What makes you, the Well Done Fillet reader, sad and want to hurt things when you are out for something to eat?
When asked by Olive Magazine what their most common restaurant gripe was, readers responded by a whopping 35.8%, saying that inattentive service ruined their special night out the most. Whatever chump. [doing the head/finger shake] It’s always the waiter’s fault eh. I mean it wasn’t the fish that tasted like the remains of road kill was it? No it was the waiter that brought it. And it wasn’t the steak that was tougher than the elbow skin of a female Russian weightlifter? No it was the waiter that served it. And it wasn’t the fact that you were in a bad mood because the boss is giving you gip and making you feel like the worthless little toadie you are. Oh no, it was the waiter’s fault because he was serving somebody else at the very moment you wanted your ego massaged.
Sake.
Do people ever say, ‘I want to go out for some really great service?’ Or ‘Oh after a long day at work love I really fancy some really attentive service and if we’re lucky we can get some nice food too.’ My sweet, fat, grumpy as fuck (really grouchy today) ass they do. People, yes people like you, go out for food. You go out for good food. Of course you want great service too but surely getting bad food irks you more than bad service. Eh, tell me I’m wrong? Actually don’t, I know I’m right.
But as we live in a democracy (democracy don’t make me laugh. Democracy got us Nelson McCausland. I mean have you heard him? The world is 6000 years old? Well if that’s the case I’m a chocolate muffin. Away on ye bampot!) I will let you have your say in my own poll…
(polls)
Results tomorrow, all being well…and by all I mean me.
39 Comments → “What makes you, the Well Done Fillet reader, sad and want to hurt things when you are out for something to eat?”
A little from column A, a lot from column B… but mainly the toilets. Gah… I should not want to throw up my over-priced food from the smell in a bathroom. While it mightn’t be a hygiene issue, smeary mirrors and dull taps irritate me.
I am not a clean-freak, whatever previous rantings about people sweating onto my reception desk and this comment may suggest.
Gah! The toilet thing gets to me….it makes no sense. They cleanliness of the toilets in no way reflects the cleanliness of the kitchen…If the chef was prepping veg at the urinals then I could see yer point…but he doesn’t….nomrally
As a waitress (for 15 years, a lifetime ago), what peeves me is an attitude from a waiter/waitress that I would never have given (unless warrented, of course). Restaurant vets are the best tippers, because we’ve been there, seen that & appreciate good service. BTW, if someone’s night out was ruined due to a third party, they have more problems that you can address. Thanks for all the posts, love your blog!
Some waiters, not me or you (probably) make for terrible guests…bad attitude and shit tippers…but they are few and far between…
Also…”All of the above” is not an acceptable answer…pick one…sake…don’t anger the stones…
Its all about the food. Always.
I’m not a toilet-checker so that will never factor in for me unless the toilet in question is a hole in the ground in the back alley. Although if the food is good, I can probably overlook that too…..
Works for me!
I wish I could rank these in the poll.
1 Poor food.
2 Inattentive service (that’s leaving me too long with the menu, taking too long between serving my drink and coming back for my food order, leaving the dirty plates in front of me without clearing them away, etc)
3 Overbearing service.
4 Waiter with attitude.
5 Waiter with some indeterminate problem, possibly moving stones coupled with a lack of pain medication.
maybe I do a new poll eh? Maybe I rate the commentarati that leave their opinions lying about the place like discarded sweetie wrappers….mmm? shall I?
Oh I didn’t mean to insinuate that there is a link between the cleanliness of a bathroom and that of the kitchen. I just hate a dirty bathroom!
The column A was the promise of magnificent food and getting something that tastes and smells like armpit.
I know…but you hear people going on about it all the time as if the same departments were responsible for the cleaning of both areas….it bothers me….
1. Poor food
2. Inattentive service that means you have to wait ages for the aforementioned poor food
3. Boggin toilets that make the process of throwing up said poor food an even worse experience
My other main restaurant gripe is that point when the waiter asks you if the food is ok when you have a mouth full of food and can’t answer. I know that’s the point most of the time but I feel so rude because I can’t answer them properly!
we practice doing that…you cant complain and give grief if you have a mouthful of food…heheheh
if the food is crap i’m a bitch really don’t care about much else don’t mess with me food
oh me too…
Don’t lose sight of the prize here – of course it’s all about the food. However it’s the service that’s the dealmaker. Good food, bad service = grumble-based mumblings and coin-based philanthropy. Poor food, good service = waiter saves chef’s arse (again) and folding tip-based goodness. In both cases probably no return visit however.
