The worst experience I ever had was at Shoney's many years ago. The waitress clumsily spilled tea while trying to juggle two pitchers and a tray. That ticked her off, so she threw the tray and pitchers to the floor and yelled "I quit!" My cousin and I were both splattered in SWEET tea! We finally flagged someone down 5 minutes later to find out about getting dried off. They were clueless. The pitchers were tossed down right at our table and no one figured we needed dried off????
Lately though I've been having some minor problems with Applebees. Just last week, I called ahead. They of course won't take reservations, but I did let them know we'd be there inside of 15 minutes and that we needed a table for 8 and a baby...THREE of which were handicapped (one blind, and none of them can stand well). My grandmother uses a walker, the pastor's wife a cane, and my dad's doctor just ordered him a lift chair...he has bad diabetes and his feet are in very poor shape. The guy assured me he'd start setting the table up. However, when we arrived, he had NOT given them the message and so no one had worked on it. We waited nearly 45 minutes, with three handicapped people crammed into one small section up front, along with a baby stroller, and everyone getting trampeled on. I tried to make it as painless for them and us by calling ahead, but even that didn't work.
So then I'm at another Applebee's two days ago, and they bring me three high chairs before I got one that wasn't broken and unsafe. I started to pick one up and the whole top fell off! And they wanted me to put my baby in it? What got me is...do you think they removed those chairs somewhere? No. They put them back in the stack for the next customer.
Once my sister saw a waitress struggling to meet the needs of all her customers. They were obviously understaffed. Occasionally the manager, who was sitting at a table, would walk up to her and say something and she would feel flustered and keep on. My sister walked up to the manager and overly complimented the waitressed then turned around and told him that HE was insufficient because as a manager when you see someone having trouble and understaffed, you should get your hands a little dirty and HELP (she told him). It was SPECTACULAR!
Thanks ladies!! Haha I was too busy trying to get my fh out of there, as he was really starting to make a scene!! I was so shocked when he first threw the ID's down at us I thought he was joking. I don't get how 4 ID's that are exactly the same... all Ontario Driver's licenses, and 1 of them comes back okay, and the other 3 are fake. Wow.... lol I guess I have a bone to pick with the Ontario Government.
I fully intend to write a big long letter to the headquarters of Chili's. Actually the other couple we were with intends to do the same. I'm not looking to get anything out of it, but more to bring attention to what their managers are doing to paying customers. We don't have Chili's around here... infact, I'm not even sure if they have chili's in Canada. We even took the manager's card... I'm not sure if the supervisor was in at that time... it was kind of late. But we have the manager's card... he sure didn't throw it at us... I think by that time he had kind of realized that he'd overstepped his boundary. Not to mention my BF and his friend are kind of big guys (Total teddybears but that's besides the point...)
I understand that people in the service induste a tough job somedays! I'll be the first to say that I give them big time props for having to put up with some real snotty customers. I used to work at Subway, and man some people are just nasty while they are ordering their subs!! Sometimes it's so hard to grin and bear it when have rude customers. That being said... it's not fair for paying customers to have crappy service. I mean the cost of going out to eat is definately not cheap!!
Lol I'm rambling now... but I'm definately going to be writing Chili's.... all I wanted was some baby back ribs... haha I've heard so many good things about them!
I'm sorry to hear that there's been lots of crappy service out there!! But when you think about it afterwards, it's kind of funny, and you can laugh at the experience.
I wonder though if his machine was defective and it needs to be replaced. Keep that as a point when you write your letter to Chilli's, but stress that the manner in which you were spoken to was demeaning, etc. blah blah.
Well, my sister and I did something bad after we got HORRIBLE service at an Outback Steakhouse. After a waiter that appeared ONCE - to take our orders, we waited an HOUR to get our disgusting food, which neither of us could choke down. And then we waited for our waiter to come back - and he NEVER came back. We waited at least 30 minutes before we walked out without paying. We didn't feel it was stealing, because we didn't eat the food. Actually we did eat our fried onion ball thingie. It was pretty decent. But we look at it as, "Well, how could we pay our bill when our waiter disappeared off the face of the earth?"
And someone mentioned Applebees? I've been getting CRUDDY food there lately, but only at my hometown one. At every other Applebee's in the metro area, the food is awesome. It's just at mine.
And recently, I was at a restaurant/bar in Kansas City and I was sitting at the bar, and a waitress broke a glass on MY foot. I didn't get cut, but she didn't ask if I was alright or anything. And that bar charged $6 for SHOTS!!!
I think you should go to their website and do a customer survey and tell their corporate headquarters what's going on. . . They tend to actually pay attention to complaints because most people won't complain, they will simply not go again. I'd make sure you told them that was your plan.
