Do you complain in restaurants?

OhMeOhMy

Was in a restaurant in Limerick for lunch and there's this couple sitting across from me. The woman is bitching about the food saying that the cheese on top of the cottage pie is mank and the sauce is really heavy.

From what I could gather, restaurant had been recently taken over by new management and the manageress came down and was chatting to the couple who it seemed that she knew. She asked how the food was and the couple were all smiles praising the food.

What do you do? If something isn't up to your expectations do you send it back?

DublinWriter

The one and only time I was in Patrick Guilbauds I complained to one of our many waiters (?) about an entreè that consisted of seafood hard purée, but made to look like a miniature pint of Guinness.

It tasted indescribably bad, maybe I just don't have a palette sophisticated enough to appreciate the unique taste combination of brine and liquorice.

Anyway, the water looked like I had just propositioned him to commit an act of buggery in the gents. He just wasn't programmed for such a customer reaction in the high cuisine temple of Guilbaud.

Several pints later we ended up in Eddie Rockets.

If there's something genuinely wrong, like the time a friend found a bolt (an actual metal bolt) in her meal at the Bad Ass Cafe, then yeah I'll say something.

But if it just hasn't met my "expectations", of course not.

It really bugs me when people get what they paid for but think they have the right to complain that it's not how mama made it.

The Scientician

I have done once or twice. You gotta weigh up your fear that they'll go make you something else and do something manky to it. Some managers in restaurants are assholes. This guy was defending the mouldy bread he gave us with our dinner one time in a pub/restaurant, "well it's really warm in the kitchen!" I don't give a feck, just give me bread without mould on it or get out of the restaurant business.

3hn2givr7mx1sc

"..you make me cry, you're such a good-lookin' woooomaan."

Blondini

It's a fact that they will either :
piss/****/snot/buttfloss/****/knob-polish/flaps-freshen/armpit-wipe
on your replacement dish if you complain.

Forest Master

I'll complain if I'm not happy with something - but I can never go back again, because I'll be "that guy".

Dangerous Man

Yeah - I'll complain. Three reasons: (1) I'm paying for this and (2) if they care enough, they'll fix the problem and (3) if they really care, they'll appreciate that someone brought up the problem to begin with.

mlumley

My wife and I went for a meal and she ordered fillet steak. Wend she was eating it she came accross a piece of grissel :eek:. Now, from working in hotel kitchens I know fillet doesnt have grissel. We complaind, got a fresh meal, with no grissel, and a pint for me and a glass of wine for her. It was arround the time of the Brazilian import of cr*p meat was going on. Im MHO, it was not fillet. They corrected it, fair play. Never went there again.

bnt

I probably would if there was something obviously wrong, but it hasn't happened to me yet. I have had the opposite experience: ordered the chef's speciality without knowing it, complimented it, and had the chef come out to chat about it.

OhMeOhMy

That reminds me of a time myself and my mum were out for dinner and she ordered cod. Food came and she was convinced it was not cod she was given. Management refuted this.
Mum took a piece of the fish and brought it to the fish monger to analyse and low and behold....it's yer cheap ol' coley. Mum went back in demanding an apology and got it!
What a legend

Also can't stand when restaurants advertise their desserts as home made when it comes and has clearly been bought in. Have enough experience of dishing desserts onto plates to feed the throngs to know the difference!

mikemac

mlumley wrote: »

It was arround the time of the Brazilian import of cr*p meat was going on. Im MHO, it was not fillet. They corrected it, fair play. Never went there again.

Places that import Brazilian beef and don't advertise that or pass it off as Irish need to be named.

Do you want to name it?

My name is URL

I just mutter incessantly and nod my head when the waitress asks if everything is okay

jdooley28

Any time anyone has ever complaimed and got me to bring the food back to the kitchen no chef/waiter/manager has ever spat/wiped/throw on the floor any meal. they mite not b happy but I really don't think anything will happen to your food if you send it back, its just a myth

Storminateacup

I will if
- Its cold.
- Theres something in it that shouldn't be in it. (Hairs, ect)

I hate waiters/waitresses who hover over your table, waiting for you to swallow the last bite before grabbing the plates.