Hey, Manuel, in the interests of punter-waiter relations perhaps you could produce a handy cut-out-and-keep wallet-sized chart to help people with this?
-Blod.
hmmm…cut out and keep? yeah I could make it available via download for about £30…good ide…I’ll cut you in for 3%…nice
i have voted, sugar! bad food. as Blod said, bad food, good service, waiter gets a good tip, but i won’t return. the bottom line is, i’m going out to have a marvelous meal, not make a new best friend. (unless, of course, i was in belfast!) xoxoxox
obviously….hehehehe! awh, book a flight!
You should have added kids. If there’s anything that’s going to make me want to shove a fork in my heart to end the pain, it’s kids running/screaming/crying while their parents are completely oblivious to the mayhem and disruption they’re causing other people.
Actually, good question for you:
If you are out at a restaurant and there happens to be a family that has the devil children from hell with them, and said devil children are causing a nuisance, is it acceptable to slap them around the face, or can I call a waiter to ask the parents to shut their brats up or get the hell out of the restaurant?
kids eh…[shakes fist at the world]
I will consider this and report back next week…
I had a very pleasant meal not long ago but the service did ruin the experience. Not only did I have to find a waitress in a nearly empty restaurant, but I had to inquire about the long wait, get up and find the cheese and pepper for my pasta (as she had disappeared into the nether regions of the place) and then go again in an attempt to pay. I barely got a hello, thank you etc and I was in no way rude. That is inattentive service. Mind you, the food was pretty decent.
Nate http://love-of-turnips.blogspot.com
fair point….I’m sure you’ve made it up…I mean that just doesn’t realistic…heh
several of the above? but mostly it’s being disappointed in the food – either because an acquaintance (or restaurant reviewer) over-hyped the quality, or the menu makes me drool and the actual food makes me want to cry. hotel restaurants are the WORST for this. you’d think i’d have learned by now…
hotel food is almost without exception awful….except the merchant in Belfast….food in their is superb…
the kids thing does bug me. But I personally don’t like being pestered every two minutes by my server. I don’t want a new best friend, I just want to eat my damn food. The worst one I ran into actually started blatantly flirting with my boyfriend right in front of me. I almost punched her. That is so inappropraite. I understand being nice to the man at the table, assuming he’s the one paying, to get a nicer tip. Joke’s on her because he tips like shit anyway. I usually have to make up for it.
Woah…that aint cool…hitting on guests is all fair and well if they are up for it but not if their other half is there….bad form…
I clicked on “dirty loos” as my vote and then got so worked up about it that I forgot to comment.
Unruly children are tied with dirty loos but I had to make a choice.
children in dirty loos? the worst combo of all…heh
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It’s never the service, I really don’t care if I learn the name of my server or if the lighting is good. I care about the food. Crap food = crap experience. You’re safe. I think everyone who works in Food Serivce should receive combat pay. May I just say? Thank you. I’ve had my bad experiences but the good out weigh those. Working on your feet isn’t easy.
That is all.
awh thank you…
Even if the food is good, if the waiter is a real jerk then I’m not going to have a good experience! There have been a few places that had decent food but before I even got it I was so pissed off I wasn’t in the mood to eat it.
waiters eh….lovely people…
Obnoxious children and their shit-for-brains parents that seem to think Bobby and Susie are just soooooooo cute when they run around and shriek at the tops of their lungs.
Oh I agree…did you know that as the waiter I am not allowed to hit them? WTF is that all about…?!
Ha, ha… fork-tongued waiter that you are, dear Manuel… I do fabricate quite frequently, though ironically my post was truthful. As for the food being the fulcrum on which satisfaction tilts, not long ago I had an overwhelmingly mediocre plate of pasta in a modest cafe but enjoyed the experience thoroughly. I escaped the rain, the server was terribly pleasant and the atmosphere was homey (ie, the exact opposite of my actual childhood home – warm and relaxing).
The fact that I was also eating pasta in this anecdote is coincidence.
http://love-of-turnips.blogspot.com/
coincidence eh…. me not so sure…
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