Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I very rarely send anything back, it has to be *really* screwed up before I will. In fact, I can only think of one time that I sent something back- it wasn't a 5-star restaurant, but it wasn't a dump either, moderately expensive. I ordered chicken cordon bleu. The lighting in the dining room was low, I thought the chicken tasted odd and the consistency didn't seem quite right, but I ate somewhere between 1/3 and 1/2 of it before I pulled out a flashlight (yes, I always have at least one) and took a good look at it. It hadn't been cooked, not at all, completely raw. Yuck.
I called the waitress over and asked if she could take it back to the kitchen and have them cook it, and showed her that it was raw. She was extremely apologetic. She brought me back a whole new order, which I really hadn't wanted, I just wanted the piece I had to get cooked.
On the other hand, I have seen some people for whom nothing is ever satisfactory, they just can't be pleased. I saw one guy slap a poached egg into a waitress' hand because it was just slightly over-cooked.
I worked a grill at Mickey D's for a while, and there was one customer who could be *depended* on to send something back every day. Sheesh. It's a flippin' McDonald's, not the Ritz. There was more than one time there was a little something extra in that burger. (No, it wasn't me, it was the guy on the 10:1 grill, I only worked quarters.)
I sent something back one time, it was red snapper and it was not cooked all the way. It was my first and last time having it. I ordered something else. You can't please everyone. I'd be more concerned if the chef/waitress spit in my food because I sent it back so many times.
Explicitly stating an order of grilled chicken then having to unwrap to see that the item inside was fried not grilled
Sometimes one doesn't have time to go back to say the order was wrong but when I do, I try to remember to check. Sometimes it is more effective to submit your own order - ie: a la Sheetz, or similar. Unfortunately, there are not too many of those around.
I hate going through fast food and having to check my order....every. time., because they just can't seem to get it right.....
My daughter and sil had a habit of sending things back and then expecting a comp. We did not go out to eat with them. I am not proud of their actions. I have had managers try and give us a comp for a meal that wasn't up to par and we would not accept it. We were telling them to correct the problems not get payment.
I've not seen people send dishes back more than twice, but for me, the only time I send something back is when something is cold when it is supposed to be hot, when there is a glaring flaw in the way something was asked to have made (i.e., I receive a rare burger when I asked for well; I refuse to eat uncooked ground beef), or if the dishware/silverware was dirty.
If I see something done wrong the second time my food is brought to me, I just say forget it. If something can't be done right the second time around, there's someone incompetent in the kitchen who will only screw it up again and waste my time and appetite.
That's what I do. Once may be a mistake. Twice isn't acceptable.
I got sick from salmon twice and shrimp three times in restaurants and I am a ray of sunshine compared to a certain someone I know.. Just last week we went to a major chain steak house and he asked for Guinness and prime rib. The waitress came back laughing and said, "Oh, we stopped carrying Guinness weeks ago."
Great, here we go...
His face becomes stoney and his voice deepens to a growl. Tossing his napkin on the table he nearly shouts, "Water then!"
He fusses, cusses and complains loud enough for at least half a dozen people to hear.
Waitress leaves and returns with a glass of water. "I'm sorry sir,(hee hee) but we won't have prime rib until four."
I want to climb under the table.
He's livid.. Frighteningly calm. Grunts for the check. Looks at me and realizes by my disapproving glare that he's on the verge of a blow out. He asks if I want to stay. I say no. I insist we leave a small tip because she did manage to bring out a horrible sangria thing which the manager did not charge for.
When we walk out I insist he call the other location. We go get Guinness and prime rib within the hour and all is right with the world again.
I only get upset over filthy things like hair and lipstick. Hell, I worked in food service and I know common roaches are so I don't lose it when I see one.. I typically remove it with a napkin and quietly hand it off to an employee telling them that's not something people don't like to see.
