Recent poor experience with a firearms-related accessories producer led me to dump all my stuff owned by them and now I’ll look elsewhere for future business. Sucks.
Local Pho place said we can squeeze the 5th member of our party, our youngest on the side, or sit at a larger table for 18% added fee. Told em go fuck themselves and we’ll never be back.
I know I can have attitude but I don’t think I overreacted in either situation. Sometimes it feels like everything is going to shit. I can accept that mistakes happen and give a pass once, sometimes twice, but it just feels like customer service is trash now days. And I hate it.
Preaching to the choir, I know.
10 years to retirement! Just waiting!
Posts: 6688 | Location: Georgia | Registered: August 10, 2009
Originally posted by OttoSig: Recent poor experience with a firearms-related accessories producer led me to dump all my stuff owned by them and now I’ll look elsewhere for future business. Sucks.
Local Pho place said we can squeeze the 5th member of our party, our youngest on the side, or sit at a larger table for 18% added fee. Told em go fuck themselves and we’ll never be back.
I know I can have attitude but I don’t think I overreacted in either situation. (Maybe...would need to know more) Sometimes it feels like everything is going to shit. I can accept that mistakes happen and give a pass once, sometimes twice, but it just feels like customer service is trash now days. (Truth) And I hate it.
WRT the restaurant, they have a sign that says parties of 5 or more require 18% added gratuity. I asked if they could apply logic, as parents with 3 kids is not the same as parties of 5 or more. It is literally but not in the practice of adding gratuity. We’re not doing 5 separate orders.
A family of four can eat for 18% less in theory than a family of 5, sounds like a stupid ass business decision for a family restaurant.
The accessories manufacturer just handled a situation quite poorly. And through mistakes on their end cost me exorbitant amounts of time and effort to recoup my money. I won’t go into particulars on that one. I’ll just say maybe 1 customer won’t hurt them, but if that’s their practice as a whole it’s not good for sustaining business.
10 years to retirement! Just waiting!
Posts: 6688 | Location: Georgia | Registered: August 10, 2009
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I wasn’t there, so I dunno whether you overreacted or not. I might have decided to never give the vendor any more business (and explained why to anyone who asked), but if I had other stuff they produced that worked for me I don’t know that I would have taken the hit to dump it (and presumably replace it with someone else’s gear). I would mostly just keep using it and if anyone ever asked about it say, “Oh, it’s from {whoever} and it have been fine, but I had such a bad experience the last time that I purchased something from them that I’ll never buy from them again. I really can’t recommend doing business with them.
ETA: Wrt the restaurant, restaurants are tough, low margin, businesses. As far as I’m concerned, any business can make whatever policies they like. That said, while I don’t like the “18% service charge on parties of eight or more.” policy that some places have, it is rarely an issue for me as I’m generally in a smaller party. Bring it down to five or more, and even though my family will slide under that, I’m out as I think the restaurant is being unreasonable.
Posts: 7163 | Location: Lost, but making time. | Registered: February 23, 2011
Local Pho place said we can squeeze the 5th member of our party, our youngest on the side, or sit at a larger table for 18% added fee. Told em go fuck themselves and we’ll never be back.
I'm like flumoxed. Please tell me this is some hoity toity place on Rodeo Drive where people go to be seen. Otherwise, wtf? You're going to get 20% more order or, at least, 1 more dish to be ordered. How about if you would have split your group into two and you'd have a table of three and a table of two. That sounds even worse for the restaurant.
"It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We needed to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life – daily and hourly. Our answer must consist not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual." Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning, 1946.
Posts: 20179 | Location: The Free State of Arizona - Ditat Deus | Registered: March 24, 2011
Originally posted by slosig: Bring it down to five or more, and even though my family will slide under that, I’m out as I think the restaurant is being unreasonable.
This is my logic, I can understand large groups, but when you start getting into a normal family size, that seems a bit extreme. It's basically saying you will tip us 18% if you want to eat here. As some previously said, I tip 20% or more 99% of the time so they are screwing themselves. The fact that they were so steadfast in it when I asked if they could make an exception since the 3 kids with me were 7 and younger. 1 check...it just didn't make sense.
I'm not trying to make a big deal about the company that wasted my time. Getting rid of their products coincides with me getting rid of a lot of pistols I don't shoot at all, so it's a 50/50 deal. Was getting rid of them anyway so seemed like a good time to get rid of the rest. And they didn't go out of their way to treat me poorly, but also I shouldn't have to send 50+ emails and wait 9 weeks for a refund, of which I only got after making a half-dozen phone calls.
10 years to retirement! Just waiting!
Posts: 6688 | Location: Georgia | Registered: August 10, 2009
You should have walked out. Then had the wife walk back in with one kid and ask for a table. Then you walk in with the others and ask for a table. Then say "How's that work out for you?"
If I really like their food, I’d just stick with 18% instead of the usual tip that’s higher. 5 seems to be pretty low for service fee, especially when 3 of the 5 are kids under 7. Restaurants can use discretion, I’m sure, seems kinda short sighted for them not to do so. I get the impression you are a familiar face at the restaurant. In that case, if I’m in charge at the restaurant, I’m not going to run a regular away under those circumstances.
I wouldn’t have gone to the length to tell them to go fuck themselves. Don’t accomplish much by doing that. Only bad things can come out of that. But I would make it known to them I won’t be dining there anymore and would also write reviews stating so.
On the rare times we dine out, our 8 year old doesn’t eat so it’s just the two adults eating. I know some places will charge a “plate fee” or some bullshit like that bit we have never had that happen to us. She’s very picky with food. We will typically stop and get her something like a Happy Meal to eat prior to us getting to the restaurant. If a place did try to charge a plate fee for our child not eating, I would never go back. I typically do read the entire menu as I’m the type who makes up my mind on what I want really quick while my wife takes a few minutes. That leaves me time to look over the entire menu.
There are a lot of cheap people who show up with a large party but fail to tip approximately so you end up with the mandatory 18%. I rarely eat with large groups and if I do I request a separate check so I'm only paying for my meal. Of I get good service I generally am generous with my tipping but I walked into a pizza joint once and they were adding 18% to every order and I was getting takeout so while I paid i never went back.
Posts: 1758 | Location: USA | Registered: December 11, 2005
Are they saying an 18% service charge or an 18% gratuity will be added? Because if they are adding a service charge and then expect a tip on top of that they are going to be sorely disappointed.
I honestly have never heard of a "service charge" for larger parties (which 5 is not). I have heard of larger parties getting the gratuity automatically added.
That is a poor application of policy for a restaurant. They can cry me a river about low margins, tough environment, wah. It is a lot tougher environment when they start driving off repeat customers. Bunch of dumb asses.
Posts: 7540 | Location: Florida | Registered: June 18, 2005
I wouldn’t have gone to the length to tell them to go fuck themselves. Don’t accomplish much by doing that. Only bad things can come out of that.
Sir, fair but let me clarify, they said, you can put your little one (4 years old) in a high chair or pay the fee for a larger table.
To which I responded, in a normal tone, “that’s fucked up, I’m not paying a fee to have my children sit comfortably to eat”. I didn’t get loud or insult them directly, I just told them that’s messed up and asked them to apply some logic and common sense to the situation.
They refused so I let them know they’ll never get any more of my money.
10 years to retirement! Just waiting!
Posts: 6688 | Location: Georgia | Registered: August 10, 2009
And while I can understand using their larger tables is an inconvenience, they were 95% unoccupied. And, the larger tables are just smaller tables joined together. Move one 6 inches over and Viola!
10 years to retirement! Just waiting!
Posts: 6688 | Location: Georgia | Registered: August 10, 2009
