Another guest complaint
======
To whom it may concern:
I have enjoyed visiting the Quiznos restaurant near my place of work for over three years now. At my peak I visited the restaurant 3-4 times per week. I enjoy Quiznos primarily for the level of quality in your toasted subs. Even though there are closer and cheaper dining options to my workplace I felt visiting Quiznos was worth the time and expense. That is until my visit on Tuesday, August 30th.
I'd first like to say that this franchise used to be one of the best run counter-service restaurants I had ever visited. A man and his son ran the dinner and lunch shift, respectively, and were excellent hands-on managers. I don't know if the owners sold the store or simply stopped running things day to day, but quality and service have gone drastically down hill.
In general, there have been three large areas of regression. First customer service is simply less friendly, less fast, and less welcoming than before. I used to be recognized when entering and wished a good day when leaving, no longer. The trash cans now overflow forcing trash onto the ground, which was previously unthinkable. The employees, perhaps suffering from high turnover, don't know the menu well. I often have to correct them about what sauces or toppings go on a certain sub, even featured items being advertised in the restaurant!
Despite these issues I continued to frequent my local store, partially though nostalgia, and partially because despite the service the subs themselves were still delicious. Sadly my most recent sub order was far from what I expected...
I entered the store as the only customer, and ordered my usual Bourbon Grilled Steak sub (I know the sub as a the Black Angus Steak and the old staff would prepare it when that name was requested). The sandwich maker grabbed the steak packets, but rather than placing them in boiling broth to heat them she walked them out of site into the back of the restaurant. I noticed the water/hot plate area was missing and assumed it was being refilled or similar, something that I've encountered once or twice, and while I don't terribly enjoy my sub being partially made out of site, I did not think it was worth a comment. What did provoke a comment and a sudden exit was when the employee returned, placed my meat in a small soup container, and placed both IN THE MICROWAVE. I asked her if she was microwaving my sub filling and she confirmed she was. I told her I wasn't interested in a microwaved sub and departed.
To be perfectly frank Quiznos subs are supposed to deliver premium quality, and they charge a usually justifiable premium price. I am shocked and appalled Quiznos has a policy to ever microwave meat, especially without giving the customer the option to pick a different sub instead. If your Arlington, VA based store wishes to maintain its premium image I recommend it not engage in practices more fitting for the local McDonalds.
Thank you for reading my feedback.
Showing posts with label restaurant. Show all posts
Showing posts with label restaurant. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Popeye's Chicken
Guest Complaint!!
====
To whom it may concern:
I enjoy visiting Popeye's restaurants for the combination of good food and convenient hours even when I have to work or attend class late. Even though there are closer and cheaper dining options to my home I felt visiting Popeye's was worth the time and expense. That is until my visit on Sunday, August 28th.
Two positive points: the person on phone when I called to check hours was nice enough, and mash potatoes were tasty and fresh. Everything else went badly wrong, and I will not be returning.
Upon entering at 10:20pm nearly half the tables were occupied with employee papers, books, and laptops. Customer service was not friendly and I was generally served in silence. My chicken was cold. Not "not hot enough," but literally room temperature. I actually held a piece to my cheek and verified it was no warmer than the air and much colder than my own hand. Finally, upon trying to leave I had to unlock the door after being locked inside the restaurant...at 10:40pm, 20 full minutes before scheduled closing. Needless to say I didn't get a refill of iced tea, as the container was long gone.
If your store has no interest in keeping to their posted hours nor cooking fresh food a full 40 minutes before closing I suggest they alter their hours accordingly.
Thank you for reading my feedback.
Best,
====
To whom it may concern:
I enjoy visiting Popeye's restaurants for the combination of good food and convenient hours even when I have to work or attend class late. Even though there are closer and cheaper dining options to my home I felt visiting Popeye's was worth the time and expense. That is until my visit on Sunday, August 28th.
Two positive points: the person on phone when I called to check hours was nice enough, and mash potatoes were tasty and fresh. Everything else went badly wrong, and I will not be returning.