I have said something before when my steak was not done as I ordered - it was still nice and I still ate it, so I just mentioned it as an fyi to the waiter when he was taking the dishes. The manager still came over to apologise and took drinks off the bill, which I wasn't expecting or looking for.

mikemac

Blondini wrote: »

It's a fact that they will either :
piss/****/snot/buttfloss/****/knob-polish/flaps-freshen/armpit-wipe
on your replacement dish if you complain.

Absolute lies.

In a kitchen the head chef will have other chefs watching and they take their reputation seriously. Even in a pub with one chef there the kitchen porter will be watching

Enough of your urban myths.
Watch less TV and go work in a kitchen

bluewolf wrote: »

I have said something before when my steak was not done as I ordered - it was still nice and I still ate it, so I just mentioned it as an fyi to the waiter when he was taking the dishes. The manager still came over to apologise and took drinks off the bill, which I wasn't expecting or looking for.

Fairly standard realy.
They know that while Irish people might not complain on the night, they'll badmouth the place to family and friends.
To keep you and your husband happy, two drinks was nothing and worth every cent if you'll recommend to family and friends

feelingstressed

feelingstressed wrote: »

Fairly standard realy.
They know that while Irish people might not complain on the night, they'll badmouth the place to family and friends.
To keep you and your husband happy, two drinks was nothing

My husband?? :D

I did feel a bit guilty using the diner card after that :pac::pac:

OPENROAD

Bought a latte the other day, asked for it extra hot, took a sip from it and it was not extra hot, brought it back and very politely asked for another one, no problem.

As for restaurants, yes I would, but again I would do it as politely as possible and I would tend to make the initial complaint to the manager rather than waiting staff.

Ruu_Old

I used to run a hotel in Torquay, the amount of complaints I've had to deal with was absurd! :mad: Nothings ever good enough!

OhMeOhMy

Ruu wrote: »

I used to run a hotel in Torquay, the amount of complaints I've had to deal with was absurd! :mad: Nothings ever good enough!

Place musta been sh*te!

mikemac

bluewolf wrote: »

My husband?? :D

I did feel a bit guilty using the diner card after that :pac::pac:

About time you settled down.
So Bluewolf, when are you going to give us a day out?

D1stant

I sent back 3 steaks in one place. The family were sitting there for an hour waiting for me to get one I approved of. I asked medium rare and they were all way over cooked. 'Strange they said as our head chef is working tonight' I even offered instructions on how to cook it

I hardly ever order steak, but I mean if a place is going to charge you a 20 quid premium for 2 minutes of cooking the meat, then they better a) serve good quality meat and b) cook as ordered

Anyway... The 4th one was really tasty - must have been all the jizz on it :rolleyes:

Im actually not a prick. Honest

feelingstressed

feelingstressed wrote: »

About time you settled down.
So Bluewolf, when are you going to give us a day out?

You can have a day out any time you like, im not stopping you!!

i71jskz5xu42pb

OhMeOhMy wrote: »

Place musta been sh*te!

Please! Try to understand before one of us dies.

nearyj

If there's a problem, most certainly though thankfully it has been a rare occurance. The odd time a steak hasn't been cooked as requested; another time the side salad came with a slug. A sign that it was fresh

These things happen, human error. I would be discreet. I definitely won't be the schmuck who complains privately and then says everything is fine when asked by the waiter.

I've the same mentality when in a pub. If I get a bad pint, it's going back.

dark crystal

Ruu wrote: »

I used to run a hotel in Torquay, the amount of complaints I've had to deal with was absurd! :mad: Nothings ever good enough!

I once ate in a hotel restaurant in Torquay - the manager was some mentaller with a bandage on his head, raving about 'The Germans'. He was also quite sadistic towards his staff.