I agree! I have a restaurant I really like -- but one night got a very bad meal. A manager happened to ask how things were going out so I told her. They had me fill out a form. A week or so later I received a letter with a personalized apology... and coupons for $30 worth of meals there! Guess what.. it is STILL one of my favorite restaurants! I have no qualms whatsoever about letting them know of problems and accepting their offers of compensation! I think they are wise and it is good business.
When I lived in Fort Lauderdale, friends and I went to Chili's almost every Saturday night and got great food and service. When I moved back to Seattle area I went to one and it was awful.
Last edited by Misti in Seattle; 08-11-2006 at 01:08 AM.
Denny's....
The grossest most unkept Denny's ever...
My friend and I were hungry and there were alot of people in the restaurant so we went in...ignoring the tables that had yet to be cleaned.
We placed our order and before our food comes out a little roach comes crawling across the table. Disgusted, we call on the waitress who grabbed a towel that she had hanging on her apron thingy and swatted the roach off the table....
We looked at her like "Are you crazy???"
And she said, "Well, it's just a little baby roach."
Oh.
How freaking cute....a baby. Awwwww....
Yeah, we got up to leave...she tried to charge us for my water and my friend's coke. Whatever. *rolls eyes*
The ironic thing is that on the wall was a blue ribbon award from the local news station from 2004 hanging on the wall for an excellent restaurant or something to that degree. It was 2005 at the time...so...hum...what-EVER!!!
Okay here is one that happened to a friend and me. I had an Entertainment Book coupon to Lombardi's and it said in big bold letters "good any time." So one Friday night we went to the one in Everett. We were served water and bread... were munching away on our bread... when the waiter came to take our order. I told him I had the Entertainment card and he advised we could not use it, as it was only valid after 8 PM. Another couple at the next table heard us and said they had one too, to use. Sure enough, in VERY tiny print under the "good any time" it said valid after 8 PM on Fridays. Now here is the stupid part... it was FIVE minutes until 8!!
The waiter was absolutely adamant that he would NOT serve us with the card. When I said, "Okay, we will sit here and wait five minutes and then you can come back and serve us" and he said absolutely not. This man was unbelievably rude and said stuff like "why should we give you free food? We have plenty of business and don't need you here" etc. The restaurant was NOT even that busy at the time either... and we were already EATING our bread. Interestingly enough, we heard a couple at the next table going through the same thing with the guy, as they were trying to use a card too.
I said to the waiter, "You mean to tell me that if we go outside and walk around in the parking lot for five minutes (even less by then; it was probably actually 8 by that time) and come back in and be reseated, THEN he could serve us; and he said "Yes." We left. LOL I told my friend we should have sat there and poured water, sugar and salt and stuff all over the table and made a big mess out of the bread and stuff... then left and come back in a couple minutes later. But I don't actually DO stuff like that; I just think about it.
My friend happened to know someone else who works in that restaurant, and told him the next day about our experience. His friend said that particular waiter is a horror to work with and is known to be rude.
Sadly, that is known to be a very nice restaurant, but I have certainly never been back there!
Or maybe depends on the location... as I said in another post, in Fort Lauderdale we loved Chili's and went there almost every week. I went to one in the Seattle area and the food was horrid.
Or maybe depends on the location... as I said in another post, in Fort Lauderdale we loved Chili's and went there almost every week. I went to one in the Seattle area and the food was horrid.
Different Locations/Management does matter. For example, you know most of us probably don't have a lot of WOW experience with McDonalds though their service is generally good. There was one that was so good that I felt compelled to write my one and only letter to the editor. What was WOW about it? In the play place they had 2 workers working in there at all times. These workers had to meet 2 specifications. They had to have worked behind the counter for a while and they had to be going to college. It was a promotion. Anyways, they would watch your kids, play with them, help them go up the playplace or get them down if they are scared. They would enforce safety rules. They would clean a table/mess immediately. They got to know your name to match with the kids (ie, they cared). If they saw a busy momma struggling to juggle her kids and tray, etc they immediately went to help her out. They would sometimes even go refill your drink for you (which was out in the main room and not in the play place). They did make money on socks. If a kid came without socks they were required to purchase some for $1 because it is unsanitary to be without socks. My husband and I seriously used that place as a date night when our kids were young. We'd even bring cards and games and stay for lunch and dinner. (Okay, we wouldn't do that now). These girls really were awesome. THAT is good business! I moved and they tracked me down and mailed me McD gift certificate and a pair of socks..lol.
