Comments on: When Is It Okay to Complain in Restaurants?

By: Adam

Adam — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 14:37:35 +0000

@ number 9, even though you are almost certain to never read this again…
‘Ordeal’. Are you serious? Yes, you cut yourself, but accidents can happen. You got a new table, you got a free dessert, and a free drink. That should be enough for anybody.

A false sense of entitlement is one of the things I find most frustrating.

Regarding the article, I think the assessment of reasonable grounds for complaint is fair.

What I find difficult when eating out is when other guests cause a problem – it’s hardly the establishment’s fault, yet at the same time I don’t feel able to intervene. Anyone else have this issue?

By: Crazy american

Crazy american — Sun, 04 Nov 2012 05:57:06 +0000

I think, only in the USA the people is so tired of they life so they go to restaurant and complains for everything. People wake up, and stop give free food for complain doesn’t exist! Americans are incredible, i never see something like that..

By: Graeme

Graeme — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 07:28:54 +0000

To the allergy people: Please inform the kitchen of any allergies before ordering. You don’t know what goes into all of our dishes (I like adding fish sauce to steak sauces, nuts to bbq sauces, almond milk to soups, etc.) and if my restaurant listed every ingredient for every dish on the menu, well, we have a 2 inch binder full of our recipes. You can tell us, and we will accomodate you.

By: WilliamB

WilliamB — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 03:52:26 +0000

Eve, I would have very politely, explained the problem and asked for something else. I would half-expect the restaurant not to charge but would (probably) recognize it didn’t have to. Whether or not I had to pay for the dish, I would include that amount when calculating the tip.

By: Roxanne

Roxanne — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 22:26:39 +0000

I was in Philly and had dinner with an old friend at a French restaurant the Four Seasons concierge recommended. It was about 5 degrees outside, yet they seated us right by the front door. I asked that we be moved, and then they put us in a kind of alleyway next to the kitchen although there were tables free all over the restaurant (it was a weekday). It was annoying but not worth complaining about, until I sat down and pulled my chair forward, and cut my finger on splinter. I bled all over the linen napkin. After awhile, they brought me a bandaid and then finally moved us to a decent table. So what would you expect to happen next? They gave us a complimentary dessert and a free glass of wine. So I called the manager over to ask if this was the best she could do after our ordeal, and she responded with great hostility that moving us to a better table (??) was quite a privilege. I let my concierge know that the Four Seasons should not be recommending this restaurant in the future. My question is this: if you are getting a referral from the Four Seasons (the hotel called to make the reservation), wouldn’t you want to be nice to their customers, just for the sake of future referrals?

By: Joe Fort

Joe Fort — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 19:09:06 +0000

A dear friend of mine was waiting tables and had two matrons who complained about virtually everything that happened during their meal, (“the meat was tough; the fish was too fishy; their martinis weren’t strong enough”). The last straw was when one of them informed him that her water was warm. There were still remnants of the ice cubes floating in her glass and he was exasperated and tired of their act. He proceeded to stick his finger in her glass and informed her: “that water isn’t warm madame, it’s merely tepid”.

By: pdxJenH

pdxJenH — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 18:54:35 +0000

This is a great topic! Thanks for discussing it. Being a good guest is just as important as being a good server or a good cook.

I’m know most managers appreciate good feedback (I always did). Feedback on ‘sneaky’ ingredients – like allergens, is very helpful. Feedback on problems with service like timing, wrong orders etc. is very important. Managers will usually talk about this in their pre-shift meetings with the staff – to make them aware of the problem and solicit ideas to solve the problem. If its a systematic issue – food comes out of the kitchen erratically – they discuss at a managers meeting.

Feedback – polite and positive- is welcome and helpful. Don’t be afraid to give it.

By: ELee

ELee — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 17:15:57 +0000

Eve, this has happened to my husband who has a couple of allergies and no matter how carefully he reads the menu, sometimes an ingredient is not listed. You couldn’t have eaten this dish, and the server should be willing to accommodate an allergy. People don’t generally purposely order things they are allergic to. I think it is reasonable to request another meal or that they take out the ingredient that you are allergic to.

By: Eve

Eve — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:48:10 +0000

Like WilliamB, I am a fan of talking to managers about employees who do an extra good job. I especially relish saying, ‘I want to talk to you about one of your employees,’ then adding, ‘______ is great!’ (Managers too often get bad news.)

I have a question though:

Recently I was at a restaurant and the entree I ordered had an ingredient on it it turns out I am allergic to. It was not a standard ingredient in this dish as typically prepared and so I not expecting it, and besides the description on the menu did not mention it. I pointed this out to the server immediately (I hadn’t eaten it yet), but he seemed perturbed. Was I in the right for sending it back?

By: WilliamB

WilliamB — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 02:22:04 +0000

I will also complain to a waiter if that waiter persistently misses my needs – for example, my water cup is empty the entire evening. I generally leave it at that.

I will complain if food arrives at wildly different times for my group. Or if it arrives at the same time but my dish is vastly the wrong temperature.

I will ask for the manager if a waiter does a particularly good job. I find myself doing this more often than complaining.

I will complain if I don’t get what I ordered – except at sushi meals. I’m terrible at figuring out how much I really want. If something hasn’t shown up but I’m full anyway, I just make sure it’s not on the bill. I don’t mention it to the waiter.

By: Bryn

Bryn — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 21:58:29 +0000

I ordered a salad with my meal at a lovely vineyard restaurant in NY. As I ate down into the bowl I discovered a stick that was about two inches by one inches in thickness. I sort of just laughed and pushed it aside. However, when the waitress came to clear my plate, my horrified husband could not avoid pointing out that there was a stick in the bottom of my bowl. The waitress just sort of said “We get organic greens.” Indeed!

By: Laura

Laura — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 16:37:33 +0000

I guess I don’t see speaking up as complaining. For example, I don’t want to sit next to a busy kitchen and will let a hostess know I would rather wait a few minutes for a different table. I’m convinced that being cheerfully direct is the way to go.

My husband and I also have a rule of thumb that works well for us — If I think the service is bad enough that I don’t want to leave a full tip, I talk to the manager. This has only happened twice. The first time, our entire check was comped; the second time, the manager didn’t really care and we’ve never been back.

By: RellaBellaK

RellaBellaK — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 16:06:22 +0000

I ordered Sake at a restaurant a few weeks ago and there was a bug floating in the little carafe! The waiter was very nice and brought us a new one right away, but it made me a little wary about eating there.