Never went back.

OPENROAD

Ruu wrote: »

I used to run a hotel in Torquay, the amount of complaints I've had to deal with was absurd! :mad: Nothings ever good enough!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vj9TRVZo5Nc

magentas

D1stant wrote: »

I sent back 3 steaks in one place. The family were sitting there for an hour waiting for me to get one I approved of. I asked medium rare and they were all way over cooked. 'Strange they said as our head chef is working tonight' I even offered instructions on how to cook it

I hardly ever order steak, but I mean if a place is going to charge you a 20 quid premium for 2 minutes of cooking the meat, then they better a) serve good quality meat and b) cook as ordered

Anyway... The 4th one was really tasty - must have been all the jizz on it :rolleyes:

Im actually not a prick. Honest

Really?!:D

D1stant

magentas wrote: »

Really?!:D

Nah. I am really

Misticles

I only complain if:

They mess up the order
Foods cold (even in Mc Donalds) :P
Dosn't taste right - for example, tastes like its gone off! easily detected when eating something with Dairy.

Lando Griffin

Was in a pub / restraunt in Clare with herself, and the place was half empty.
Anyway we sat down and I ordered Steak and she ordered a breast of chicken in pasta dish.
The couple with 2 children in the row behind ordered after us and the fun started.
An American couple came in and ordered sea food chowder, to which the barman promptly got and placed in front, and proceeded to talk out loud cursing and swearing to his local friends.
The American couple then got his attention after a few minutes and asked for some spoons to eat the chowder. The barman plonked 2 spoons in front of them and exclaimed” now 2 shovels for ye” and proceeded back to his gossiping duties with the locals.
A minute later the American couple told him that the chowder was cold, to which he replied “sure why wouldn’t it when ye were looking at it for ages!” Couple asked him to speak to the manager which he replied, I’m the bar manager and have nothing to do with the grub, the restraunt manager is not in today. The couple got up and left.
A half or hour or so later food appeared to the table behind, and I heard the father saying, we also ordered a Steak and the fish pie and another pizza. The waitress in broken English said she will check and after a few minutes reappeared from outside with smoke coming out her mouth and walked past the couple. They grabbed her attention and asked about the food to which she replied “oh I forgot to ask!” She went off and returned again and said she mustn’t have written the order and they would have to wait 20 minutes or so.
Another 15 or so minutes went by and a the waitress appeared with the Chicken dish for the missus, I enquired about my steak and she told me that “there was a mix up in the kitchen and it would be here in a few minutes”
My OH cut the chicken in half and it was pink raw!
We called the waitress and loudly explained we wanted the steak rare and the chicken cooked she took the dish and said she would get it cooked proper.
We got up and left hungry followed by the other couple and their children.

Wolfe Tone

I always complain, Im paying I want it to be nice and the way I want it.

Teyla Emmagan

DublinWriter wrote: »

The one and only time I was in Patrick Guilbauds I complained to one of our many waiters (?) about an entreè that consisted of seafood hard purée, but made to look like a miniature pint of Guinness.

It tasted indescribably bad, maybe I just don't have a palette sophisticated enough to appreciate the unique taste combination of brine and liquorice.

Anyway, the water looked like I had just propositioned him to commit an act of buggery in the gents. He just wasn't programmed for such a customer reaction in the high cuisine temple of Guilbaud.

Several pints later we ended up in Eddie Rockets.

The whole culinary experience was clearly wasted on you then.

gent9662

I normally complain at the very end and give a full summary of exactly what was wrong.

That's half the problem with people, they are so afraid to open their mouths.

I had a really bad battle with a restaurant owner over a beef dinner. Got to stage that he ate a piece of my meat and said there was nothing wrong with it. I didn't eat all of it and he insisted on me paying for taking two bites out of it. He threatened to call the Guards to which I said go right ahead. It was embarrassing, but I would not give in to him. The wife was mortified and the whole restaurant was looking at me! In the end I left after paying for the rest of the food. Later that week I called the environmental health on him and complained that he had picked up my dinner and ate it, and that the toilets were digusting! They checked it out.

