A little over three weeks after the Great American Diner and Bar closed at 4752 California SW, the Indian restaurant Taste & Best has opened in its place. They allowed our photographer in for a quick look about an hour ago:
Operations manager Yajas Reddy told us the bar’s not open yet (we had noticed Taste & Best hasn’t appeared on the liquor-license application list yet) but they hope it will be “in about a month.”
For previous critics, the menu is updated with real pictures of food, so they are definitely open to feedback! Welcome to the junction, T&B!
But they still haven’t updated the picture on the website to the actual restaurant. It’s still an AI-generated picture of the building layered onto some street corner in what looks like California.
There is no ethical way to use AI, and the damage is done even if they belatedly go back and do the work they should have done in the first place.
Who made you the judge of how things should be done? If you have written them off why comment and criticize?
Oh calm down. As a small business owner, they should be able to use whatever resources are at their disposal in order to survive and make opening a little bit easier for themselves.
The menu item pictures are still AI, it seems they have just improved the realism quality but there are still some obvious tells as to these being AI produced.At this point, unfortunately they clearly cannot be trusted – they’re just going to continually use AI to improve on their mistakes.
We had breakfast there this morning and it was good. My husband said the biscuits and gravy side order with extra gravy were the best he’s had in a very long time. What was even better was the refresh with new flooring, cutlery, tablecloths and napkins . That’s a laundry expense that says they are really trying. The staff was kind and attentive and unfortunately we had one of only a few occupied booths. We’ll go back soon for dinner. Be nice please. I recall how awful WSB comments were when Glen first opened the Diner. Yes. I know this new name is hard to remember. Just give the new owner a fair chance. Restaurants around here don’t last long.
I wish them luck! Hope it’s good and they succeed. But oh my…that is a terrible restaurant name. Taste AND Best?
Still skeptical, but hope those that do try it enjoy themselves. When your first impression is AI slop, it’s hard not to wonder where other corners were cut. Three weeks between one tenant moving out due to ongoing unremedied plumbing issues and a new tenant setting up, redecorating for opening, stocking, AND rectifying all of the plumbing issues while opening a second location is an incredible feat indeed!
The Indofusion restaurant across the street barely seems to get much business, so this one will be successful? Doubt it. Especially with such a ridiculous name. The sign in their window says they are hiring a “Food Runner (Man) “. What’s that about? Only men can do that job?
My thoughts exactly. I took a picture of that sign, I was so flabbergasted. No thanks.
Not the first time I’ve seen a men only establishment. Women are second class citizens in some cultures.
Clearly they mean they want a man, not AI!! lol. Speaking of AI, they are still using it by the way, even though they’re saying they’re not…they’re banking on the ignorance of folks yet don’t realize the power of the chronically online. Still very obvious tells that they’re using AI. And it’s clear they’re only going to continue to have AI iterate until the majority of folks can’t tell.The lying is the biggest issue here.
Eww… I was excited when I drove by, but seeing that nasty AI photo front and center on their website raises red flags about the decision making ability of their owners. It immediately makes me question both the safety of the food as well as how they may treat their employees.
It amazes me that so many people have negativity to spread on a beautiful day. There are many restaurant names in Seattle that I find overly pretentious. This one is quirky and I like it. SAY it to yourself! It rolls off the tongue! Reminds me of “Popin’ Cookin”. (Look it up). But who cares? Most importantly, is their food great? Don’t be so precious and give them a chance. This place might kick butt. They may not be great at marketing but excellent at FOOD. If you ask me, that’s why I go to restaurants.
This jogs my memory of another ampersand restaurant in The Junction just up the block, last decade…
https://westseattleblog.com/2018/12/evicted-west-seattle-junctions-vine-spoon-restaurant-alchemy-bar/
The food is so good that they have to use AI to show it off…and then lie saying they’ve updated the pictures and not used AI when it’s clear they’re still using AI, just with better quality than before.
I hope they do end up having a buffet. I miss the one at Maharaja. The menu looks great!
I just stopped by and ordered the idli and sambar; they were lovely and made it for me even though it’s outside breakfast hours.And it was delicious enough that I’m bothering to comment on the blog for the first time to say go give this place a try. I’m thrilled we now have some South Indian food in the neighborhood and I can’t wait to try their dosa next!
At least they haven’t yet tried to gouge me for a tiny portion of food, ala West Seattle Festival vendors. Speaking of portions, what’s with the Seattle’s small-ish portion sizes? I’m certainly not a big eater, but its definitely something I’ve noticed in the rare times that I do eat out (at least at non-chain restaurants). Spendy and small portions is not a appetizing combo.
I’m wary of the overuse of AI slop by any business as well… but the obsession of some folks here is bordering on some other concern—maybe about the fact that this is an Indian restaurant? I mean, have you seriously not noticed how much most pizza, Italian, donut, sushi, etc., restaurants use cut-and-paste/build-a-website sites for their online presence, ads, and menus around here over the years? The takeout boxes are identical, the takeaway menus, etc.? Were you complaining about that too? Or did you not even notice because pizza or spaghetti are okay for you?
