Well I know I'll get bashed for this but here goes.
The Canoe has a big head. I'll go to Mame's any day before the Canoe. I'll go to the Bob House any day before the Canoe. I'll go to the Village Kitchen any day before the Canoe. why? Because the service is awesome at those places. To me half the experience in eating out (and what you are paying for) is the staff and service that you get that says YOU ARE IMPORTANT TO US! If you want to go to a place only to be told you have until a certain time to eat and then get the hell out...Go for it. That just tells me they are interested only in the money and NOT US! You want to throw your hard earned money into a timed event, go to a Laundromat. Because they are just telling you, it's not worth the courtesy of letting you enjoy your time out with your loved ones, and enjoying your meal. I told everyone of my experience with the Canoe a long time ago. It was horrendous. I did go back and had a good meal later. Next time I went, horrible staff, and waiting for food again. So that was my last time going. I won;t spend my money on a place that treats it's patrons like you are only a cash cow on an assembly line. Next will come the new charge to rent your seat, with individual parking meters by your table. Maybe they could give you one of those nice white kitchen timers to put on your table. You know. The kind my mother used to use when she cooked on her Almond colored stove back in the 60's.
Big head I tell ya...they got a big head.
BTW I don't believe there is high unemployment around here. Or else why don't they hire locals that would be here year round. I go to the VK and the servers there have been there for years and I see them all winter and know them by name. So that sign is just a crock of BS. Hire local and you won't have that problem. Know any good servers. I sure wouldn't tell any of the servers at the places I go that they are looking. They would probably get laid off come summer so they can hire the foreign exchange students.....Humpf!
Customer service in this country is going down the toilet and we all just let it happen. We need to stop this before it is too late. Next time you get bad service let them know it and if they don't care, don't go back.