Misticles

Steak is one of the main things I would complain about.

Out a few weeks ago, I ordered fillet (medium cooked) and got sirloin. The waitress said I had ordered sirloin but I hadnt!

So I got the fillet and it was amazing! everyone at the table got a free drink for the mix up

onlyrocknroll

true-or-false wrote: »

If there's something genuinely wrong, like the time a friend found a bolt (an actual metal bolt) in her meal at the Bad Ass Cafe, then yeah I'll say something.

But if it just hasn't met my "expectations", of course not.

It really bugs me when people get what they paid for but think they have the right to complain that it's not how mama made it.

For the life of me I can't understand why Irish people think that it's wrong or rude to complain in a restaurant. Eating out is expensive here and if you're parting with money there nothing wrong with expecting well cooked food

I used to work in a restaurant, and I've served people some dreadful food for reasonable high prices. In almost any country it's not acceptable to charge someone E25+ for a main course with cod thats almost grey, or vegetables boiled in the morning and microwaved to order. Meat should be tender. Bread should not be stale. Pasta should be al dente. If it's not, complain.

If a restaurant can't source fresh prawns, then they they should just take prawns off the menu! Frozen ones are extremely cheap in Tescos and Lidl, and not really good enough to pay restaurant prices for. It's practically a form of theft to charge E20 for a seafood pasta and serve about E1.50 worth of food on the plate.

Azureus

I complain politely if Im not happy with something that Ive ordered. The boyfriend hates that I do it, and I hate that he will moan about something then smile and say it was lovely when asked by waiting staff. I remember once in particular when he got a steak that was grey, it looked disgusting and he refused to eat it after one bite because apparently the texture was totally off aswell, but when the waiter asked was everything okay because he had hardly touched it, he turned around and said 'yes it was fine, i just filled up on bread' WTF!

I remember a waitress getting really bitchy with me once because I noticed mushrooms in my lasagne (after specifically asking was there any in it and she saying no). There they were, full button mushrooms all over the place. Now I know I could pick them out, but it just annoyed me that I had asked so I wanted a replacement order and she caused a big scene saying I had eaten from it (two bites) so I would be charged for both if I wanted a new meal. Queue the manager being brought in and being really apologetic and saying of course I didnt have to pay for both. Didnt get any free drink or anything though, and i had to wait 20 minutes for the replacement meal to come out, and my friend had already finished her meal by the time I was starting mine. Didnt go back there.

Another time I found a piece of plastic in my food. When I pointed it out to the waiter, who was also the manager of a reastaurant we would go to regularly, he was shocked and took it away/got me a new dish as quick as he could. He then came back a few minutes later with a free bottle of wine, explainin that it was actually a bit of cooker hob that had broken off and that he was terribly sorry etc. I admired his honesty instead of some cock and bull story and he gave us free drinks all night. Brilliant. Its all about how staff/restaurants handle complaints that make it either a big dealor a non issue.

evercloserunion

Just to mention, I've worked in several different food places as have many of my friends, and this idea that they will do something manky to your food if you complain is completely false, in my experience at least. I don't know whether it is actually common in America or completely fabricated for TV, but in my experience at least I've never heard of it happening. Workers might bitch the back off you but that's about it.

walshb

I probably wouldn't complain until the end, as I wouldn't want the food sent back and then something to happen to it:o

Alkos, if I complained, I wouldn't go back anytime soon in case they remembered me.

chicken fingers

Do the Irish thing.
Eat it and bitch during your meal about the food.
Then when finished and you see the bill try to complain.
If you have a problem, you should be complaining straight away to the manager, not the monkeys.
I've walked out of places for poor service or serving us incorrect meals etc.

kylith

I can only ever remember sending 2 things back.

