I want to love Charlie Palmer Steak. The restaurant’s absolutely genial namesake chef is responsible for several outstanding restaurants around the country — among them the Dry Creek Kitchen in Healdsburg, Calif. and Aureole in New York City and Las Vegas. Young executive chef Bryan Voltaggio is a tremendous talent whose kitchen turns out consistently tasty, season-conscious, non-traditional steakhouse fare. The main dining room offers a stunning view of the Capitol. Not only is its all-American wine list among the very best in town, the spot doesn’t charge a corkage fee if you bring in an American wine. And Charlie Palmer Steak is one of the few high-end D.C. restaurants that features a Restaurant Week-style promotion year-round with its three-course lunch menu for $20.06.

But I don’t love Charlie Palmer Steak. And it’s not because the restaurant’s dinner menu is priced through the roof. It’s because the service is regularly subpar. And the prices that they’re charging only magnify the profound service woes. It’s a shame too. The food at Charlie Palmer Steak is better than at any steakhouse in town and indeed matches up extremely well against the food at the city’s top eateries. But the inept service obscures all that.

So, I’ll propose an intervention. Charlie and Bryan, come into this room. You’ve got so much talent, so much promise. But it’s being squandered by your service team. No, don’t get up, Charlie and Bryan, don’t walk out. Not yet. You have to hear my story. You have to hear how bad it is out there. It is a tale of already-bitten chocolate truffles and ignorant wine stewards. It’s the only way you can fix things. We love you. We want to make things better.