Award wining restaurant - complaint

meatmonger said:
to simply sever a plate of food in front of someone does not require or deserve a tip. its a process like flying on a plane, or buying a newspaper in a shop or a bus trip. If you have special requests / are given extra help in sorting your meal, having wine/water poured for you just at the right time, are having your kids meal that you brought in with you heated up, are being given great recommendations on dishes / wines that you woulkd have missed otherwise, then it stops being just a process (like a KP simply processes dirty pots etc). At this point the person deserves a tip, they have gone beyonf the process.
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I agree.
 
I also had a bad experience in an award winning seriously expensive restaurant. I found a huge hair on my main course. I know these things can happen, but at those prices, it should not have left the kitchen like that. They apologised, (I was brought into the kitchen and the team of chefs were actually made apologise lined up like naughtly schoolboys), which I also found a bit odd and embarressing, but did not take anything off the bill, which was quite substantial. I was served my main course when everybody else was long finished and getting their desert and I did not enjoy it and felt I had to wolf it down to "catch up". I ended up leaving half it. We were not even offered a complimentary drink. I was a guest at a Birthday dinner, so did not want to cause a fuss and put a damper on the night for everybody else.
 
mercman said:
How can you state that service charge is not at the discretion of the customer. One goes to a restaurant for food, not to give tips. I always used to give a tip and in the last fortnight I have stopped. Unless the service is exemplary they can get stuffed. Too many stories of the staff not getting the service charge so I have no hard feelings. If good, leave them cash otherwise and things might improve. Nobody is ever thanked for a tip so they just might remember you next time you go in for leaving nothing. The way things are restaurants should be happy with your custom.
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meatmonger said:
by law, even if this is written on the door / menu or anywhere else, you can ask for service charge to be removed at any stage. it is suggestive, not compulsory. that is a fact of law and your right. use it.

to simply sever a plate of food in front of someone does not require or deserve a tip. its a process like flying on a plane, or buying a newspaper in a shop or a bus trip. If you have special requests / are given extra help in sorting your meal, having wine/water poured for you just at the right time, are having your kids meal that you brought in with you heated up, are being given great recommendations on dishes / wines that you woulkd have missed otherwise, then it stops being just a process (like a KP simply processes dirty pots etc). At this point the person deserves a tip, they have gone beyonf the process.
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that does not sound right to me. it is a % charge for service on the bill amount, i dont know how that can be discretionary.
 
David_Dublin said:
that does not sound right to me. it is a % charge for service on the bill amount, i dont know how that can be discretionary.
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"I am not happy with the service because of x,y,z, please remove the service charge"

does that sound more discretionary for you? Its your right to have it removed.
 
MandaC said:
I found a huge hair on my main course.

They apologised.

I was served my main course when everybody else was long finished and getting their desert and I did not enjoy it and felt I had to wolf it down to "catch up". I ended up leaving half it
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Does that mean they took the meal away, you agreed they would cook it again, and they did?
 
meatmonger said:
Does that mean they took the meal away, you agreed they would cook it again, and they did?
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Did anyone ever hear of the 'Cottage Cheese Treatment' ??? I would never ever send food back to be recooked or accept an alternative. Best way of voting for a restaurant is never return.
 
meatmonger said:
Does that mean they took the meal away, you agreed they would cook it again, and they did?
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I did not agree to anything. My appetite was gone after the hair. I did not even order desert. As I said, I was a guest at somebody's Birthday party and rather than rock the boat for the person and on the night, I kept a low profile and made the decision to play this one down, which is totally unlike me. Have not returned to that Restaurant. I dont feel the price matched the standard. For me anyway. Between wine/coffee/the whole shebang, the spend worked out at €150-€180 per head, if not more. Expensive for a hairy sea bass.

My point is, like the OP, I felt they did not handle it correctly. The stance was, same as OP, it wont happen again. It hasnt because I havent been back. And have no intention of going. Also, I was not paying the bill, so it would have been rude to interfere at that point. I did see the bill afterwards and the charge was made.

I accept mistakes happen. Kitchens have off days. However, if you are spending €200 per person, it is not enough to say, sorry about that, it wont happen again. Agree with Mercman, vote with your feet.
 
No, in fairness, there was no such thing here as Cottage Cheese treatment. The second main was fine. The thought of the hairy sea bass had turned my stomach (temporarily) I might add. Food is their business and they should have realised that. My complaint is about how it was handled. Being whisked into the kitchen to scold a team of chefs was downright weird. Places that charge at that level should know how to deal with situations like this.

For a Michelin Starred Restaurant, it was a major mistake. Not good enough to say next time it will be better.
 
Smashbox said:
Exactly what you are thinking. I have heard horror stories of extra 'added' ingredients.
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And me too from somebody that was working in a kitchen when the Cottage Cheese treatment was provided. If you could think of the most disgusting things that could be done, well it happens If you knew what happens in kitchens you would never eat out again. And before this whole thing gets stuffed down my throat, it happens and let no one tell me not here or there or this or that.

It is very simple, if you purchased an article and it was broken, damaged etc, you would simply bring it back and ask for a refund or exchange. Restaurants feel they are above the law and the more expensive they are the least response or customer satisfaction they will offer. It's your money and don't forget that.
 
mercman said:
If you knew what happens in kitchens you would never eat out again.
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they are all members of a middle eastern terrorist organisation as well. chefing is just tying them over until the jihad.

PS. to above post. if a kitchen goes off and makes you another dish, you must have agreed to it. if that has been presented perfectly, you must pay. lining up the terrorsits to apologise is fairly mental. indeed vote with feet. and name and shame
 
meatmonger said:
"I am not happy with the service because of x,y,z, please remove the service charge"

does that sound more discretionary for you? Its your right to have it removed.
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You have reliably informed that in law it is your right to have a service charge removed. I just said that it did not sound right to me. If the menu states that there is a service charge applied of x% to the bill, then it sounds to me like some sort of legal contract. Are you a solicitor/barrister? Are you sure about this?
 
David_Dublin said:
You have reliably informed that in law it is your right to have a service charge removed. I just said that it did not sound right to me. If the menu states that there is a service charge applied of x% to the bill, then it sounds to me like some sort of legal contract. Are you a solicitor/barrister? Are you sure about this?
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i work in this area. i am sure.
 
MandaC said:
My complaint is about how it was handled. Being whisked into the kitchen to scold a team of chefs was downright weird. Places that charge at that level should know how to deal with situations like this.

For a Michelin Starred Restaurant, it was a major mistake. Not good enough to say next time it will be better.
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I think for this story to have any credibility you need to name the restaurant. So name the michelin star restaurant that lines its chefs up to be told off.

after all they charged you 180 euro, so....
 
Tipping should be discretionary. If the service is bad I don't tip or I will leave a 1 cent coin as a protest. I would certainly not want to patronise an establishment that adds on what they consider to be an appropriate tip regardless.

Vote with your feet.
 
bond-007 said:
Tipping should be discretionary. If the service is bad I don't tip or I will leave a 1 cent coin as a protest. I would certainly not want to patronise an establishment that adds on what they consider to be an appropriate tip regardless.

Vote with your feet.
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Tipping is discretionary. A service charge is not a tip.
 
A service charge is a set amount outlined on the menu, it is a % amount applied to the total value of the bill and appears on the bill and contributes to the total of the bill.

The customer does not decide what the rate is. Meatmonger would have us believe that the customer is entitled to have it removed if they so wish, ie effectively that whether you pay it or not is discretionary.

A tip is the amount you decide to pay. It is entirely discretionary, and the amount you tip is discretionary too.
 
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