1 was a Yorkshire pudding that had the consistancy of a tractor tyre, the waitress had the cheek to tell me that that's what it was supposed to be like.

The other time was a piece of fish; after waiting about 20 minutes it arrived raw. I was well hacked off because I was on my lunch hour and had had to walk to the cafe so I didn't have time to wait for a replacement meal, I had to go to the chippy on my way back to work.

Frank Black

Yes you should complain if quality of a meal is not up to scratch but some people are d;cks.

Remember having a meal with a group of friends and some friends of friends.
One of the guys ordered a steak medium rare but when it arrived he cut into and claimed it was medium as opposed to medium rare.
Now to be honest looking at the steak I would have said it was borderline between the two.
But he insisted it was taken back and a new one cooked - the thing was, fair enough if your steak is underdone to your liking they take it back and fry it up a bit more, but they had to cook a new steak for this guy.
He seemed like a bit of a knob and I secretly hoped the staff did something to his replacement steak.

Aoifey!

I rarely complain about food in a restaurant. The only time I remember complaining was when I found ants in my drink. The owner gave me and my sister free desert each.

Mostly if I don't enjoy the food or think there's something wrong with it then I just don't go back there again, or if I do I order something different.

Pinklady11

I remember being in a pub for sunday dinner. When they brought out our meals they looked liked they'd scraped the leftovers from other plates onto ours...it was just a pile of mush and stone cold. We sent all the food back and left. Waitress was a bit snotty about it. Never went there again.

Also just a few weeks ago myself and my sister went to our local cafe for lunch. We ordered BLT toasted sambos. When they brought them out, i took a bite and realised they put garlic butter on it. Now I like garlic but not on a BLT sambo. I ate it anyway but my sister can't stomach garlic and refused to eat it. I kept telling her to send it back but she was afraid they'd do something to it. So I called the waitress over and explained about the garlic. Even she looked confused about why it was on there. Anyway she brought out a replacement and a side of chips for free.

Plazaman

I particularly enjoyed sitting at a table beside these 6 people who looked like a group of businessmen and women. The alpha shedog stood out straight away as she was brash and loud and out to impress.

She ordered a Blue Steak (for those not in the know its flash fried for seconds to brown the outside but raw in the middle). When it came out she took the waiter out with abuse about it being undercooked - cue going back to the kitchen - it came out again and she demanded the manager saying it was still undercooked. He apologised brought it back. On the third occasion of it coming out it was acceptable but she abused the poor waiter again muttering something about the chef should learn to cook properly.

2 minutes later enter this 6ft, 20 stone bruiser of a head chef who in a unidentified accent says something along the lines of "Madame next time you want me to cuk the sheet out of you steak, have decency to ask for medium to well done. You would not know what a blue steak is if it sat on you and sweeveled". And off he goes.

Racous laughter from everyone sitting at tables around her including her buddies, the manager and waiters. Not another word was spoken by alpha shedog.

ibarelycare

I am definitely not one to sit back and take something if it's bad. It embarrasses my friends sometimes but I don't care, I'm paying enough for it!

I used to go out with a guy who was allergic to garlic, onions, shallots, etc and he emphasised it SO much to waiters but it was amazing how often food came out with onions and garlic. Happened once in a Chinese and we sent it back and the manager got wind and came out very apologetic and gave us his replacement meal for free, along with a free bottle of wine. Most of the time you won't get that kind of treatment though.

Worst of all was once when we were in a hotel for a weekend, we ate in the restaurant bar on the first night and my ex ordered a burger. He asked were there any onions in the burger and the waitress went to the kitchen to check and came back and said that they could do it with no onions, and he told her that was fine because he was allergic. When the burger came out, he bit into it and there were onions in it! When we called her over to complain she said "Oh I thought you just didn't want onions ON the burger!" Didn't get as much as an apology that time, she just took the burger back and he ended up ordering something else.