Upon entering at 10:20pm nearly half the tables were occupied with employee papers, books, and laptops. Customer service was not friendly and I was generally served in silence. My chicken was cold. Not "not hot enough," but literally room temperature. I actually held a piece to my cheek and verified it was no warmer than the air and much colder than my own hand. Finally, upon trying to leave I had to unlock the door after being locked inside the restaurant...at 10:40pm, 20 full minutes before scheduled closing. Needless to say I didn't get a refill of iced tea, as the container was long gone.
If your store has no interest in keeping to their posted hours nor cooking fresh food a full 40 minutes before closing I suggest they alter their hours accordingly.
Thank you for reading my feedback.
Best,
Friday, August 21, 2009
Buffalo Wild Wings
To whom it may concern:
I am writing to share my experience at a BW3 restaurant (Store #3334 in Mason, Ohio) this afternoon (Friday 8/21). In these tough economic times, I usually bring my lunch, and so when I take the opportunity to go out to lunch, I hope more than usual that it will be worth my time and money.
The waitress did not point out the lunch specials that were available. I was looking through the regular menu (at things that were at least $2 more expensive) for quite awhile before one of the other guys at my table found the lunch menu.
The food took an inordinate amount of time. As I said, I do not go out to lunch very often so I don't have a great sense for how long things "should" take, but when I commented on it, the other members of my party agreed that it was a longer than normal time. They were surprised since the restaurant was not busy at all.
I ordered the Cheeseburger Slammers lunch menu, with no lettuce, tomato or onion. When my meal finally came out, I found that those items were included. Apparently they come on the side, so that was good enough. And sure, I ended up just taking them off and it was not the end of the world, but to me, good customer service would not have put them in the basket. I mean, somebody somewhere in the restaurant (whether it was the cook, the server or someone else) had to put them on there at some point! When the food came out, another guy at my table who had also ordered the Cheeseburger Slammers mentioned that mine had the no lettuce, tomato or onion (he ordered his with those and wanted to make sure that we each got the right one), only to find out that both did. The server did not apologize, nor offer to remove or exchange them, but instead just said "They're on the side". Again, I don't want to make a huge deal over this and if this was the only thing maybe I would not have brought it up.
The food was decent. My burgers were cooked a little longer and were a bit cold (if that combination makes sense). Perhaps this is related to the longer than average wait time? The bottle of ketchup that was on the table was nearly empty. I am sure that this is not the waitresses fault and it wasn't a huge deal since I just grabbed a bottle from a neighboring empty table. In a positive note, I did appreciate the speed with which my drink was refilled, including a time when the waitress just brought a refill without asking when she saw my cup was low. I always appreciate that.
When we paid, the server brought our checks and we put our money or cards on the trays. When our change was brought out, I found that my receipt / change was switched with the gentleman sitting next to me. Not a huge deal since it turned out that although we ordered separate meals, our meals both were the same amount and we had both paid with $20 bills.
Thank you for your time in reading this. I am sure that you pride yourselves in trying to foster a good dining experience and I hope that these comments will help you as you try to improve your overall customer service.
UPDATE - GRR I HATE WHEN COMPANY'S FEEDBACK FORMS LIMIT THE NUMBER OF CHARACTERS I CAN WRITE. I TOOK THE TIME TO WRITE A NOTE WITH DETAILED FEEDBACK ON HOW THEY COULD IMPROVE - THE LEAST THEY CAN DO IS READ IT!
So in their feedback form I wrote
I had a poor experience at lunch today. I wrote a very thoughtful and detailed note describing the different areas of service but because you have decided to limit me to only 1500 characters, it would not fit.
So I have had to publish it on the Internet in order for you to be able to read it.
And then I linked them to this post.
I am writing to share my experience at a BW3 restaurant (Store #3334 in Mason, Ohio) this afternoon (Friday 8/21). In these tough economic times, I usually bring my lunch, and so when I take the opportunity to go out to lunch, I hope more than usual that it will be worth my time and money.
