Somehow, I seem to have made it my mission to seek out stupid-ass, 1-star Facebook reviews for restaurants and make sure the review is justified. Nine times out of ten, it isn’t. Case in point? This review of a Mexican restaurant in Houston, Texas:
What we have here is a misunderstanding of what customer service is. It appears that Ritu has very specific dietary needs. For all we know, she is gluten-free or allergic to shellfish or sensitive to dairy or just an all around pain in the ass. My money is on the latter. Ritu went to the Facebook page of Cuchara Restaurant and sent them a message asking them to provide suggestions off the menu that might work for her. The restaurant, very wisely, suggested she go to their website so that she can see the entire menu and make an educated decision. According to Ritu, that was “really rude” and they offered “no customer service.”
Umm, sorry Ritu, but that is customer service. You asked a question and they told you where you could find the answer. It isn’t a restaurant’s job to hire someone to sit at a computer all day and answer random questions about your dietary needs. It’s your diet and you should have a general idea of what you can and cannot eat. For example, if you are gluten free, you should only eat the corn tortillas. If you’re allergic to shellfish, stay away from the spicy shrimp. If you’re sensitive to dairy, don’t order the cheese quesadillas. And if you’re a pain in the ass, stay the fuck at home. You probably asked a lot of questions via Facebook messenger and maybe it was simpler for them to advise you to look at the menu yourself. Or maybe, if your diet is so freaking specific, you could even use your phone to call the restaurant and speak to someone in person. But relying on Facebook messenger to have all your questions answered and then leaving a 1-star review before you even eat there seems pretty darn petty, Ritu.
Everyone has a right to leave a bad review about a restaurant. All I ask is that they have a good reason to do so. Not liking that the staff suggested you look at the website rather than them spoon feeding you the answers you want to hear is not a good enough reason Sorry, Ritu. Please try again.
The Prozac Queen
…and how much do you want to bet that, if the server *had* made suggestions, Ritu would find something else to complain about? And it would be just as lame?
kristi
Wow! I go to this restaurant and they do NOT deserve a one star review. Stupid person.
Mary
Fuck off, Ritu?
Siobhan Nolan
Reviews can be absolutely inane. Which is why, if I’m looking at them for a place or product..I READ them. To see if the stars (or whatever) given is actually justified. My husband is an author. He writes paranormal noir murder mysteries. The descriptions of the books on amazon (and everywhere else they are sold) are very detailed. He got a bad review from someone who disliked it because there was violence. In a book about 20’s gangsters, ghosts and MURDER. So….yeah.
Know it all
Suggesting the website was definitely the right thing to do. Why would you trust a stupid restaurant employee to help you out? You might be dealing with waitstaff, who have no clue how to wait tables, much less know anything about the food they serve. And then they would probably expect a tip for their stupidity! Only you know what is best for you.
Freddy L.
Saw some guy leave a 1 star review of Larder Baking Co. (featured on The Chew) because he lives in a different state and therefore their products aren’t available to him. Only review on their page that isn’t 5 stars. Wanted to rip into him, but I bit my tongue. He didn’t seem very bright.
Carlien
oh no this patrons in general are extremely entitled rude cheap and don’t listen, but they are fast at complaining for everything. And if they are dr even worst the is no difference between the males or females they talk down at you and pretty much treat you like a slaves I haven’t had one good experience with them. No matter how hard we tried. Sad because they make sure they tell our manager I’m a Dr a Lawyer a engineer so they have book education but have no class what so ever.
Carlien
oh no this patrons in general are extremely entitled rude cheap and don’t listen, but they are fast at complaining for everything. And if they are dr even worst the is no difference between the males or females they talk down at you and pretty much treat you like a slaves I have or had one good experience with them. No matter how hard we tried.
Chol
Where dietary needs are concerned, it’s policy for pretty much every restaurant to refer guests to a menu or an ingredient list to make their own informed decision, rather than relying on a potentially uninformed server/counter worker’s word. It’s not a matter of being rude or lazy, it’s a business covering its own ass by making a patron *gasp!* make their own informed decision! The horror!
Tricia
You mean we have to think for ourselves??!?? The nerve!
The Prozac Queen
…not to mention that many restaurants have pretty extensive menus that would take a long time for someone to go over on the phone, especially high-end and “foreign” restaurants like the one I work at…much easier to read the damned thing for yourself and ask about specific items than expect someone to go over it with you when they have other customers…
Glen
What a bad (not even) customer.
I had to IM her asking her to take down her FALSE review. I’ll update if she replies.
Marion
LOVE THIS!