Well I have to let you know my poor husband's experience with a fast food drive thru. He went and ordered, got to the window, waited, waited, finally the food came out, then the drinks, no straws, no drink holder. So he asks the lady for a drink holder. She sighs. Grabs a drink holder THROWS it at him. Okay he still needs straws. So he sits there, drinks in his HANDS, with a drink holder THROWN at him, he asks for straws. Again, another sigh, she throws those to him. This lady was a MANAGER...........My husband was in the drive thru in a STICK shift car, ALL alone. Where the heck was he supposed to put the drinks?????? (the "cars" drink holder is just one of those crappy floor ones that let the drink fall over)
Ok if that isn't good enough for ya, he went to this one place to get him and his friend milkshakes. Again he is driving the stick shift car, alone. He goes in, orders them, they make them, then he asks for a drink holder. The guy acts like my husband has asked for the rarest thing in the world. The clerk tells my husband they have no drink holders. My husband asks, no drink holders in the entire store? The clerk replies no, quite rudely. So my husband explains to him that he is driving a stick shift car, alone and how is he supposed to drive AND hold the milkshakes? The guy laughs and says, "I dunno balance them on your LEG!!!!!!!!!!" My husband did complain only to get a email stating, thanks for your business, sorry about your experience, etc. They didn't do anything to try to correct it. I think that is totally absurd!
What is so tough about getting a freaking DRINK holder now a days? R they like GOLD or something?????????
Anyways. that is a couple of our experiences. We have had lots more, but those stuck out the most.............
In the small town I lived in, there wasn't much to do that didn't involve alcohol. I am not a drinker. My friends and I would often go to Country Kitchen for supper and even late night coffee. For years and years, we'd do this. We'd even do our homework there in down time. We always gave tips that were usually more than the food we ordered because we appreciated their service and that they would let us be there. We'd clean up after ourselves, and if it was busy, we didn't stay long, because we knew that they would need any extra tables. We knew all the employees by name. What's the problem? One day we went in to order supper for four people, which is about 8 dollars per person plus drinks. It took us 20 min to get the drinks, 10 more to get the food. Our server apologized, but they were busy and we understood. Twenty minutes after we started eating, the manager came out and told us we had to leave. What?! She then pointed to a sign on the wall, written on the back of a placemat that said something to the effect of "seating limit 30 min". I swear that thing wasn't there when we walked in. We left.
Figuring it was a one time thing, we went back. This was when I had quit smoking, so we sat in the non smoking section. Three people- we were the only ones in the whole section. The waitress came with our drinks, and we told her to please give us a few minutes to decide what we wanted. She never came back. So we waited, just to see how long it would be. After approx 45 min we got up to leave. At the counter, we said that we were not going to pay for our drinks, since we were utterly forgotten about. The manager ( same one ) said that we always walked out on our bills- NEVER have we! She also told us to "lay off" the waitress because the waitress was sick. If you're sick, you should NOT be around food and other people!! I have tried emailing, calling and writing letters, but never got any response. This is only at the Country Kitchen in Rhinelander that I've had these problems, but it has prompted me to avoid all country kitchens. From a person who was pretty much a staple on Friday and Saturday nights to not going ever again- almost as hard as quitting smoking.
I can understand it if they thought we were loitering, or if they had complaints about us ( we were never loud), and we would have been very receptive had they been friendlier and more professional about it. We also found out later that the "manager" wasn't even a manager. She just acted like one. Since my friends and I had stopped going there, other patrons noticed and eventually they knew why we left, so they stopped going, too. Sucks that word spreads so fast in little towns. Downside is that we were very limited in our social activities after that. All there is after ten pm is walmart and bars.
I can't count the number of restaurants I've walked out of. Which probably hints that I eat out too much.
Rob & I went to Denny's late one night. Payday night, so fairly crowded (it was Hampton Roads, military town, so payday for us is payday for about 90% of the folks). There was a wait. There was one family in front of us, one family behind us. We waited while they seated the first family. The hostess came back--same person who had seen us there. Ignored us, spoke to the family behind us. Spoke to some other people who'd come in. I was forced to note, at this point, that we were the only people there not being attended to, and the only people there not of a certain race.
I walked out of Applebee's by NOB once because we went in and asked for a nosmoking table, and they tried to seat us by the bar. I said that wasn't acceptable, and they argued. But the tables by the bar are nonsmoking! Which is true, but the bar is smoking. And, you know, smoke drifts. Nonsmoking sections exist so I don't have to breathe others' smoke. Actually, I've walked out of a good number of restaurants in the Hampton Roads area because of pathetic to nonexistent nonsmoking sections. One place we went literally had one table marked as nonsmoking, surrounded by smoking tables!
I've walked out of other restaurants because of being seated and never getting served. Even if it's fairly crowded, it doesn't take much for the waitress to stop by and say she'll be with us in a minute.
