Authenticity

Went to Riordan's Tavern last night. Richard Riordan, former mayor of Los Angeles, owns this place, right next to the Old Pantry, a landmark restaurant.

The restaurant is supposed to remind us of a classic New York neighborhood tavern with a mahogany bar, exposed bricked walls, etc. The food was pretty good, a bit overpriced, the wine list was a joke (4 wines...). The restaurant tries to transfer a neighborhood New York experience to a Los Angeles experience: the walls are filled with pictures of Riordan, LA landmarks and legends. It clearly tried to show that Riordan's Tavern is a local place where Angelenos go.

Unfortunately, the moment I sat down at the bar I saw picture of Chick Hearn, the legendary Lakers announcer, with a plaque below reading 'Chick Hern'.

I know I'm a stickler for spelling. I just can't stand it. But there are misspellings and misspellings.
If you try to be an authentic Los Angeles restaurant, there's no excuse for spelling Chick's name wrong. None. There are certain legends (Vin Scully, Magic Johnson, come to mind) every second grader will spell correctly.
This grave mistake at Riordan's Tavern just showed every customer that it's not an authentic restaurant. Just another faux Los Angeles place.

You can have big claims. But the small things decide if people will believe you.