Restaurant Owner Rejects A Request From Unreasonable Customer Who Wants To Decide On The Menu And The Price
The customer claims he is intolerant to almost everything except the finest pieces of meat, goat cheese, and sweet potato. He also seems intolerant to paying. #ChoosingBeggars
Every business has its downsides, and one of the biggest challenges that restaurant management and employees face is dealing with picky and petty customers. Whether it is face-to-face or through email and chat correspondence, it is always difficult for those in the restaurant business to remain calm when interacting with an unreasonable customer.
They deserve a medal for somehow still managing to pull it off. Attila Yilmaz of PAZAR Food Collective in Australia posted an email exchange between him and one exceptionally demanding customer. It began when the anonymous customer asked, “I have an incredibly restricted diet; my friends are booking a table, and I believe there will be seven or more people. I think it would be best if I eat before and drink at the restaurant, as there isn’t anything on your menu suitable for my restrictions. Can I just sit there and drink, or can you only sit at the table if you are dining?”
On PAZAR’s website, it states, “Reservations for 7 guests or more will dine from PAZAR’s Collective Feast menu, an 8-course shared menu priced at $68 per person.”
Attila YilmazThis probably indicates that what this person really wishes is not to pay. Maybe they do want to eat the food from the menu, but if that’s the case, then they should have chosen a different place to dine.
Yilmaz replied, “Thank you for your email. Our liquor license only covers us for dining customers. All seats occupied by guests of a large group are required to participate in the collective feast. We can accommodate most needs with notice but cannot create 8 courses for very special needs.”
Attila YilmazWe are not sure how true this liquor license claim is, but we are not well-versed in Australian regulations. It is more likely that Yilmaz doesn’t want people to feel they can show up at a restaurant, not eat anything, and occupy tables that would otherwise earn him money.
The customer stated that the party would go somewhere else unless the restaurant could provide them with a “lean steak and sweet potato with leaf and sheep’s milk feta or goat cheese salad and charge appropriately, not the feast price of $68.”
Attila Yilmaz
Yilmaz asked them to explain, replying, “You want to come to our restaurant, don’t like our menu, and hence want to create your own menu and want us to cook that for you at a price you determine is fair? Could you please tell me what cut of meat you would like and what you would like to pay for your dinner?”
Attila Yilmaz
The customer said he is “sensing a little bit of sarcasm.” He mentioned that the group would go to a different place.
Attila Yilmaz
Yilmaz probably should have ended the discussion as well, but instead, he wrote a long email in which he compared a restaurant’s menu to a concert: you wouldn’t go see a band and insist they play different songs according to your wishes.
While his irritation is understandable, it is fair to say that many people have allergies that make planning a meal a real challenge, but they have to eat out because of their friends, business partners, social life, etc. It can be hard to avoid every gathering. Their only choice is to find a place that would significantly alter their dish. But PAZAR is evidently not that kind of restaurant.
Attila Yilmaz
And the customer responded that he actually works for a caterer.
Attila Yilmaz
Which, of course, provoked another response from Yilmaz:
Attila Yilmaz
And finally, the end.
Attila Yilmaz
It’s not inappropriate to ask if a restaurant can accommodate you when you have a special diet, but first see how they serve their dishes. If there’s a minimum price for sitting at one of their tables, they will expect to receive that money from you.