Most frustrating service was one I didn't walk out of. When Bobbie was a couple of months old, I went to Shoney's for lunch. I was there, and one other table had some people at it, right across the aisle from me. Waitress came and took my order fine. Brought my lunch fine. Then I decided to nurse my daughter. Hey, I'm eating, she should get to eat, right? Waitress disappeared. Took care of the other table just fine, but I was magically invisible. Betcha didn't know breastmilk is an invisibility shield! I didn't either, until then. It was obvious what the issue was, too, because the minute I adjusted Bobbie to an upright position, she showed right back up. I'd have said something to the manager, but I overheard him chewing her out for it before I left, so no need.
Quote:
I handed her my military ID. She said "blah blah blah?" I can't hear. I'm deaf. Here is my card. This went on for like 15 rounds until the lady behind me says "Don't you know your husband's social security number?" Huh? I had NEVER been asked that before so it was new. I told her, paid and got out. What pissed me off is it is right there on my ID. She didn't need to keep going.
I hate stuff like that. Anyone working in a Commissary, base exchange, what have you, they really should know the layout of the military ID. I hate being asked for my husband's SSN or my own when a person is standing there with my ID in hand. Half the time these people are family members themselves. Imagine that, every single dependant ID looks exactly the same.
Last edited by GreatBigMonsterMomma; 08-12-2006 at 08:37 AM.
I walked out of Applebee's by NOB once because we went in and asked for a nosmoking table, and they tried to seat us by the bar. I said that wasn't acceptable, and they argued. But the tables by the bar are nonsmoking! Which is true, but the bar is smoking. And, you know, smoke drifts. Nonsmoking sections exist so I don't have to breathe others' smoke. Actually, I've walked out of a good number of restaurants in the Hampton Roads area because of pathetic to nonexistent nonsmoking sections. One place we went literally had one table marked as nonsmoking, surrounded by smoking tables!
That is wild. I don't blame you, I'd have been ticked off too. My hubby and I both smoke, and we have found that "good table" and "smoking section" are oxy moron's. Usually, the smoking section has a lovely view of the garbage dumpster out back, and to get there, is generally a long wilderness journey (to borrow some one elses expression) down hallways and/or corridors, completely shut off from the rest of the resturant. We laugh and call it the "plague" section. we went to a resturant once on the east coast where the smoking section was out side. but what if it starts to rain, we asked? The waiter responded by shrugging his shoulders, and pretty much telling us to like it or leave. No, we don't mind. we are both completely respectful of non smokers, and have absolutely no desire to cause others to suffer from our addiction. but smokers are paying customers too and sometimes i do wish that when these resturants are being built that we could at least be thought of in that something to look at besides the dumpster would be nice, but its no biggie and definatly not worth making a scene over. We went to a place one time where the smoking section had obviously at one time been the storage room. No windows, no ventilation, and 10 tables crowded into a room that should have had no more than 5 or 6 tables. we considered ourselves lucky that they didn't make us enter the resturant through the back door.
We both also waited tables before we got married. Hubs worked at a very expensive high-end place (cumberbun and bowtie uniform, and seating by reservation only) and I worked at pizza hut. There fore we know boths sides of the issue. When we get bad service, we learned from experience, the best way to get the message across to the waiter/waitress is to leave them .25 cents as a tip. That is a much stronger message than leaving no tip at all.
On the other side! My hubby was danged good at his job. So good infact, he had lots of customers who would come in and ask for him by name, to wait on them. like i said this was a very expensive resturant. the cheapest thing on the menu was $30 (salad and bread sticks) and this was 20 years ago. the average ticket for a table of four was around $150 (if they didn't order adult drinks, that is) plus tip. I remember one night i went to pick him up from work, and I got there just in time to see him come storming out of the resturant behind some customers. I saw him stop the people and say, "excuse me!" he handed some change to the man and said, "appearantly you need this more than I do. next time call Dominoe's". I asked him what happened. He said, "i've waited on them hand and foot, you know how I am! I'm good at what I do. People request me by name. They've been here for hours drinking and eating and dancing. Their ticket was $250 and they left me .75 cents for a tip!!!!" Some people don't understand that alot of times, waiters/waitresses (who's hourly wage at the time was $2.01 per hour plus tips!!) rely on tips to pay the rent. Since we both have waited tables, we are less forgiving of bad service. On the other hand, we also know what it can be like for those guys. Either way, even on the worst nights, there is no excuse for bad or rude service. And we dont cut them any slack. Leave the problems in the kitchen, and be good to the customers. They're the ones helping you pay the rent, that's how we always looked at it.
I have no qualms whatsoever about letting them know of problems and accepting their offers of compensation! I think they are wise and it is good business.
Interestingly enough, we heard a couple at the next table going through the same thing with the guy, as they were trying to use a card too.
