At first I told myself I was not going to do this but I had to say it..First of all to the past owners thank you for many many great years of service and wonderful food that I dreamed about and always my first stop and my last stop on the island, I hope you do well in what ever the future brings, thank you so much.
Now for the news owners........
when you buy a business and you keep the same name and from the menu it looks like all is the same and all that has happen is you gave the place a white wash paint job, and changed around the place .... you need to do just that, if you are going to change how the items are cooked and what they are prepared with you should let people know that things have changed and by the way not for the good and when a waitress is questioned do not send another waitress over to tell a client that the place has new owners but the items are cooked the same as they have been for 9 years because making yourself look stupid and at first making me feel dump then I realized I'm not the dumb one you brought a business that had standing lines everynight they were open people had them in the top ten listtime after time now u have empty tables already and have changed the way items were prepared, and by the way I had the same item every time 4 to 6 times a year and when somebody says what has changed do not say it had always been cooked that way because if it had I would have never been able to eat it.(onions and celery) you ruined the fish gratin. I just hope that a recipe that somebody sent me is the right one that once served there.
I know I'm going to get blashed and I'm sorry but it made me so mad, and everybody else that ordered at the table had the same as before and it all was fixed a little different then before when we were there.

At the risk of sounding rude, I do hope that you were a little more coherent when making your complaint.

If your order was as confusing as your report, the staff would probably not have a clue what you wanted.

I find that what you have written, impossible to read let alone comprehend.

Hi Tina..No bashing and you're certainly entitled to your opinion. However, please take a breath every so often (I hope you don't dive the way you've posted)& use a period once in awhile. It will make your postings a lot easier to read. And another "hint", don't pontificate.

Tina,
I'm sure you were genuinely trying to make a point but I can't, for the life of me, understand what it is. I see you're in sales? Please try again to sell me on your point.

Tina: Sorry but they own the place - it seems to me that they have to right to change whatever they want and it doesn't seem to me that it is reasonable to expect them to personally inform guests of every change they've made to the place. Food for thought. By the way, its very impressive that you are full cave certified.

I read Tina's post as:

I used to like It Rains Fishes a lot and would visit it several times during each vacation. Recently while on vacation I returned to It Rains Fishes with others and while the new owners are using the former owner's menu, they did not use the same recipes, nor did they deliver the same quality of product.

Shouldn't a rant have a throttle...and a brake?

Thanks for the clarification, Bubba!

Tom, you should think of getting a job at the UN as an interpreter. LMAO.

I usually don't chime on on these type things, because of all the self righteous attitudes that seem to lurk on this board, like some type of spider ready to pounce on anyone expressing themselves in a less than spectacular manner. Here goes...

I used to love the "FISH GRATIN" at it rains fishes...now I don't.

Tina...I know I'm just reiterating what others have said...but c'mon....at least just proof read what you wrote! That really was impossible and frustrating to read. Thanks Tom for taking the time to clarify...that is the gist I got also.

What?

I've wrote to the moderators trying to delete the orginal post. The system will not allow it, yes the post should have never been wrote the way it was. When I went to post the message and edit it my system went down and I was unable to fix any of it.
Yes all it should have said was.
Will no longer be eating at It Rains Fishes
And by the way. All I did was send it back and tell them I was unable to eat the meal the way it was now prepared.

Angry posts are like angry e mails, one should send them to oneself before sending them off to the world.

I'd take it all as a life lesson involving very little mental anguish, Tina. I've been similarly annoyed at restaurants that change chefs without letting anyone know. When the chef changes, the food changes, guaranteed. C'est la vie, change is all you can count on.

Punc-tu-ate, punc-tu-ate, dance to the mu-sic...

Thanks Seb,
I tried to edit the post but my husband has the computer to be updated around 3 every morning.
I have 30 employees and I never send a email out before proofing it, and when I get all upset I usually do a draft and let a couple of hours pass then edit again before I send it,

Tina...breathe in....breathe out....breathe in...breathe out...there, better?

folks, Tina has said she regrets the post, and she did email the moderators to remove it, but as is our policy, once it's there, it's there. So, lets let this sleeping dog lie and go back to its nap

Actually, I kind of enjoy reading what someone actually thinks instead of some sanitized, politically-corrected, censored mush.

And I had no problem understanding what she said, maybe because I don't anticipate everything I read will be nicey-nice and favorable.

