I was at the McDonalds at 7916 Montgomery Road, Cincinnati OH last night, and with my food order, I requested a small cup of water for myself and my dining companion. I was informed that water costs 25 cents.
I was very disappointed. Not only is the assumption that water is generally free at restaurants, but there was no sign indicating water cost money, nor was it on the posted menu. Additionally, the previous two times I had been recently to this same McDonalds (both within the past week), I was not charged for water.
It is certainly your prerogative to charge whatever you want for water or anything else, but I would just ask that if you are going to charge for water (again, something that is generally free in most restaurants), that you a) put it on the menu or indicate what it costs with a sign of some sort and b) enforce it consistently
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Maybe they'll give you a coupon for a cup of free water. :)
I got an automated response which was not interesting - in fact it was pretty annoying that they did not appear to read my point, then I got a further response from someone who said
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I am following up from your email complaint on 07/15/11. As the customer service representative I would like to apologize for your unsatisfactory visit to our Kenwood restaurant. It's always unfortunate when we disappoint a customer.
I understand that you were charged for a cup of water and I would like to take a moment to explain our reasons. With consumer's changing lifestyles, many people prefer water to soda and we do sell bottled water, but it doesn't sell, people just want a cup of water. The water that we serve is not tap water, it is filtered through our beverage system just like any soda that you would purchase and that beverage system is extremely expensive. We began noticing a huge increase in the amount of water requests (200-300 per day) and with the cup, lid, straw, ice and filtered water we decided that we needed to combat the cost of the maintenance for our beverage system.
You can also check with the front counter when placing your order to see if they have any small courtesy cups available at no charge instead of receiving our regular cup of water for .25 cents
I appreciate your comments and concerns as customer feedback helps me to know about areas of our operations that need improving.
My response
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Thank you for your response. I had gotten an earlier response that was much more automated and much less satisfying. I had written it off so I was glad to see a further response from you, clarifying things.
However, I guess I was not as clear as I intended to be in my initial email. Allow me to clarify.
I do not have a problem with McDonalds charging for water. Although as I pointed out, most restaurants do not charge for water, I fully accept that it is your right to charge if you feel you must do so, whether to combat rising costs or for whatever reason.
What was frustrating for me is first, that nowhere on the menu or anywhere in the store does it indicate that McDonalds will charge for water, and if so, how much it costs. If space on the actual menu is at a premium, even a sign taped to the register would be enough. But again, since most restaurants do not charge for water, without any indication to the contrary, one is left to assume that water will be provided with no charge.
Secondly, the policy appears to be enforced inconsistently. As I mentioned, I had visited the same store two previous times within the past week and ordered water and was not charged. Again, I respect your right to charge for it, but if you are going to charge for it, it would be much less frustrating if I was either charged or not charged consistently on each visit.
Again, thank you for your time
It's simple, they make a nice margin on drinks... start stiffing the waiters and waitresses. ..with a note
It's simple, they make a nice margin on drinks... start stiffing the waiters and waitresses. ..with a note
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