Leading fast food outlet doesn't sell chicken

Big_Mac

I was at home last night and my gf decided that she would make a nice salad. So I hopped off to a takeaway to get some chicken. (I won't name names here, but the word Chicken is a clue)

Anyway went to the counter staff and I asked for six breasts (or fillets, not sure) of chicken. She went talking to a few people and came back and said that she 'Could not sell me 6 breasts as there was only 6 left on the tray'. I could have three, and three other bits of chicken if i wanted.

I asked why I could'nt have the six and got a confused look back from her, and after a little bit of her himming and hawwing and looking at me like I had three heads I just said forget it and left.

I was gobsmacked! What on earth is going on here. They sell chicken, but they won't sell it? I got the idea that they wouldn't sell them to me because they would have none left if someone else came in. So first come first served is out of the window, its now selective selling. Customer service these days is a disgrace in a lot of places and this was no better. At least I know that if I head to the takeaway on John St, they will have whatever you want and it is alway cooked properly. They will never refuse you.

One things for sure, I will never dark on the door or drive thru of this place ever again on principle. I don't care how hungry I get. Now I know that the Bundoran branch is infamous for not having any chicken, but one would think that in Sligo it would be a little different.

Anyone else hear of anything like this?

Mint Sauce

Big_Mac wrote: »

I was at home last night and my gf decided that she would make a nice salad. So I hopped off to a takeaway to get some chicken. (I won't name names here, but the word Chicken is a clue)

Anyway went to the counter staff and I asked for six breasts (or fillets, not sure) of chicken. She went talking to a few people and came back and said that she 'Could not sell me 6 breasts as there was only 6 left on the tray'. I could have three, and three other bits of chicken if i wanted.

I asked why I could'nt have the six and got a confused look back from her, and after a little bit of her himming and hawwing and looking at me like I had three heads I just said forget it and left.

I was gobsmacked! What on earth is going on here. They sell chicken, but they won't sell it? I got the idea that they wouldn't sell them to me because they would have none left if someone else came in. So first come first served is out of the window, its now selective selling. Customer service these days is a disgrace in a lot of places and this was no better. At least I know that if I head to the takeaway on John St, they will have whatever you want and it is alway cooked properly. They will never refuse you.

One things for sure, I will never dark on the door or drive thru of this place ever again on principle. I don't care how hungry I get. Now I know that the Bundoran branch is infamous for not having any chicken, but one would think that in Sligo it would be a little different.

Anyone else hear of anything like this?

if you had ordered 3 2peice boxes, or 3 2piece boxes, or even a 6peice box, you have understood their aguement, you get a varity, which they are propbably intitled to do, as your paying less for buying more together

but if you ordered 6 indivual peices, and were charged for 6 indivual peices, then surly its up to you, what thoes peices are

Xiney

Having done my time at a chicken place (not the one of which you speak, more like the rotisserie chicken counter at Tescos but in Canada) I think I can field this:

A chicken is not made out of breasts alone. It has legs, back pieces, and wings also. Different chicken establishments (ha, ha) will cut the chicken differently (some do the keel, which is the best bit, others just cut the breast down the middle so each breast gets half a keel) These other pieces are not as popular as the breasts because the meat isn't as nice and there's more bone to work around.

When you're selling chicken by the piece, that price is set for an average of these pieces. You'd have to pay a premium to get just breasts as they are the most popular, and some places simply don't allow you to do that anyway because they'd end up with nothing but legs and who wants a bucket full of chicken back?

Sure, the customer service may have been lacking because your cashier may not have been able to articulate to you why you couldn't take the last of their breasts and leave them with nothing but legs/backs. But they weren't exactly in the wrong.

Big_Mac

Xiney wrote: »

But they weren't exactly in the wrong.

Ok, but if they weren't exactly in the wrong, that shouldn't automatically make them in the right though?

Here's what I don't get. I had no complaints about what it would have cost, I would have been happy to pay it. They were there to sell, but they wouldn't do it. They have a kitchen, I mean can't they cook more? Mark my words, if I had gone to the place on John st, they would have given them to me no question and they are not as large an establishment as this one.

If they sold them to me, then the next person would have beent told they had none left, If they sold three to one person and three to another, the next person would have been told they were without; same difference.

I think its a poor show for an establishment of its size and reputation.

TequilaMockingBird

Thats ridiculous. They have no contingency plan for when they get an enormous (:rolleyes:) order of six chicken breasts, in a chicken restuarant? Daft.

