Originally Posted by
Eastbay1K
A harsh result for what sounds like a one-off by a nice server. Depending on the place, a server might be quite limited in the ability to comp an item.
The server's candor was rare. I don't need to ruin her day or perhaps her livelihood by anything more than perhaps a reduced tip.
There are plenty of reasons to "talk to management" as a customer of the service industry. For me, this is not one.
We'll agree to disagree. The server represents the restaurant that he/she presumably does not own. I appreciate the candor, but there are consequences to actions. No tip is certainly one of them. And one bad day can lead to being sacked. If the server did, indeed, have a one-off day, then his/her employer will understand. But I don't need to tip for poor service that's directly the responsibility of the server.
And maybe he/she ruined MY day by providing lousy service. Maybe it was a rare lunch with my spouse, or an anniversary or birthday celebration. That cuts both ways. And management should definitely know what's going on in its restaurant. I don't know how sweeping this under the rug benefits anyone.
Originally Posted by
BamaVol
On this, we agree. It doesn't seem worthy of escalation. Someone would have to foul up seriously, repeatedly, or on purpose before I would approach their manager.
Last time I checked, it's a SERVICE business. If the server isn't fulfilling that part of the job description, management should know. It's not my concern whether the manager is a hothead or if that person gets sacked. I paid for my meal and I have a right to expect better service than what was provided. If it's truly a one-off experience, management is apt to comp my meal, let the server know, and everyone moves on. If there's more to the story, well, then I guess I'd be glad that I escalated the issue. Again, if I owned the restaurant, I'd want to know that I had a dissatisfied customer to try to mitigate the situation then and there. No need to let an unhappy guest let loose on Yelp or someplace else.