The waitress did not point out the lunch specials that were available. I was looking through the regular menu (at things that were at least $2 more expensive) for quite awhile before one of the other guys at my table found the lunch menu.
The food took an inordinate amount of time. As I said, I do not go out to lunch very often so I don't have a great sense for how long things "should" take, but when I commented on it, the other members of my party agreed that it was a longer than normal time. They were surprised since the restaurant was not busy at all.
I ordered the Cheeseburger Slammers lunch menu, with no lettuce, tomato or onion. When my meal finally came out, I found that those items were included. Apparently they come on the side, so that was good enough. And sure, I ended up just taking them off and it was not the end of the world, but to me, good customer service would not have put them in the basket. I mean, somebody somewhere in the restaurant (whether it was the cook, the server or someone else) had to put them on there at some point! When the food came out, another guy at my table who had also ordered the Cheeseburger Slammers mentioned that mine had the no lettuce, tomato or onion (he ordered his with those and wanted to make sure that we each got the right one), only to find out that both did. The server did not apologize, nor offer to remove or exchange them, but instead just said "They're on the side". Again, I don't want to make a huge deal over this and if this was the only thing maybe I would not have brought it up.
The food was decent. My burgers were cooked a little longer and were a bit cold (if that combination makes sense). Perhaps this is related to the longer than average wait time? The bottle of ketchup that was on the table was nearly empty. I am sure that this is not the waitresses fault and it wasn't a huge deal since I just grabbed a bottle from a neighboring empty table. In a positive note, I did appreciate the speed with which my drink was refilled, including a time when the waitress just brought a refill without asking when she saw my cup was low. I always appreciate that.
When we paid, the server brought our checks and we put our money or cards on the trays. When our change was brought out, I found that my receipt / change was switched with the gentleman sitting next to me. Not a huge deal since it turned out that although we ordered separate meals, our meals both were the same amount and we had both paid with $20 bills.
Thank you for your time in reading this. I am sure that you pride yourselves in trying to foster a good dining experience and I hope that these comments will help you as you try to improve your overall customer service.
UPDATE - GRR I HATE WHEN COMPANY'S FEEDBACK FORMS LIMIT THE NUMBER OF CHARACTERS I CAN WRITE. I TOOK THE TIME TO WRITE A NOTE WITH DETAILED FEEDBACK ON HOW THEY COULD IMPROVE - THE LEAST THEY CAN DO IS READ IT!
So in their feedback form I wrote
I had a poor experience at lunch today. I wrote a very thoughtful and detailed note describing the different areas of service but because you have decided to limit me to only 1500 characters, it would not fit.
So I have had to publish it on the Internet in order for you to be able to read it.
And then I linked them to this post.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
IHOP followup
I complained again about my not having gotten an email from my initial complaint.
Response:
=====
Thank you for taking the time to contact IHOP.
We definitely do not condone any bad food or service, or any other "mistreatment" of our guests. Most of our restaurants (including the one you visited in Cincinnati) are independently owned franchises. As such, they are ultimately responsible for their own customer service. As a courtesy to them and their customers, we here at IHOP Corporate help the Franchisees by relaying any guests concerns that we receive. However, it is the sole decision of the Franchisee what steps he or she wishes to take to resolve any guest issues that arise concerning their restaurant. Most owners do wish to make their guests happy and do make every attempt to resolve their concerns.
We have received your comments on 10/1/2008. I have already forwarded your original message to the FBC who works with the franchise owner of this restaurant. They will inform the Franchisee of your comments and will recommend it in the best interest of the Franchisee to contact you soon. Please allow 7 – 10 business days for a response.
I sincerely hope that this has explained in more detail how our system works. Thank you again for contacting IHOP.
Sincerely,
Response:
=====
Thank you for taking the time to contact IHOP.