OP, give Cannings on Pearse Road a ring 20 mins before you want chicken, and they will have it ready for you. I've rang for 40 drumsticks before, gave them a half hours notice, and it was no problem - and their main line of business is petrol!

Xiney

Big_Mac wrote: »

Ok, but if they weren't exactly in the wrong, that shouldn't automatically make them in the right though?

Indeed, it does not mean they were in the right.

However, they have these policies for a reason.

If you take the 6 breasts, they're now "crappy piece heavy". They have to either stack other peoples orders with these less desireable pieces (leading these people to be upset about the lack of breasts in their order) or they can continue to fill peoples buckets the way they want them and end up with leftover crap pieces at the end, which will then go to waste (many larger companies do NOT allow employees to take extras home as it would encourage them to "accidentally" throw in too many wings into the deep fryer and have free dinner every night - sickening, but they actually WATCHED us to make sure it all went into the bin. Really really sad*)


So. I'm not saying it's right. But I am saying, there's a reason for it.



*However, I am apparently a magician and gained 15 lbs in 3 months of working there by figuring out ways to get the leftover wings home undetected, disregarding the fact that this was a fireable offence. Not a good idea to eat wings every night for dinner, folks. But you can not understand how sickened I was to throw out perfectly good food every night.

TequilaMockingBird

I've someone on the way up to me coming in the Dublin Road, guess what I just asked him to pick up for me? Clue - it comes in a bucket :o


Its YE'RE fault, all this talk of damn chicken...

Mint Sauce

although in fairness to the OPs title, some leading take aways idea of chicken are different to others, if you ever seen jamie olivers programe on how chicken is prepared in its different forms for these places you would question if it was chicken or not

:eek:

Big_Mac

Careful sueme, they mightn't have enough for you, or won't give you what you want.

I agree with you Xiney, it disgusts me that perfectly good food gets thrown out all the time. Its such a shame.....:(

Fitzo

Rarely go there, but everytime I go they seem to be out of food...


Best place for chips in the town is P.Borza's on the MCR.

Has replaced Molly's for me anyway!

TequilaMockingBird

With a name like Big Mac, I think you may have had more success elsewhere.

DenMan

As an outsider looking in that was poor treatment. I bet ya if you wrote in and complained, they might try to keep your custom. When I was living in the UK me and my mate got a two piece meal instead of the three piece we ordered. We went back to the girl and got our extra piece.

Seeing that people don't complain to headquarters enough we followed it up with a letter saying we didn't get our full quota. Looking back on it now, a little dishonest but we both got a 20 pound gift voucher to be used in your chicken outlet and also Pizza Hut (they own them both)

Big_Mac

DenMan wrote: »

As an outsider looking in that was poor treatment. I bet ya if you wrote in and complained, they might try to keep your custom. When I was living in the UK me and my mate got a two piece meal instead of the three piece we ordered. We went back to the girl and got our extra piece.

Seeing that people don't complain to headquarters enough we followed it up with a letter saying we didn't get our full quota. Looking back on it now, a little dishonest but we both got a 20 pound gift voucher to be used in your chicken outlet and also Pizza Hut (they own them both)

I see your point, but the establishment in discussion here should have its primary focus on Customer Service. if it was, they could have stopped me from walking away or even apologised. All i got was a blank stare and a look as if to say Wha? Staff that they have hired dont give a toss, and subsequently their managment mustn't either. I don't see the point in complaining. All they will do is send some vouchers for their venue and some pre written format of an apology. No one would take proper heed of my complaint (I have written complaints to other places before). As I am not in this for material gain I don't want their vouchers. I think I will just exercise my consumer rights and not go there again. People should do this more often. Talk with your wallet and maybe then they would take notice.

Xiney

The problem lies, imo, in society's regard for the people doing the jobs.

Society considers jobs in fast food the lowest of the low, with jobs in "big name" fast food the bottom of the barrel. (Think: McDonald's Burger Flipper)

With all this lack of respect for what they do, why should the workers themselves pay any heed to the quality of work they perform? It simply doesn't make much sense to take pride in something that everyone else looks down upon you for.


I had an easier time of it working at my chicken place, since it was within a grocery store so I was an employee of the grocery store on par with the deli counter and the cake icers. Additionally, the job I'd held before that was at a lettuce farm where I was certainly taught the value of work and earning one's pay. So I went in there with the attitude that no job was too small to be done right (something I hold to this day and credit to my time at the farm).

It was my first introduction to customer service though, and I learned a few valuable lessons: of course how to provide customer service, but also how to be a good customer. Good customers get good customer service.


