“The customer is always right”- an adage which is often abided by, with staff biting their tongues when faced with testing customers.
However, with customers now able to voice their opinions on the internet slanderous reviews are visible to anyone with a computer or basic Wi-Fi access.
On the review site TripAdvisor, a few customers may be surprised to find businesses have responded to them in a less than conventional manner, as collated by Heart.co.uk.
A customer who paid £2 for a cup of hot water with a slice of lemon at a café in York received a surprising response from the manager.
Hannah C wrote: "When I asked why I was being charged so much for some water the waiter rudely said ‘well, do you know how much a lemon costs?’ Yes, it’s definitely not £2.”
Instead of receiving an apology, the Manager at Bennetts café and bistro gave a breakdown of all the costs that justified the charge. He detailed the waiter’s tasks, which included taking the order, going to the kitchen, selecting a chopping board and knife, pouring in hot water, bringing the cup to the table and then clearing the table.
He then mentioned the costs of overheads for the business, trading, wage, suppliers, before telling the customer: “Perhaps the rudeness you perceived in me was triggered by the disrespect that I perceived in you by your presumption that you could use our facilities and be waited on for free.”
Another customer who waited for 55 minutes for a table said she was “repulsed” by a waiter who had a septum piercing and earlobe plugs. The customer compared the dining experience to a “freak show,” as she was also served by a female waitress with a tattoo sleeve – at a Hard Rock Café in Edinburgh.
The manager, Ben Greig apologised for the customers wait, but defended his staff by stating the restaurant's motto: ‘Love all, serve all’.
“It’s sad you couldn’t look past his appearance and see him for the genuine, nice guy that he is," he said.
A displeased customer who dined at Café 52 in Aberdeen was not in good spirits following an incident of a waitress dropping a wine glass, which injured one of the party attendees.
The reviewer wrote: "At no time did the manager apologise for this incident nor did he offer any form of recompense at the end of the meal we suggested a gesture of good will but he was reluctant.”
However, Owner Steven Bothwell responded: “I revisited your table about 15 minutes before you were going to leave and the vino had made its bed in your head. At which point you started feeling my back side.... this is how it went."
