Thursday, February 17, 2011

It's what's inside that counts

Besides for solely judging food, there are other factors that definitely play into eateries & my decision of whether to go back or not. And customer service is THAT determining factor. It rates higher & even more important than how the food tastes. Kind of like how even though looks are important, personality matters most in a relationship: food definitely must be good & tasty, but customer service makes or breaks that relationship for me towards that food I'm eating. Make sense?

For example, I love Pearl's Phat Burgers in Mill Valley, CA especially since it's convenient & right across the street from where I work. I frequented the place often...until yesterday. At lunch, I called in my order using the take-out menu I got awhile ago. When I went to pick up my order, it was nearly $3 more than what I was expecting. I immediately grabbed a take-out menu sitting on their counter to see if the prices were the same as mine...and they were! So I confronted the cashier & before I could even speak, as if he knew what I was going to say already, he told me the prices had changed, but did not offer me an apology, honor the old pricing, nothing. I left annoyed & felt like I just got ripped off. I mean, if you changed your prices, why would you still keep the same menu which has the old prices on it?! And if customers are still ordering from that menu, the right thing would be to honor those prices for them. Please note this is not about the money, it's about the principle. Customer Service 101. Yeah, it's just a small burger joint, but they do have a relatively "large" name in the Bay Area & if they want to keep it that way, this is not the way they should run their business or treat their (loyal) customers.

There have been other restaurants that I've been to that have delicious food and I have not gone back to due to again, horrible service. So to all eateries out there, watch out how you treat your clients because just one bad break can put you in a bad reputation for the rest of your life! And if I happen to come across you, everyone I know will know! Bye, bye Pearl's!

2 comments:

  1. I hear you...there is a thing to be said about choosing to work in the, "Service" industry.
    Take price in what you do, and treat others as you would want to be treated.

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  2. If their take out menu in the restaurant had the same price --they should have honored it. I would have pointed it out, left and gone elsewhere. Nothing to do with customer service but with honoring the price in their menu.

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