Good customers are:
- friendly
- understanding
- reasonable (ie, if the store closes at 10 pm and you waltz in at 9:55, don't expect us to put down a 9er of chicken for you, that takes 13 minutes and besides, we cleaned out the displays at 9:30. Also, don't take it up with our managers or threaten that you will get us fired simply because you can't clog your arteries tonight.)
- don't look down on you simply because you're wearing a ridiculous uniform and earning minimum wage for the priviledge


Not everyone is built for customer service, either, and anyone can have a bad day.

Still, I learned some valuable skills at the chicken place - how to answer a telephone professionally, how to smile even when you want to kill your coworker, how to spice and spear chickens at a rate of nearly 300 per hour... (good times...)

I suppose the real tragedy is people (especially young people) who don't take every job on as a learning experience.

El Weirdo

FAST FOOD OUTLET IN "STUPID, IGNORANT STAFF" SHOCKER!:p

I'm picking up what you're puttin down, brother. Haven't set foot inside that place for about 2 years now due to their "customer service"... And the food weren't up to much either...

elshambo

Big_Mac wrote: »

Staff that they have hired dont give a toss, and subsequently their managment mustn't either.

Yer average middle manager is in it for the title only

Honestly why should the staff give a toss about selling deep fried chicken?
Would you?
It the kinda place you end up working when your badly stuck. A horrible job your in because your stuck, generally working for a t*t, is not a place most people could show pride in

Anyhu The Irish cant do subservience, its not in our nature, not with the 800 years of getting kicked around still in our make-up:D

The lad Freud said none of his theories worked on us as we as a nation have a split personality
not made for smiling at people shouting at you is it?:D

Xiney wrote: »

The problem lies, imo, in society's regard for the people doing the jobs.

Society considers jobs in fast food the lowest of the low, with jobs in "big name" fast food the bottom of the barrel. (Think: McDonald's Burger Flipper)

With all this lack of respect for what they do, why should the workers themselves pay any heed to the quality of work they perform? It simply doesn't make much sense to take pride in something that everyone else looks down upon you for.

It was my first introduction to customer service though, and I learned a few valuable lessons: of course how to provide customer service, but also how to be a good customer. Good customers get good customer service.


Good customers are:
- friendly
- understanding
- reasonable (ie, if the store closes at 10 pm and you waltz in at 9:55, don't expect us to put down a 9er of chicken for you, that takes 13 minutes and besides, we cleaned out the displays at 9:30. Also, don't take it up with our managers or threaten that you will get us fired simply because you can't clog your arteries tonight.)
- don't look down on you simply because you're wearing a ridiculous uniform and earning minimum wage for the priviledge


Not everyone is built for customer service, either, and anyone can have a bad day.

Top posts there girl!:D

This is not a dig at original poster because i dont know him from adam and im sure he was very polite and he was right to feel annoyed,
but for the most part people complaining about the standard of service aint what it once was, Or its not as good as America tend to be the rudest customers

One reason for the poorer standard of service is that
the standard of customer is nowhere near what it once was either.

The irish are awful rude customers and in shops as in life you should only get the respect you deserve!? Give respect to get respect!

I worked with some Spanish girls some years ago, they could not understand why irish staff were so rude (they had just started), about a month later , one of them turned to me and said "now we know why Irish staff are so rude"

Ive worked in shops/pubs both as staff and manager and ive had customers giving me "the customer is always right" bit, 9 times out of 10 its when they were so so wrong and they knew it!

Its all poor TV show friends coffee shop nonsence and modern life stress rubbish being dumped on some poor sod, and then people give out when the sod decides not to take it.

Xiney's point on the pricing thing makes sence, + most shops tend to have policy's with regard to only selling certain amounts to one customer when stock is low or on special offers etc
Mabye the girl didnt explain it right but it sounds sensible enough if annoying to me.

*Ask for the manager in future as it obv him/her who told the girl this
Average manager likes to hang the staff an will give you what you wanted

I dont know what the service is like up there as i wouldnt eat that crap if i was paid, Would have taken you the same time to nip into tesco and buy fillets, woulda tasted nicer too!

Btw this was written by someone who liked/likes working with the public, imagine what people who dont like the job feel like!?


+I would prefer rude service to the American option of how to treat rude customers in resturants etc, I will just say scenes from "Fight Club" and leave the rest to your imagination.

Big_Mac

Ok, you've made some good points elshambo and xiney. BUT:

There is no such thing as a crappy job in my book. If you hate your job then do someting else. Don't just stay there being miserable. Remember, you are getting paid to do something, so do it properly, and not just half do it.It doesn't matter what you do as a job, so long as you go out and get paid for an honest days toil, thats all that matters right?

