Dine Out Vancouver Disappointment

Submitted by Roland on Fri, 01/30/2004 - 23:43

We hardly ever write negative things here but after a disappointing Dine Out Vancouver experience tonight, I had to write something!

There's no point in a restaurant putting on a promotion if they are not going to do it right.

Tonight is not the first night that we've been disappointed with a restaurant execution of a promotional offer. It doesn't just happen during Dine Out Vancouver unfortunately.

All I can say to restaurants is: the people you disappoint and treat disrespectfully at a promotion will give you the worst kind of publicity: a bad review that will be passed on by word of mouth.

It's not as if diners in Vancouver have a limited choice. We'll just go elsewhere if you treat us badly at one of your promotions.

And conversely if you treat us with respect like Cafe Katzenjammer did with their promotion on Wednesday night and Zin did in 2003, we'll be back and recommend your restaurant! And we recommend both Cafe Katzenjammer and Zin!


Dept:

Comments

Ken (not verified)

Tue, 05/04/2004 - 17:25

So what was the name of the restaurant? Any update in resolving the "negative" experience you had? Just like what some other poster said above, I appreciate extracting the positives and negatives of your reviews. Seeing only positives is rather one-sided, I must say.

Philip (not verified)

Sun, 02/15/2004 - 17:51

Must give a thumbs up here for GLOWBAL during this DOV promo. Their food and service was EXCELLENT. I patronise this restaurant every now and then and noticed that their service during such promo (they were swamped) is still as top notch as any other night. This is simply one of my favourite places to eat in the ENTIRE world. They make wicked martinis as well :-) They have their restaurant craft down pact!!

Roland Tanglao (not verified)

Sun, 02/15/2004 - 22:31

thanks Philip! Good to know most people had a better DOV experience than we did!

shane (not verified)

Fri, 02/06/2004 - 21:39

Sorry Roland, I was actually referring to some of the comments on this topic...

Robin (not verified)

Thu, 02/05/2004 - 11:02

Why aren't you naming names? Seems a little incongruous to say "All I can say to restaurants is: the people you disappoint and treat disrespectfully at a promotion will give you the worst kind of publicity: a bad review that will be passed on by word of mouth.." and then NOT tell us which restaurant was less than stellar in its treatment of you guys. Just as we enjoy reading about your positive reviews which do name places, don't you think we'd extract a similar value from your negative ones?

Roland Tanglao (not verified)

Thu, 02/05/2004 - 21:46

hmmm, you have a point there, thinking about it!

shane (not verified)

Wed, 02/04/2004 - 21:41

Most of these comments are valid, but COME ON - complaining of small portions and simple food when you're paying 25 bucks for 3 courses?!? News flash for you... Restaurants don't have a high profit margin. Food costs are high, labour is higher & we pretty much pay the same for booze as you do in the liquor store. WE CANNOT AFFORD TO GIVE YOU FOIE GRAS AND TRUFFLES FOR DINE OUT VANCOUVER!! If we do, it's going to be a small portion. If you expect the same quality and quantity of things for 1/3 the price, those places would go under by summer. Know why the staff are cranky? Owners can't afford big labour, so everyone is completely overworked! Some things never change, and one of them is "You get what you pay for!" A sad truth, yes, but you have to be a realist about things.

Roland Tanglao (not verified)

Thu, 02/05/2004 - 21:51

yes, you are right Shane about the low profit margins of most restaurants and the low pay for the staff (which is why i always try to tip well) i didn't complain about small portions and simple food; the food was actually not bad! i complained about the service and attitude i realize that $25 is probably a wee bit of a loss leader for most higher end restaurants anyways we ordered lots of alcohol and other extras (I personally had a glass of wine, a cocktail and a bottle of sparkling water (not wine as i mistakenly posted earlier)) so I am sure that they made some profit from us (and probably more than most dine out patrons)

shane (not verified)

Wed, 02/04/2004 - 21:41

Most of these comments are valid, but COME ON - complaining of small portions and simple food when you're paying 25 bucks for 3 courses?!? News flash for you... Restaurants don't have a high profit margin. Food costs are high, labour is higher & we pretty much pay the same for booze as you do in the liquor store. WE CANNOT AFFORD TO GIVE YOU FOIE GRAS AND TRUFFLES FOR DINE OUT VANCOUVER!! If we do, it's going to be a small portion. If you expect the same quality and quantity of things for 1/3 the price, those places would go under by summer. Know why the staff are cranky? Owners can't afford big labour, so everyone is completely overworked! Some things never change, and one of them is "You get what you pay for!" A sad truth, yes, but you have to be a realist about things.

alan (not verified)

Tue, 02/03/2004 - 09:15

So far I've gone to West, Zin, La Terrazza, Elixir, Feenie's, and tonight I'm off to Cru. I've had pretty good experiences at most of the restaurants, the friendliest being West and Zin so far. Actually, my favourite has been West - loved the food, the environment, and the people. And also, the phyllo wrapped white chocolate cheesecake over at La Terrazza was to DIE for.

Erin Jeffery (not verified)

Tue, 02/03/2004 - 08:21

We went to Kettle of Fish for Dining Out and it was great. All patrons were given the option of using the dining out menu or not-the menu was placed inside the regular menu. The service was great and the food was lovely. My only comment is that the entre was a little on the small side (perfect for me, less perfect for Martin), but other than that-it was great AND we are definately going again on another "not Dine Out" night.

Roland Tanglao (not verified)

Tue, 02/03/2004 - 22:07

excellent, glad you and martin enjoyed your dine out experience! funny how 1 or 2 bad incidents can spoil the whole idea of promotions for me!

Irene (not verified)

Mon, 02/02/2004 - 12:15

Had dinner at West last night. Didn't notice a change in the service from any other night. The servers were efficient and friendly, as usual. Eating at C tonight. Made the reservation at the beginning on January, and found that choosing a time was already tight. I was told then that there were only a few seatings left. I've also noticed a lot of risotto and gnocchi on the various menus. Wish the restaurants would be a bit more creative.

Roland Tanglao (not verified)

Mon, 02/02/2004 - 20:05

i am very glad to hear that others are having mostly good experiences! thanks irene!

Roland Tanglao (not verified)

Sun, 02/01/2004 - 22:34

hi godfrey, we won't be naming names but we will take it up with the restaurant via email

Godfrey (not verified)

Sat, 01/31/2004 - 19:00

I think the bad service during Dine-Out is because those servers are used to big tips from big dinner bills. Obviously the more expensive the meal is the more tip they get. So if you're a dine-out customer then they get less tip for the same amount of effort. That's why they treat you like dirt. I just wish the restaurant owners are aware of what's going on.

ernie (not verified)

Sat, 01/31/2004 - 15:33

Dine-out seems to get some restaurants into the idea of showcasing cheaper than normal menus to make up for the $25 pricing, which is just stupid. This year's menus seemed weaker than last too. Considering how wai-sik I am, I'm surprised I didn't go to any this year.

SaabKen (not verified)

Sat, 01/31/2004 - 08:15

We didn't do the Dine-Out Vancouver experience, but heard from a few friends that they were not treated as well as "regular" customers on the basis of them being DOV customers. One of these restaurants is a very prominent location on W. Broadway just east of Trafalgar (hint, hint). Too bad. Ken