My guess is she regrets the post, but doesn't take back the content.

I hate reading sanitized, politically corrected censored mush myself and glad she stands by what she wrote however: it could have been written a bit more coherently, I also realize not everyone is a literary genius. Now having said, that I think the criticism was harsh but addresses a few critical points when posting anything on the internet...just my 2 cents..
I must admit some of my text messages are similar to Tina's post, rambling, mis-spelled words with the point of the note difficult to locate. If only we were all perfect Peace

Tina,
It's a shame you were unhappy with the new Fishes. As residents, we ate at the former owner's Fishes many times and never had a bad meal. Service was never great, but typical for Bonaire. Last night we went to the new Fishes for the first time. Our meal was every bit as good as on previous visits. I also had the fish gratin. If I had not read your complaint, I would not have noticed the celery and onions. But I like them both so it wasn't a problem for me. The only noticeable difference was the service. It was fantastic. Our waitress must have been to the table a dozen times and our water glasses never emptied. You may want to give them another shot. This was our best experience ever at It Rains Fishes. We will be back. Wes and Sandy

Sandy, what restaurant on Bonaire do you manage?

I guess my comment was to try to remind folks to be nice, not pollyanna nice, but to give folks a break once in awhile

I know, I know, It Rains Fishes?

Do I win?

No you don't win Jerry, the answer is the "Reef Restaurant" at Den Laman. Thanks for the reminder Martin.

I never win anything!


Reef Restaurant is getting good reviews.

I'm with you on this one Cynde (Moderator)* It's the message I was trying to convey too!

Tom, what reminder? I guess I better check my mail

Rosanne... - Sanitized - "perfect"...I get it now

For people that want the the very same meal with the very same ingredients for so many years in a row, one has invented a concept. It's called fast food! The burger or whatever it is, always tastes the same. Tina might consider this option, instead of giving the new owners of It Rains Fishes a fair chance building up a great business. I had fun there and I liked the food (even though the recipes may just have changed a little...)

I ate dinner at It Rains Fishes a week ago today. The service could have been more prompt but the food was flawless.

Oh, I do want to say I don't agree or disagree with Tina's post since I have never eaten at It Rains Fishes. I just think she is entitled to giver her opinion.

That's because RosAnne and I have the kitchen towel, paper towel issue...it's a sanitizing thing.

Hi,
Although she posted without getting to proofread/revise, Tina had a point. I also loved It Rains Fishes on previous visits, visiting as many as 6 times in a two week period, but was very disappointed this trip (Nov 10-25). It was misleading that the new owners kept the name, and verbally assured us that the chef was the same and the menu was virtually the same but improved (actual terminology "we pimped the menu"). Unfortunately, although menu items do retain their old names, they do not retain their old quality or flavor. Bummer for me, and anyone else that expects to eat at "It rains fishes". They should have changed the name and nobody would have expected too much.

Yo MO You cracked me up!!!

Imagine Tina and Judy are right and the recipes or so would indeed be a little different, while the restaurant kept the same name. Is this misleading?
Should a restaurant rename itself anytime when they hire a new chef?
Once again I recommend the fast food concept for some. No surprises...

Windsurfer, boy you are tough! When a restaurant changes owners and keeps the same name, and doesn't change the menu. Then they should stick to to original way of preparing the food. If they choose to prepare the dishes their own way, then they should call it something different. It is misleading to many who might only eat there once or twice a year. It sounds like the the Fish Gratin was a favorite here, and there are many people who do not like celery & onions.
If a restaurant changes chefs, then usually they stick to the original recipes and get creative with new dishes. I have eaten at It Rains Fishes many times, and have been disappointed with the quality and service. Yes it has a great location, so it draws us back in, only to leave saying we won't be back. Will we try it again in 2008, most likely yes. Maybe by then they will have all the kinks worked out.

To tell you the truth, it's never been really good. Let's hope the new owners can improve what was started.

Tina,

Take Athony Bonds response as what he thought it was Rude. Who of us are perfect.
I also agree with Jim Hix and his thoughts.

Lighten up people.

In the words of Rodney King. "Can't we all just get along!"

Went to It Rains Fishes a couple days ago and it was excellent, consistently the best meals we have ever had on the island. The entrees and appetizers we had were prepared exactly as they have been on our previous trips. The only difference was the decor is more upscale now and they had a lot more waitstaff, we had very good service.