Don’t Dine and Drag

About a week ago I came across a rather rambling complaint against a local restaurant on the Howard County Eats page. I probably would have ignored it except the poster claimed that entire experience was made exponentially worse because it was a “black-owned business.”

At that point I saw red. I asked,

“I'm curious why you make a point of it being a Black-owned business. Why is that relevant?”

There was no response. In fact, there was no response to any of the comments on their post, most of which were skeptical. Further scrutiny revealed that the account of the original poster appeared to be a fake one.

This person probably intended to vent their anger in a public way and to possibly start a social media pile-on that would harm the restaurant. I’m happy to say that it failed rather spectacularly. In addition, I’m probably more likely to try this restaurant than I was before.

It doesn’t always work like that. Some folks just love to drag restaurants and others jump into the fray. It takes on all the senseless enthusiasm of a fight in the lunchroom. Yes, having a bad experience in a restaurant is disappointing but destroying a local business is…irresponsible? Out of proportion? Reckless?

I’m unable to find this particular post right now so perhaps the OP thought better of it or perhaps it was removed by moderators. Yes, I took a screenshot, but it’s a private group and I respect that. Suffice it to say that this time good sense prevailed.

Bonus content today:

My friend Marge has resurrected her blog, Scribbles from the Margen, after a hiatus which I would describe as “too darn long.” I have missed her writing. It just so happens her post today touches on a similar situation. A disgruntled customer takes their restaurant rant to social media and the general response is not what they were expecting. It’s rather hilarious.

Is There a Problem Here?, Marge Neal, Scribbles from the Margen

Please take the moment to click on over. It’s delightful.

Village Green/Town² Comments

Comments

Teacher Gifts

Today is the last day of school before the Winter Break. It’s a good time to remember the far-reaching nature of our public school system. You may not have children. You may have sent your children to independent schools. It matters not. You will be impacted one way or another. Yesterday I read a long thread on Facebook about several waves of illness in the schools right now. There’s influenza A and norovirus, I believe. And of course there’s COVID. Apparently in some individual schools the rate of illness is high enough for school admin to notify parents. When I was little the acceptable holiday gift for a teacher was one of those lovely floral handkerchief squares. (I don’t know what it was for male teachers. They were rare in my elementary years.) These days the range of teacher gifts is wider and I have fond memories of Target gift cards which I have written about before. I think it’s safe to say that giving one’s teacher Influenza, norovirus, or COVID is not the ideal holiday...

Getting Fresh

One of my favorite days in the Spring comes when this year’s list of Farmer’s Markets is released. That happened this week. New this year are markets in Old Ellicott City and the “Merriweather Market” which, according to the address, will be located here . I mistakenly thought at first glance that it was in the new-construction part of the Merriweather District. I find the name confusing considering its actual location. I’m going to guess that this market is an initiative of the Howard Hughes Corporation because the name seems chosen more for branding purposes than anything else. Alas, the market in Maple Lawn is gone. The thread on the markets on the County Executive’s FB page will provide you with quite the education in who actually runs the Farmers Markets vs what people often think is going on. Short answer: they are not chosen nor run by the county. Each market is an independent entity, sometimes started by community volunteers, other times supported by local businesses...

They Can Wait

This is not a typical Saturday post. That’s because, in my community, it’s not a typical Saturday. Oakland Mills High School, after years of deferred repair, needs massive renovation. It’s pretty simple: when you don’t fix a problem it gets bigger. The school system itself said the the OMHS school building was "no longer conducive to learning" back in 2018. 2018 . But Thursday the Boad of Education voted to push it out of the lineup of important projects which will be given the go-ahead to proceed soonest. In my opinion it’s a terrible decision and sets a dangerous precedent. To explain, here’s the advocacy letter I sent in support of Oakland Mills High School. I was rather proud of it. I am writing to ask you to proceed with needed renovation at Oakland Mills High School in the most timely and comprehensive manner humanly possible. I have read the letter sent to you by the Oakland Mills Community Association and I am in complete agreement. You are extremel...

Village Green/Town²

Search This Blog