Perfect Score for West Central Elementary

Here are the restaurant inspection scores printed in the Rome News Tribune, October 19, 2009.

Las Palmas, 246 Shorter Ave    Oct. 6   89B

Blue Fin, 727 Turner McCall     Oct. 7    80B

Rome Cinemas, 2535 Shorter Ave    Oct. 8   98A

Movies @ Berry Square, 2829 Martha Berry Hwy   Oct. 8   92A

New China Buffet, Shorter Ave    Oct. 13   50U

North Heights Elementary, 26 Atteiram Dr.   Oct. 13   99A

West Central Elementary, 402 Lavender Drive   Oct. 13   100A

For more information about food inspections and scoring visit www.nwgahealth.com.

Rusan restaurant gets a 58 on inspection; other results

Here are the results as reported in the Roman Record of the Rome News Tribune, Monday, October 12, 2009:

Taco Bell, 2216 Shorter Ave    Sept. 28   Score: 94 A

China City, Martha Berry Highway   Sept. 30  Score: 96A

IHOP, 35 Riverbend Drive   Sept. 30  Score: 87 B

China Max, 2770 Martha Berry Highway   Oct. 1  Score: 89 B

Rusan, North Broad St.     Oct. 5    Score: 58 U

Chef Chen, Martha Berry Highway    Oct. 6    Score: 49 U

Big Bear BBQ, 1517 Dean Ave.    Oct. 6    Score:  90 A

For more information about food inspections and scoring visit www.nwgahealth.com.

Roofing Companies

Well if you haven't got a new roof yet, why not? Well maybe it's because of the onslaught of out-of- town roofers that have blanketed our area. You've heard the horror stories. Now share them with the world! If you don't have a new roof then heed these warnings!
I actually had a job being a stormchaser after Andrew in the Miami/Homestead area. First off, I had no idea about the roofing business. I just went down because a best friend from high school called and said her husband needed help and since I had the opportunity, I did it. Well, needless to say, I had know idea what I was getting into. I just saw $$$. Well I stayed there for close to a year and learned about the business. Things were popping up that I didn't exactly agree.
- We were a "Local" company only to find out that in fact they bought the rights to a local roofing business that had gone out of business but still had a Yellow Page ad. It said "Locally Owned and Operated Since 1978." Heck the dude I worked for was from South Carolina.
- "We have plenty of crews!" Yeah, they would hire them off other roofs. So you get their insurance money and split.
- We guarantee the roof for 3 years. Screw a guarantee. They were going to be long gone by then and wouldn't honor it.
To their credit they didn't really hire off a roof as some companies did. But I new in my heart of hearts that they could just up-and-leave never to be heard from again.(oh, except it has shown up on my resume before- you know... sales experience.)
Now how could you do this to people who have lost most of everything they have, I asked myself. Well, I couldn't!
The best part about it was spending 8 months in South Beach living in Coral Gables. That was the life but my conscious got a hold of good judgment and I left leaving a lot of money on the table.
One week later after I left the sun and fun of South Florida, I was waist high in snow in Rome, GA. (You all remember that!!!)
With no regrets.
Quickly I would like to tell you of what it is like to be at "ground zero" of a Cat 4/5 hurricane. Very few house are intact if they even managed to survive the hurricane. Garbage was piled in a long line down the street that had to be over 15 high and several miles long. You would see everything from teddy bears and kids pictures to heirloom furniture and family portraits. And to talk these homeowners... WOW! People that had lost it all but were rebuilding. Remarkable people to say the least. It was quite something to experience. Pictures or the media can't convey the actually feelings down in the "trenches." I am glad I experienced it.
So anyways that was my days of being a "stormchaser" even though I had no idea that the profession I had chose.

Ok so here's the long and short of it. Heed this advice when trying to find a legitimate roofing companies:

Do Your Due Dilligence
> Check to see if they really are "local." Not just a local phone number and address.
> See how long they have been in business. Not what they say but check it out for yourself.
> Make sure they are insured up to $2 million and request a copy of their policy.
> Don't show them your insurance policy quote. Make them bid the roof.
> Ask for references. Follow up on these references.
>Make sure you get a written estimate with all the materials need. See if they match up to your insurance quote.
> DON'T SIGN ANYTHING UNLESS YOU ARE DEFINITELY GOING TO USE THEM

So write your experiences or advice and let us know what is going on out there in the roofing world in Rome, GA.

HELP THY NEIGHBOR!

What's this blog all about?

This is a blog about shopping experiences in Rome. It is designed to get better service in Rome. Every couple of days or so I will write about my experiences and observations with companies doing business in Rome. I hope that you will respond with your own experiences to help inform others. Before you know it, we will get great service and hence have more visitors to our area because of it. Can you say SPLOST booster! It may even bring down our taxes. Ok... at least maybe they wont increase as fast.
So here's how it goes. I will write about my experiences and observations for the day, blogging about every business encounter of the day. Now I know that every one has a bad day, but if it reoccurs you will sure hear about it. My intent is not malicious in any way. It is to get more out of our dollar for the service we deserve.

In other words, bring that hometown hospitality value back.

I want us to use this as a forum for all services. If you encounter someone or something that you noticed about a business, please post it. Tell the good as well as the bad. Together we can ferret out the "impostors" IE the bad businesses and find the people that really want our business. When we write, it will put notification out to management as well as ownership on how their business is doing and hopefully make any necessary adjustments. It's a win-win for both sides.
Perhaps you will even employ companies you have never dealt with just because of the positive posts. Or maybe you will no longer use a business because of the continuous negative feedback from posts.
I run into something everyday. Whether its the way the place looks or the way the employees act. I just don't understand why people can not smile, greet and treat a customer the same way they did years ago. I know times change but heck service shouldn't decline.
Now some of you may use this as a venting board. That is fine however I hope that the information you give us is accurate and is not malicious in nature. If you got fired from a job, post why but don't bash the business. Just tell us - once you have taken a few deep breaths - what the problem was.
Now here's the other deal. There will be people writing in about businesses with whom they have a personal connection. So when reading over the posts, please keep in mind the validity of the poster. After a while, there will be many of the same posters and you can determine which one seems credible.
I, on the other hand, promise to print nothing but the truth- my experiences as well as observations - just as they occurred.