From Texas, with Love
Tomorrow marks the opening of Lost Lady American Cantina, where you’ll find tequila, Tex/Mex, and eight female bartenders.
Posted by: Jessica Voelker on Mar 16, 2009 at 02:00PM
12 Comments
UPDATE: Lost Lady is opening this Wednesday (tomorrow) for lunch at 11:00am. Happy Hour 3:15pm-6:15pm. Dinner 5pm to closing.
Set to open tomorrow evening (I have been warned of a possible delay, will keep you posted) Lost Lady American Cantina is a new Tex/Mex joint from Spokane native, Dallas steakhouse dynamo, Dale Wamsted. It has taken over the long, skinny space at 6th and Union that used to hold Union Square Grill, and has stocked (watch out, Matador) 84 tequilas—ranging in quality from Don Julio Real to some of the lesser Sauzas.
“This is tequila’s heyday” says Dan Minjares, who left his job as beverage director the Metropolitan Grill to run the Cantina’s front of the house. As far as the bar goes, Minjares seems most exited about his mojitas—mojitos mixed with tequila instead of rum, and his eight female bartenders, whom he calls the best in the business. (Head bartender is one Kristen Dolt; Mijares says she emigrated from Kentucky for the gig.)
Why eight female bartenders? You know I asked. “It just worked out that way” says Minjares. Hmmm. Guess we’ll draw our own conclusions tomorrow night.
eenteresting. my homegirl works upstairs, so i’ve met her for hh upon hh at usg. i’m sure she’ll do some awesome re-con for me about la lost lady. i know she’s been missing usg’s progressive happy hour. sigh. at least that location has a hefty, built-in client base.
dolt, huh?
Juicy: apparently Dale Wamsted has some kind of storied history involving ex-wives and guns. That’s so Texas! I love it.
The entire wait staff is female, not just the bartenders. Is this also just a coincidence? Dale opened a new restaurant with 30 new job openings in one of the worst recessions in history in one of the hardest hit areas in the country and somehow only attractive and thin young women applied? Right. Seems like some rich misogynistic Texans wet dream come to fruition.
Wow, that is bold. I need to do some investigating. Do you know if his Texas joints are staffed entirely by women as well?
This guy Dale Wamstad is a NUT! I know. I worked for him at the Lost Lady and he is crazier than a fruitcake! He runs around the restaurant screaming and yelling at the staff(over half including myself have left) all his supposed fresh Prime midwest steaks are select and bought at COSTCO then frozen to be thawed out later. Blackbeans are from large cans not freshly made. I personally saw him cut his finger in the kitchen and watched it bleed onto counter tops that he absently wiped away with his other hand and went back to filling a plate with food for a guest. Disgusting! I just found out that both Diningroom Managers have left in disgust and embaressment over his actions. This guy is a sinking ship. Run for your lives!
Whats bold about an entire female waitstaff?Can someone make fresh beans? Im a cook, How the hell do you make fresh beans? If they dont come in a can then how would you transport them to a location? On the stalk? Dont beans ferment? Dont they have to be canned or dried? Has anyone ever said, (dude my meal was great but the beans were not fresh). Costco beef is great! Does anyone disagree? As for a bloody finger in a kitchen….. ha! Most cooks bleed all over hell from slicing a finger in the middle of a dinner rush. but in Dales case he must of been trying to slash his wrists after realizing his mistake in hiring ex met employees.
Looks like the Lost Lady is out of business. No surprise to us who work here in the building. Terrible menu, terrible prices and ridiculous “theme.” Doesn’t a happy hour need to have, I don’t know, happy hour prices? Why pay $8-10 for a cocktail there when everywhere else is cheaper and better? Appetizers were a joke. Pickle rolls? Velveeta cheese dip? We miss our USG progressive happy hour. If Wamstad had even a remote clue about his prime customer base, he would have had a more extensive menu and excellent happy hour. I wouldn’t have been caught dead taking a client there. It would be a total embarrassment. I say good riddance.
Maybe Andy should go back to fishing in Alaska and stay out of the kitchen since he doesn’t know what the F—-k he’s doing in there. And yes, you can make beans fresh with out opening a can!
If you’re still on the fence: grab your favorite earphones, head down to a Best Buy and ask to plug them into a Zune then an iPod and see which one sounds better to you, and which interface makes you smile more. Then you’ll know which is right for you.
You all have no idea what the restaurant business is about. The man had an idea, a different concept, and it failed. Big whoop! Props to Del for trying to start a new venture in a state not of his own and during an economic crisis we are all facing. From what I gathered Lost Lady was just an experiment for him. It’s Del Frisco you all are bad mouthing. Get the facts straight! His steakhouses are as classy as can be, nationally ranked, and pure in quality and service. He is the founder of Del Frisco’s, III Forks, Silver Fox, and many more! Those who have had a bad experience working for him didn’t do there jobs right. Stop hating on a man who’s name will live on for being one of the best. All of you will just be forgotten.
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