I wouldn't bother asking to speak to a manager, because that is demeaning to staff, and I hear it all the time from people. When I do speak to them they are told the same thing by me as the rest of the staff. People seem to think that staff are liars and only managers tell the truth - What a load of bollox.

My main gripe was that I was just told I can't have it, with no explanation for it and that is what pissed me off. Seriously, an abriged version of what Xiney said or similar would have been a perfectly acceptable explanation. I didn't get anything like that, hence my anger.

elshambo

Big_Mac wrote: »

Ok, you've made some good points elshambo and xiney. BUT:

There is no such thing as a crappy job in my book. If you hate your job then do someting else. Don't just stay there being miserable.

I wouldn't bother asking to speak to a manager, because that is demeaning to staff, and I hear it all the time from people. When I do speak to them they are told the same thing by me as the rest of the staff. People seem to think that staff are liars and only managers tell the truth - What a load of bollox.

For some life aint that simple, kids, debts, not good at interviews, not to bright, 200 people queuing last week for a job interview in Londis in Dublin, cant get a different job etc.


Staff lie????????? Where did i say that?
I think your missing something there mate,
Its not that im saying staff lie, anything but, staff say what managers tell them to say, the party line, have no powers to change decisions, if they are saying something you dont like or is plainly stupid go to the source, the manager, he/she can change it. Yer average manager is in it for the easy ride, Most Managers dont like it up em, dont like complaints and quite often will go against what they told staff to make themselves look good and apol for the staffs actions even if staff are doing what they were told.

I HATE when im in a shop and see someone tearing into some young girl about a price or something, when asked if they want to see a manager they say "no whats the point", always the same, people like giving out but never to people in positions of "power" there is no point giving out to staff most of the time,just makes people feel big making someone else feel small!?
And they always complain that the girl wasnt smiling while being shouted at,
Customer Service aint what it used to be!

Big_Mac

elshambo wrote: »

For some life aint that simple, kids, debts, not good at interviews, not to bright, 200 people queuing last week for a job interview in Londis in Dublin, cant get a different job etc.

Seriously? Thats mad

elshambo wrote: »

Staff lie????????? Where did i say that?
I think your missing something there mate,
Its not that im saying staff lie, anything but, staff say what managers tell them to say, the party line, have no powers to change decisions, if they are saying something you dont like or is plainly stupid go to the source, the manager, he/she can change it. Yer average manager is in it for the easy ride, Most Managers dont like it up em, dont like complaints and quite often will go against what they told staff to make themselves look good and apol for the staffs actions even if staff are doing what they were told.

I never said staff lie, What iI meand was that in my experience people think that the front end staff are liars simply because they are not being told something that they want to hear. Then the manager will ususlly say the same thing

elshambo wrote: »

I HATE when im in a shop and see someone tearing into some young girl about a price or something, when asked if they want to see a manager they say "no whats the point", always the same, people like giving out but never to people in positions of "power" there is no point giving out to staff most of the time,just makes people feel big making someone else feel small!?
And they always complain that the girl wasnt smiling while being shouted at,
Customer Service aint what it used to be!

I agree, and this is why I would not bother giving the staff a load of verbal. Its not their fault, and their manager wouldn't give a toss. So theirs no pont. The only way I see to solve it is to exercise my voice with my feet (and wallet)

It was the way that the staff addressed me that annoyed me. They couldn't care less so I didn't see the point of wasting my time. Thought I'd post it here so other people can make hear about what happened

TequilaMockingBird

I'm with Big Mac. It was crazy.

They had the product for sale, and wouldn't sell it to him.
It doesn't matter what he was buying, they are selling it and had it on display and wouldn't give it to him.

They will have mountains of freezers full of the stuff (it ain't fresh from the farm), they sell him the product, go to freezer, cook more. Next customer waits 20 minutes.

Its not hard.

Then throw in a bit of good old fashioned Irish Customer Service, and BINGO, another furious customer.

There we have the Colonals Secret Recipe.

frag420

its not chicken!!!!!!!

<snip>

Big_Mac

frag420 wrote: »

its not chicken!!!!!!!

Careful there newbie, you're dragging up an old thread there. Plus, who said it was ? I never said that.....;)

frag420

was just getting some practice in on some old threads before i unleash my own soon.................very soon

takola

Frag, you may want to have a look at the charter before you post.

Dragging up old threads just to post something silly isn't helpful at all.

Locked.