We definitely do not condone any bad food or service, or any other "mistreatment" of our guests. Most of our restaurants (including the one you visited in Cincinnati) are independently owned franchises. As such, they are ultimately responsible for their own customer service. As a courtesy to them and their customers, we here at IHOP Corporate help the Franchisees by relaying any guests concerns that we receive. However, it is the sole decision of the Franchisee what steps he or she wishes to take to resolve any guest issues that arise concerning their restaurant. Most owners do wish to make their guests happy and do make every attempt to resolve their concerns.
We have received your comments on 10/1/2008. I have already forwarded your original message to the FBC who works with the franchise owner of this restaurant. They will inform the Franchisee of your comments and will recommend it in the best interest of the Franchisee to contact you soon. Please allow 7 – 10 business days for a response.
I sincerely hope that this has explained in more detail how our system works. Thank you again for contacting IHOP.
Sincerely,
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Bad experience at IHOP
Again - the web form character limit. This time it was 2000 characters, so I had to shave about 500 characters off. I'll put in first my original message, then the one I actually sent them
===========================
Hello. I am writing to inform you of a bad experience that I had a recent IHOP store (4825 Marburg Ave, Cincinnati Ohio). As parents of several young children, my wife and I do not often get to have a night alone, away from the kids. So when we do, it is especially important to us that the evening be as good as possible, since this might be the only "date" we get for several months.
Recently we were able to have someone come over and watch our kids for an evening, so we decided to get something to eat and then go bowling. We had eaten at a barbecue at around 4 p.m., so at 8:30, we were a little hungry but not enough for a full meal. We decided to head over to our local IHOP for a light meal.
The restaurant itself was fairly clean, and we were shown to a table right away. Actually placing our orders took significantly longer than expected. I do not mean to denigrate the server there, as she appeared to be the only server working and was probably just doing the best she could. But it was significantly longer than I would have expected - at least 5 minutes from the time when we said we needed some more time to the time she came back.
The food itself was excellent - we had the eggs and hash browns combo, an extra side of hash browns, and a strawberry crepe. Value was also extremely good. Even though it was only intended to be a light meal, even feeding 2 people a *light* meal for $7.11 is outstanding.
So, to this point, it was an average experience. Food was good and cheap - service was slow but not the end of the world. Then we got to the restrooms on the way out.
The men's room was decent. The only frustrating part for me was the sink. I know you're probably trying to save money (and the environment) by installing the hands-free "automatic" faucets, but they never work, and this one was no exception. Although I futilely waved my hands under, over and around the faucet, trying to mentally will it to turn on, eventually I had to concede defeat.
But this was nothing compared to my wife's report from the women's room. There were 3 stalls. In 2 of them, the toilets were stuffed with toilet paper and feces. The 3rd had the door shut and apparently in use (obviously to avoid the stench of the other stalls). After waiting awhile, she realized that the 3rd stall was not in fact being used, but the door was just stuck shut. She was able to wedge it open and complete her business.
Thank you for your time in reading this report. I hope that you will use it to improve the service level and ambience of your restaurants.
==============
Hello. I am writing to inform you of a bad experience that I had a recent IHOP store. As parents of several young children, my wife and I do not often get to have a night alone, away from the kids. So when we do, it is especially important to us that the evening be as good as possible, since this might be the only "date" we get for awhile.
Recently we were able to have an evening out. We had eaten at a barbecue at around 4 p.m., so at 8:30, we decided to head over to our local IHOP for just a light meal.
The restaurant itself was fairly clean, and we were shown to a table right away. Actually placing our orders took significantly longer (5-10 mins) than expected. I do not mean to denigrate the server there, as she appeared to be the only server working and was probably just doing the best she could.
The food itself was excellent - we had the eggs and hash browns combo, an extra side of hash browns, and a strawberry crepe. Value was also extremely good. Even though it was only intended to be a light meal, even feeding 2 people a *light* meal for $7.11 is outstanding.
So, to this point, it was an average experience. Food was good and cheap - service was slow but not the end of the world. Then we got to the restrooms.
The men's room was decent. The only frustrating part for me was the sink. I know you're probably trying to save money by installing the hands-free "automatic" faucets, but they never work, and this one was no exception. Although I futilely waved my hands under, over and around the faucet, trying to mentally will it to turn on, eventually I had to concede defeat.