Ha, sure we are racist but I don’t think that’s the key issue here. Everyone hated “Great American Diner” when they started too. West Seattle is generally hostile to new restaurants, especially if they sell pizza or misstep in some other way, and that’s part of who we are. Just get used to it.
I don’t think West Seattle is generally hostile to new restaurants. I think some commenters on the blog are, but they’re such a tiny sample, and when you live online in troll-land it is not too surprising to find cynicism and over-reaction
You might be right though it doesn’t excuse those who might damage the reputation of a business so cavalierly. This is not fun and games, we’re talking about real lives and real livelihoods. Sorry, but for me, it’s real “tell,” to use a gambling term.
How do we have all these pizza spots that are mid af, but then lose the best one we had in Pizzeria Credo?go figure.
Welcome, Taste & Best! As a small business owner myself, I can imagine that this is a dream come true for the owners who took a risk and worked incredibly hard to make it happen, and I wish them all the very best!
That seems like a very large widespread menu for a local small business / local restaurant. Goodluck to them. But with a menu as large as the Cheesecake Factory it may be hard to sustain long term profitability imo….
I’ve been searching everywhere for Indo-Chinese food—finally suucess!
Has anyone criticizing this restaurant ever spent time in South Asia? I might be totally off base, but it all reads a bit ethnocentric (unempathetic) to me.
I wish them the best of luck. I’m however also skeptical, if a diner that serviced every kind of food under the sun couldn’t make it, how does an Indian restaurant intend to? The info fusion restaurant up the street was one of the worst dining experiences I’ve had in a long time and the food was awful. Wondering if there was any market research done about the success of similar fusion restaurants in the area. I don’t love Indian food, so it won’t be a spot I would frequent but I hope people love the food and it succeeds. Maybe they’ll care more about the cleanliness of their restaurant, the bathrooms in the great American were disgusting.
We’re lucky to have new businesses pop up in these uncertain times. Don’t pre-judge, give them a try, and then see for yourself. I wish them and all of our other small business in the Junction the very best.
what a bunch of cranky, intolerant folks on this post who think everyone has to do stuff the way they do it. As for the AI, tell it to every small business that doesn’t have a marketing budget that you probably already support. Give them a break, they are trying to open a new restaurant, English is probably a 2nd language, I don’t care what they name it, if the food is good I’m super excited for a new junction restaurant. Welcome :)
It’s not only that they’ve used AI. The prompt writing and final product are clearly absolutely terrible judging by the results. Even now when they’ve supposedly “fixed” and “stopped” using AI, it’s very obvious they’re still using it. Their execution of this has been so bad that I’m actually coming around full circle in thinking that the food must be good with how bad their other skills are.
If the food is great, they should take a picture of that and use it. You don’t need to speak English fluently to use a camera.
Our family ordered the food to go this afternoon. It’s a must try. I love Indian food and this is by far the best. I was weary at first but after reading the reviews on Google for their sister restaurant in Shoreline…I decided to try. It’s soooooo good. Please never leave.
After reading the repeated attacks and insinuations against this seemingly innocent new restaurant, I made a point of going there last night.
I enjoyed the Samosas in an empty venue.
The continuous attacks because the violation of someone’s credo against AI do not curry well for West Seattle.
In particular “K” has implied that the plumbing is not functioning days ago.
When someone asked K to explain, K has ignored that to move on to more complaints.
On the subject of menus, many if not most do not have photos of their dishes.
If K traveled, they would know that other cultures and places use plastic models of dishes and generic images that are now being AI generated.
The menu and signage does not necessarily represent the service or food.If the Taste &
Best staff reads this, I hope that they understand that these vicious comments are by a dogged few and don’t represent West Seattle.
It’s fairly loaded language to call them “seemingly innocent” when people are calling them out for doing something actively bad. The food and service can be great, but many of us have limited money and want to spend it with ethical businesses. That isn’t a “vicious comment,” it’s a simple and valid ethical position and is, indeed, what many of us in West Seattle proudly represent.
Way too many folks in this thread that need to read up on the complications and consequences of AI use, as well as the unintended consequences that come with its common use and community integration. I’m disappointed to see that we haven’t learned, let alone thought, about what this will do to us and our perception. Integrity and honesty truly is dead.
Please do share the consequences of using AI for a restaurant menu,
as using AI for this response generated no doomsday cautions?
but are the servers getting their tips? There is discussion over this matter happening elsewhere.
Also dismayed by the AI logo and menu, but I just tried the samosa chaat and it was delicious. Chaat has become one of my favorite things, so this may be a go-to for me if they stay open. That corner space is truly too big for most restaurants and has been a revolving door as a result (Great American Diner, worst name ever, stayed for much longer than anticipated.)
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