Handling a Customer Complaint

Some restaurants do a good job of handling customer complaint.  Case in point, last Saturday we were back in Italianni's to use the 250 pesos mobile coupon we got for registering in their mailing list Please see (Must Try: Bistro Group Promos!) On this visit, we ordered their Lasagna and a Quatrro Formaggio Pizza.  At first the server told us that she would check if the Lasagna is available, it's a good thing that there still is as we were a bit fickle in the our choice that night.  The Lasagna was served first, and admittedly it was one good Lasagna.  With about a quarter of the Lasagna left the waitress (a different one) asked me if she can move the Lasagna.  I figured she was probably making way for the Pizza so I agreed.  She took the plate and so I thought she would just transfer it to a smaller plate.  The Pizza came and when I asked about the Lasagna, that is where we realized that there was an error in communication.  The waitress thought we were done with the Lasagna.  The waitress who moved it quickly apologized.  I just smiled but said that there was still about one fourth of that Lasagna which we intended to eat (to my mind I was already formulating my blog entry.)  I think they saw through my reaction that I am not happy about what happened so the manager on duty (Mr Adrianne) quickly remedied the situation by offering to replace the Lasagna with a new one.  I said that we may not finish it anyway so he volunteered to just have it to go.  Good Job Mr Adrianne and the rest of Italianni's Glorietta.  I left feeling good and treated well.

Yummy Lasagna!

Some restaurants do a bad job of handling customer complaint.  Case in point, when we celebrated my wife's birthday last June.  We planned to have a quick lunch in the Greenbelt area since I just stepped out of the office for a while to meet her and the little girl.  And that plan was ruined by a restaurant that I used to love so much before but sad to say I now truly despise.  Itago na lang natin ang restaurant na ito sa pangalang Chili's (-:  To think I even eat at this restaurant when I go abroad.  Anyway, the start of horror lunch came when the waitress took the plates from the other table.  Unfortunately, a plate fell... on me... and I am wearing a white polo shirt!  The waitress apologized and I just said "never mind it was an accident."  It was my wife's birthday and I was on a celebratory mood.  Apparently the waitress (the same one) most probably thought that if I didn't mind it the first time I wouldn't mind it again.  So the next time she took the plates again, still from the same table, plates (yes not just one) fell again... on me... right smack on my white shirt.  And my reaction was "Now that would really make a stain on my shirt now wouldn't it?"  No yelling, no drama.  What did the poor waitress do?  Apologized and got some wet tissues.  WET TISSUES!  For crying out loud, all she can think of was to get wet tissues to take off the stain.

Sad part of it is that the Manager on duty (whose name I have already erased from my memory) didn't even come to us when it happened and we had to ask for her from the server.  By the way, this same manager approached us before the incident to check if somebody already took our order.  And what did this manager offered to us?  At first, she asked if they can bring my shirt to the laundry so that they can have it cleaned.  I refused, what do they think I would wear while waiting for it to be cleaned?  And I told them I needed to go back to the office.  The next thing they offered was to buy me a new shirt, I agreed as that seems to be the best they could offer at that point (actually kahit Chili's polo shirt tatangapin ko na sana eh. Madaling madali na talaga akong bumalik sa office.)  But even that part they didn't understand as we waited for an hour before they can buy the shirt from Landmark.  And what kind of shirt did they buy?  Over-sized (see for yourself), smells like a stock room and the folds from being kept on stock very long was very evident.  And I had to pay that freaking food bill in full.  Wrong move Chili's Greenbelt.  I will make sure that our paths would never ever cross again.

I turn my back on you Chili's