But this was nothing compared to my wife's report from the women's room. There were 3 stalls. In 2 of them, the toilets were stuffed with toilet paper and feces. The 3rd had the door shut and apparently in use (obviously to avoid the stench of the other stalls). After waiting awhile, she realized that the door was just stuck shut. She was able to wedge it open and complete her business.
===========================
Hello. I am writing to inform you of a bad experience that I had a recent IHOP store (4825 Marburg Ave, Cincinnati Ohio). As parents of several young children, my wife and I do not often get to have a night alone, away from the kids. So when we do, it is especially important to us that the evening be as good as possible, since this might be the only "date" we get for several months.
Recently we were able to have someone come over and watch our kids for an evening, so we decided to get something to eat and then go bowling. We had eaten at a barbecue at around 4 p.m., so at 8:30, we were a little hungry but not enough for a full meal. We decided to head over to our local IHOP for a light meal.
The restaurant itself was fairly clean, and we were shown to a table right away. Actually placing our orders took significantly longer than expected. I do not mean to denigrate the server there, as she appeared to be the only server working and was probably just doing the best she could. But it was significantly longer than I would have expected - at least 5 minutes from the time when we said we needed some more time to the time she came back.
The food itself was excellent - we had the eggs and hash browns combo, an extra side of hash browns, and a strawberry crepe. Value was also extremely good. Even though it was only intended to be a light meal, even feeding 2 people a *light* meal for $7.11 is outstanding.
So, to this point, it was an average experience. Food was good and cheap - service was slow but not the end of the world. Then we got to the restrooms on the way out.
The men's room was decent. The only frustrating part for me was the sink. I know you're probably trying to save money (and the environment) by installing the hands-free "automatic" faucets, but they never work, and this one was no exception. Although I futilely waved my hands under, over and around the faucet, trying to mentally will it to turn on, eventually I had to concede defeat.
But this was nothing compared to my wife's report from the women's room. There were 3 stalls. In 2 of them, the toilets were stuffed with toilet paper and feces. The 3rd had the door shut and apparently in use (obviously to avoid the stench of the other stalls). After waiting awhile, she realized that the 3rd stall was not in fact being used, but the door was just stuck shut. She was able to wedge it open and complete her business.
Thank you for your time in reading this report. I hope that you will use it to improve the service level and ambience of your restaurants.
==============
Hello. I am writing to inform you of a bad experience that I had a recent IHOP store. As parents of several young children, my wife and I do not often get to have a night alone, away from the kids. So when we do, it is especially important to us that the evening be as good as possible, since this might be the only "date" we get for awhile.
Recently we were able to have an evening out. We had eaten at a barbecue at around 4 p.m., so at 8:30, we decided to head over to our local IHOP for just a light meal.
The restaurant itself was fairly clean, and we were shown to a table right away. Actually placing our orders took significantly longer (5-10 mins) than expected. I do not mean to denigrate the server there, as she appeared to be the only server working and was probably just doing the best she could.
The food itself was excellent - we had the eggs and hash browns combo, an extra side of hash browns, and a strawberry crepe. Value was also extremely good. Even though it was only intended to be a light meal, even feeding 2 people a *light* meal for $7.11 is outstanding.
So, to this point, it was an average experience. Food was good and cheap - service was slow but not the end of the world. Then we got to the restrooms.
The men's room was decent. The only frustrating part for me was the sink. I know you're probably trying to save money by installing the hands-free "automatic" faucets, but they never work, and this one was no exception. Although I futilely waved my hands under, over and around the faucet, trying to mentally will it to turn on, eventually I had to concede defeat.
But this was nothing compared to my wife's report from the women's room. There were 3 stalls. In 2 of them, the toilets were stuffed with toilet paper and feces. The 3rd had the door shut and apparently in use (obviously to avoid the stench of the other stalls). After waiting awhile, she realized that the door was just stuck shut. She was able to wedge it open and complete her business.
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