I don't like spicey food. I don't mean garlic and cinamon, I mean I don't like food that hurts - chili oil, jalopenos, etc. I live in a northern, working-class town and a lot of others are the same, and the Mexican, Thai, Indian restaurants are familiar with our tastes. In the past years, though, more immigrants have come and have not bothered to learn the local tastes, and also, local tastes have changed, and a lot more people like spicey food. I'm not interested in having a debate about how food should be prepared, but I do think restauranteurs should know what "No stars" means. My theory is that when I very clearly state that I don't like food that hurts, and that I want "No stars", the wait staff should tell me if the dish I'm ordering can be prepared that way, or if I should order something else. If I order "No stars" and it arrives with hot chili oil in it that ruins it for me, I am only reinforcing to the staff that "No stars" means "1 star" or "2 stars". I know always send back food that is too spicey, that is, that has any hotness to it at all. I had to send back the food twice when the owner thought he could just take the meat out of the broth and put it in some soy sauce and lemon juice and water, and throw in some raw vegies from the salad tray, but the meat was still unacceptably hot, and he tried to tell me that it wasn't hot! He flat out lied. Almost every restaurant has at least one menu item that is not spicey, and I don't think it's asking too much for the staff to be honest abuot what items are mild and what ones are spicey.
I would honestly be embarrassed to be out dining with someone like that.
Additionally that person should always be made aware that their pickiness may result in a hidden surprise in their remade dish.
I almost never send food back.
However, I am a stickler about clean dinnerware and glasses, and if there's dried food or lipstick on any of it (and this happens frequently), I kindly ask the waiter/waitress to exchange the item(s).
I agree with you. I do not eat out with a person like this more than once. I am embarrassed and I find it usually is not about the food. It is one of the measurements I use to understand the character of a person.
I learned a very long time ago that when I go out to get food, say for lunch, never to ask people if they want anything because people are so picky and some of the requests I would get embarrassed by so I just worry about me or pick something up that I think they may like and bring it back.
Once I brought two individually wrapped brownies back from lunch because the place I was at made REALLY good brownies. I gave one to one lady in my office and another to another lady. As soon as I handed the second lady the brownie she shot up and walked over to the first to check to see who got the bigger brownie! She did it right in front of me and was complaining really loud the entire time over to the other lady. The thing was I just gave them to the ladies for free. I never got them anything again.
While not as bad as the nitpicker I tend to avoid going out to eat with poor tippers and I can say right now all of my friends are good tippers.
I don't like spicey food. I don't mean garlic and cinamon, I mean I don't like food that hurts - chili oil, jalopenos, etc. I live in a northern, working-class town and a lot of others are the same, and the Mexican, Thai, Indian restaurants are familiar with our tastes. In the past years, though, more immigrants have come and have not bothered to learn the local tastes, and also, local tastes have changed, and a lot more people like spicey food. I'm not interested in having a debate about how food should be prepared, but I do think restauranteurs should know what "No stars" means. My theory is that when I very clearly state that I don't like food that hurts, and that I want "No stars", the wait staff should tell me if the dish I'm ordering can be prepared that way, or if I should order something else. If I order "No stars" and it arrives with hot chili oil in it that ruins it for me, I am only reinforcing to the staff that "No stars" means "1 star" or "2 stars". I know always send back food that is too spicey, that is, that has any hotness to it at all. I had to send back the food twice when the owner thought he could just take the meat out of the broth and put it in some soy sauce and lemon juice and water, and throw in some raw vegies from the salad tray, but the meat was still unacceptably hot, and he tried to tell me that it wasn't hot! He flat out lied. Almost every restaurant has at least one menu item that is not spicey, and I don't think it's asking too much for the staff to be honest abuot what items are mild and what ones are spicey.
You are a horror and a person I would never eat with. Sure a food may be too spicy to you but it may not be to other people and you just limit food choices.
It is on the person ordering to order what they want. If I order something and do not like it I just do not order it again. I pay for it because I ordered it but I never send it back.
I have found a lot of things I like through trying new things.
I've worked in restaurants and I would not trust food that had to be returned more than once. If it's something legit like over or under cooked meat that's fine, or some topping you didn't order or something you are allergic to. But it you are picky and make the server run around and do special things and don't leave a very good tip I would not return to that place.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
