The Chronicle Finds Poor Service, Uneven Execution at Pleasant Storage Room

New-ish Chronicle food editor Brandon Watson visits rum-focused craft cocktail bar Pleasant Storage Room this week. He diagnoses it as "an establishment that so slavishly devotes itself to concept that it forgets the customer experience." On the service during happy hour:

One of the bartenders spent happy hour staring blankly at the almost-empty dining room. The other two were slightly more engaged, if not enough to offer us a second drink or a glass of water. When we finally did catch their attention, we were greeted by a sigh. Austin's service standards numb expectations, but Pleasant didn't even seem to aspire to that level of mediocrity.

In lieu of a review, Statesman critic Matthew Odam contributes to the paper's mega-listicle "175 Things We Love About Austin." His restaurant-heavy list includes praise for Uchi, Perla's, Horseshoe Lounge and many more.

THE BLOGS: South Austin Foodie checks out Porter Gastropub, Foodie is The New Forty praises Shawarma Point, and Full and Content goes long on Mi Madre's.