Ah, the power of my pen is not enough to stop their endless lines. I do think that the manager has a responsibility to hire wisely enough, that on the nights when he or she is not there, he knows *exactly* how it will go, without being there—perfectly.

Yes, I agree completely, the idea is often better than the execution, especially if you make a choice in a rush as we did that evening. Sometimes I think I’d be better sitting in my parking lot, right before I turn the key in the ignition. That is the very best moment of a night out: before the little things have gotten a chance to erode my expectations.

Then I remember. I do this for a living. I pay close attention to everything. The lines at this pseudo-Aussie chain prove most folks aren’t judging them as I do.

Thanks for your comment!

Regards,

Kelly

Restaurants are the purest form of “customer service” model businesses. If you own a restaurant, your reputation is only as good as your last service.

You’re a perfect example of what happens when the service is poor. You, the customer, starts to spread the word and the next thing the manager knows, there are no lines for the evening service. He (or she) is left wondering what happened. Little does he/she know that last week when he/she took the night off, everything went to h*ll in a hand basket from the customer’s point of view.

Maybe they are jerks with no underlying issues… but if that’s the case, the LAST place they should be is in a customer service position!

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There are times when assembly line dining (yes, let’s not say “fine”) will do. When you’re starving and staring at the place would seem to be one of those times, but clearly even under those circumstances this place could use a lesson in manners.

When I first moved here what I was struck by was the endless miles of shopping and chain eateries (tax-free Delaware is one big strip mall in places, though this restaurant is over the state line). It’s not impossible to find an independent place, but the convenience of chains everywhere can be tough to ignore. I’m with you, though. Find a little place you like even if it’s a drive—it’s well worth it.

Friar,

Yes, yes, and yes. I certainly did want to go the zen route and think of their issues (“maybe the manager quit and the chef is sick”). Even in the Land of Chains, this place has lines out the door almost every night (why I didn’t want to go) and having been there twice before on such nights, as Brett said, it’s a well-orchestrated Experience, so I couldn’t help but give them the benefit of the doubt for a moment.

Then, I kinda got that feeling… maybe they’re jerks with no underlying issues.

I usually get my revenge by writing a blog post.

You may trust me, though, after that day I did tell everyone I had a word-of-mouth conversation with that they should find another place to hand their dollars to, for about a week.

Regards,

Kelly

But if it’s a business, it’s like we’re almost intimidated from speaking up (but WE’RE the ones paying their salary!)

We even try to make excuses for bad behavior. (For example, I might say “Oh, maybe they’re having a bad day, or their mom is dying of cancer or something.” )

But sooner or later, you gotta call them on this.

Maybe there IS NO excuse…maybe they’re just A-hole staff working for an A-hole establishment.

I usually get my revenge by telling everyone I know how badly I was treated and how I’m not going back.

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And the other side of the coin, we frequent a nice little private steakhouse about 2 hours from our house – where they expect if you arrive to eat at 7 pm, you won’t be leaving until around 11 pm or later. Nice.

-Brett