Cafe service / frozen cakes

allthingsgreat

I was wondering if i should write a letter to the head office/management of a company to inform them of a bad experience I had recently at a well-known cafe on Grafton Street, Dublin.

I went in with a friend and ordered a coffee and a hot chocolate (marked on the menu as "hot chocolate with marshmallows on side") but I was curious about the white coffee option I might have liked to order for afterward so I asked the waitress prior to ordering whether the milk was condensed milk or if it was sweetened by anything (as the wording stated "espresso with creamy sweet milk" as the description of the white coffee) The waitress didn't understand and made a very angry face, so I ordered hot chocolate with marshmallows. Our drinks eventually arrived but were not what we had ordered. We didn't complain at the time.

We ordered two cakes also, after asking whether or not they were available. They arrived frozen. It doesn't take a chef to see what these cakes were fresh from the freezer, and not "fresh daily from our bakery" as the menu implied. These were sponge cakes with icing. We were given forks and both of them got stuck in the sponge. A couple seated next to us who had just given their order subsequently got up and left after overhearing and seeing what we got (as well as the service), commenting to us that they were afraid of what their chicken would arrive like.

The manager I spoke to apologized, but I'd like to know if I ought to write a letter offering my experience? (I don't look for compensation nor do I want free things)

Diddler1977

allthingsgreat wrote: »

I was wondering if i should write a letter to the head office/management of a company to inform them of a bad experience I had recently at a well-known cafe on Grafton Street, Dublin.

I went in with a friend and ordered a coffee and a hot chocolate (marked on the menu as "hot chocolate with marshmallows on side") but I was curious about the white coffee option I might have liked to order for afterward so I asked the waitress prior to ordering whether the milk was condensed milk or if it was sweetened by anything (as the wording stated "espresso with creamy sweet milk" as the description of the white coffee) The waitress didn't understand and made a very angry face, so I ordered hot chocolate with marshmallows. Our drinks eventually arrived but were not what we had ordered. We didn't complain at the time.

We ordered two cakes also, after asking whether or not they were available. They arrived frozen. It doesn't take a chef to see what these cakes were fresh from the freezer, and not "fresh daily from our bakery" as the menu implied. These were sponge cakes with icing. We were given forks and both of them got stuck in the sponge. A couple seated next to us who had just given their order subsequently got up and left after overhearing and seeing what we got (as well as the service), commenting to us that they were afraid of what their chicken would arrive like.

The manager I spoke to apologized, but I'd like to know if I ought to write a letter offering my experience? (I don't look for compensation nor do I want free things)

Yes I would write a letter outlining what occurred.

Management (or business owners) need to know what is going on in their business in order to change.

P. Breathnach

allthingsgreat wrote: »

... The manager I spoke to apologized, but I'd like to know if I ought to write a letter offering my experience? (I don't look for compensation nor do I want free things)

Please do. It may improve the consumer experience for other customers. While you say you don't want anything for yourself, I would think poorly of them if they did not do something for you -- perhaps give you a voucher for coffee and cake which might be better next time you go in.

91011

Companies love complaints from people like the OP.

Decent, well worded, no hype or crap, just a overview about poor service and mis described goods.

Without genuine feedback like this companies can be blind to what happens on the shop floor and therefore unable to correct a problem properly.

Beanstalk

The exact same happened me before. I ordered a muffin from a well known cafe chain and the centre was frozen solid. I simply told the waitress and she took it back and gave me a refund.

Unfortunately its affected my judgement though, I've never order muffins or cakes from coffee shops since.

Please write the letter, it will benefit other customers in the future too.

wmpdd3

I agree, every where has defrosted pastries, they are horrible, especially danishes which seem to take 2 days to thaw out, may as well go to the supermarket. Most places don't advertise them as home baked or freshly baked but is they do I would bring it to their attention.

I don't get the creamy sweet milk either, presume it's just steamed milk.

slimjimmc

Sweet milk is just ordinary milk, the same stuff you pour on your cornflakes or your coffee. It's described as 'sweet' to differentiate it from soured milk and butter milk.