeks in the winter and another two in the summer, that makes it sort-of a special event that people are more wont to attend than just a regular meal in a restaurant.<\/p>\n So, here\u2019s how it works, so you can see how it pertains to the awful meal at Mr. C: DineLA lets the restaurants choose their special menu price out of the three choices that are already set by the program. For example, the lunches at every restaurant who participates are either $15, $20, or $25. A lot of the restaurants get around that by charging \u201can additional $10\u201d for a higher-end entr\u00e9e, such as steak, which they clearly state on the website. Or they might add a charge for dessert. But the basic outline is to stick to those three price ranges of your menu, and offer either two or three courses.<\/p>\n Nice hearty bread, right? It’s rather a bread OUTLINE! Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n So, not only was Mr. C\u2019s food pretty bad, but their prices were deceptive, too!!! The lunch on their website was advertised as being $25, the highest price allowed by DineLA, which made sense because it\u2019s a high-end eatery. But when we got there, their DineLA lunch was listed at $29.95! That\u2019s five dollars more than advertised! I\u2019ve never seen that before in all my years of going to not only DineLA, but also the Restaurant Weeks in New York City, Brooklyn, Greenwich, Connecticut and Newport, Rhode Island!!! Mr. C has been the only cheat out of all<\/em> of them! And with the most disgusting food, to boot!!!<\/p>\n It was the classic \u201cbait and switch,\u201d which a hotel in Beverly Hills should be above doing! Most people go there thinking they\u2019re going to pay $25 for a meal, and then they\u2019re charged five dollars more! Yes, of course they can leave and go elsewhere, but for people like us, with reservations, who\u2019ve already identified themselves as such, it would be embarrassing to leave. (And, if you show up on the late part of lunch, and are hungry, what choice do you have?) Of course, we\u2019re not going to hassle ourselves to go someplace else to save five dollars a person. Five extra dollars at prices like these is usually no big deal to a patron, but that was five dollars that Mr. C charged everyone<\/em> for the whole two weeks of the promotion! That money really adds up for them.<\/p>\n So, back to our experience. We stayed and ordered, and expected a really outstanding meal. The salad was okay, but not particularly good, but my chicken was downright disgusting. I cannot even portray with words what the food looked like. And it tasted even worse!!! It was listed as \u201cOrganic Chicken Spezzatino with Lemon Sauce,\u201d but was chunks of very fatty and gristly \u201cchicken,\u201d of varying shades of brown! Ugh. And it showed up on a plain white plate, and was swimming in a nauseating yellow sauce. What a low class presentation!<\/p>\n And it tasted even worse. I took a couple of bites, but they were both fatty and chewy, and I couldn\u2019t even swallow them, if you get my drift.<\/p>\n Nice use of colors to make the meal palatable, eh? NOT! Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n And the menu stated that it was \u201cserved with mashed potatoes.\u201d But they came on a separate (white again) plate, and there was enough for an entire Thanksgiving dinner! It was as if they thought that plying us with more mashed potatoes than anyone would ever want to eat in a year<\/em> would make -up for the less than high school cafeteria quality of the food they were charging an arm and a leg for!<\/p>\n And worst of all is that when it\u2019s not DineLA week, they charge $33. for this prison food!!! (Only they class it up a bit by nixing the hundred pounds of potatoes, and going for rice pilaf instead.)<\/p>\n Mr. X ordered the salmon, and it arrived looking as unappetizing as the chicken, but he choked it down, and said it was not good, but not as dreadful as my chicken. (I don\u2019t see how any other dish could<\/em> be!)<\/p>\n To give you the whole experience, I do have to say that our waitress was nice, and the guy who brought us the bread was great. But the food, on the whole, was awful. Especially for a restaurant in the Cipriani chain! They should really know better. I really haven\u2019t been this upset about a restaurant in a long time.<\/p>\n And, to be complete here, we may as well also examine the seating, which is mostly uncomfortable. There are a few nice banquettes, but mainly it\u2019s little uncomfortable tables. At least one person is getting the leg of the table up the wazoo at each one. That cannot be avoided, unless you are dining alone.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a>