Do Restaurateurs and Customers Have a Love/Hate Relationship?
Marilyn July 2nd, 2006
I am pondering this because of a piece written by Elizabeth Meryment in this Weekend Australian newspaper Travel & Indulgence – A few of our (least) favourite things: tips, teens, waiters with attitude. Elizabeth has written a few pedantically critical reviews of restaurants … and some complimentary ones, she is a woman of strong opinions.
From a restaurateur’s point of view I am on the customer’s side and have very little to gripe about, but if pushed these would be the things that raise my ire:-
1. Reviewers and some customers who think they are being ‘ripped off’ by the prices charged in all levels of cafes/restaurants. The assumption is that we are greedy and making too much profit. (The concept of value for money is another issue altogether.) The reality is that the more upmarket the restaurant is, the less profit it is making (and some are making very little indeed). I wish you could sit in on meetings we have with our key staff when agonising over whether we can raise prices, and pass on some of the recent hikes in produce, wages and rent.
2. No shows — people who, usually on our busiest nights, can’t be bothered ringing to say that they are not coming. We have turned (often good customers away) and this really costs us.
3. Customers who assume that if there is an error in their bill, that it has been deliberate — virtually accusing us of stealing. There is no excuse for bills not being checked by every waitperson that served the table, but human beings do make mistakes. Politely point it out rather than get aggressive. Oh, and when we forget to put that second bottle of wine on the bill …….
4. Customers who try to put together every voucher/special offer/discount they can and then get very angry when this practice is not accepted. If we did in some cases they could eat a 3-course meal, nice bottle of wine and we would owe them money.
OK, that’s off my chest … now what drives you nuts about restaurants?
Gripes: Staff who don’t know the menu eg soup of the day.
Credit card surcharges (I can understand them for functions).
Not taking credit cards.
grumble, grumble, grumble…
I was not aware that some restaurants charged customers to use credit cards — I don’t think this happens in Brisbane anyway. At Baguette we pay over $24,000 in credit card charges each year. At our other restaurant, Bretts Wharf Seafood, that would be over $75,000 per annum. This is one of the reasons why restaurants need to charge what they do.
As a fellow restaurateur, how about customers that cannot make simple decisions e.g ‘would you like mineral water or tap water’ ‘can i get you a drink to start off with?’ And on busy nights, tables that call service staff over to harshly say ‘ we are ready to order and then spend 5 minutes debating what to have.
Finally BYO there needs to be an industry standard on this. How much to charge for corkage what days to offer BYO and for the customer what to bring to a restaurant. e.g the weekly $4.99 bottle is not really appropriate when dining at a fully licensed establishment that also offers BYO it cheapens the experience for everyone involved.
Actually the one that I can’t figure is why customers just say ” I’d like a coffee” (big pause) And then the waiter has to go through the whole range of coffees (“would you like an espresso, flat white etc. etc. etc). HUGE waste of time when we all know what we like to drink, so why not just say “a flat white please”?
However, if we choose to work in this industry perhaps patience should be a pre-requisit in the Job Description. We need to understand that most people start their “dining careers” in fast food joints like McD (I object so much to the product that I can’t even write the name) — where speed is of the essence. So … perhaps we should understand that initially our customers are in a hurry, but then when confronted with more than 5 menu choices (delivered in 30 seconds and eaten with without implements, elbows on the table — McD that is) they need more time to think. (I’ve had a bad day, and am resorting to sarcasm.)
Regarding corkage, in Queensland anyway, no licensed restaurant by law HAS to offer BYO — despite many people believing that it is their right. Other States I don’t know … At Baguette and Bretts Wharf we do offer this service because we know that some of our regulars have wonderful cellars and on special occasions like to bring them to match with our food. I take this as a compliment.