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Tips, lies, and the Linkery
Ian, this is a very thoughtful article. Since discovering The Link' on a trip to SD in 2007, I've considered it culinary ground zero for each of the half-dozen times I've visited, since then; I've often eaten there 3-4 times in a single week, so, call me a fan. As an Austinite spoiled by a serious local food scene and fellow diners who know their farmers, I met Jay, Michael, and other Linkery staff, resonated with their work, and asked for their help. They, then, introduced me to a local food/cultural intensity all over San Diego, as well as in other areas north and south of the border, that otherwise I'd have missed in the sea of corporate chow that marks much of your food scene, there. All of the places they recommended are now in an armamentarium of go-to SD businesses that friends and I support when visiting, confident we will not be embarassed. In other words, The Linkery staff served much more than food to customers: they served as ambassadors for some serious, regional goodness. In the midst of your very direct critique, I was: a. able to get what I'd Googled, e.g. why they closed; b. that being a restauranteur in the US with idiosyncratic philosophies about the value of staff vis-a-vis gratuity for meal service, are all well-and-good so long as you don't really care about making money; and, c. (among others) that I must have been one of the few who actually "got" the place and enjoyed every, single moment and morsel I was ever served there. And, I understand that this is very much a dynamic relationship, where, an enthusiastic, repeat, out-of-town diner gets recognized and elicits similar enthusiasm from staff who want to be appreciated as much (more?) for their knowledge and art as they are compensated monetarily. Nonetheless, I agree with you without qualification that Slate is too big for advertorials (alas, they, too, are mortal). In any business, there is always a fine line between one's percieved or stated professional integrity and meeting the customer where they are without judgment and with the grace to understand that a civilized life is about dialogue and compromise (pardon the homily). I'm only sorry that Jay and Co. didn't evolve to meet their community, maybe having been a bit less "pure", a bit more, well, "local", relaxing a bit for the sake of keeping together a team and open a business without which San Diego is poorer. No one can control or educate the customer any more than the customer desires. But, the owner can control their response to the environment and adapt to meet the mission. Or, not. I hope that you and other Linkery alums will continue to nurture an authentic local food scene and encourage us visitors, along with your own neighbors, to explore good food and life away from the beach, convention center hotels and the Gaslamp -- up on the Mesa, down in Baja, wherever -- and I wish Jay, Michael, et al, all the best success, now and always.— October 31, 2013 4:54 p.m.