Afternoon tea difficulty

I would…

Or the customer could order something that is not part of a set menu so they have more choice.

The only thing on offer at this hotel is presumably not afternoon tea.

Op and her friends have chosen to go to a place that does not meet the vegetarian needs of one of the guests...logic would say 1) ask if changes can be made 2)when told no due to set afternoon tea menu, guest who wants the change either orders something else off the menu or the party chooses to dine elsewhere

No making up allergies needed.

That’s not what the OP said though, she specifically said that the friend only eats sandwiches that are cheese. If the other sandwiches are also not suitable for her ladyship then she can jog on - this person is a pain in the arse and I wouldn’t be going to all this effort to accommodate someone who thinks she’s special.

What about the attitude of being annoyed that a place lied to get a booking, then changed it later in the hope it was inconvenient to change and so they would still get the money, suggests anything negative about the OP?

Yes, but the OP's attitude and expectations suggest she may not be a totally reliable witness.

One person's prestige hotel is another person's four-star chain.

Agreed!

The facility should be able to knock-up a cheese sandwich if asked, it shouldn’t have to take the customer to lie to be able to get it. If it not possible for anyone, that’s a different story.

No, not so be it!!!!
And it’s on liars when they lie.

Probably not the Ritz but OP did say it was a prestige hotel that charged a lot.

But he’d manage to knock up a cheese sandwich I’m sure.

It shouldn’t have to take an allergy or food intolerance for this simple sandwich but if that’s what the customer has to say to be able to get it, then so be it! That’s on the facility.

Somehow, I don't think this hotel was The Ritz.

The Ritz has the staff and the budget to do anything its clients want.

Sorry, missed that.

It’s very much not okay to lie about having an allergy.

DC has food allergies/anaphylaxis and it’s really upsetting that people do this. He is less safe as a result because restaurants sometimes only half believe him re the allergies. And that’s a direct consequence of others lying about having them.

The point is though, if someone is allergic to eg eggs they’ll say either in advance or at the point of ordering and ensure what they order is egg free. They won’t say for example “can the Victoria sandwich be served egg free” (for example) and then claim an “allergy” when told no.

He will if he can, but it’s not always possible eg if it’s a pre prepared cake or something and the alleged “allergen” is baked in! All he can do then if offer an alternative

And does he make the change for them?

Exactly

My husband is a chef and this happens all the time. People ask for things on menus to be changed and if they are told it’s not possible for whatever reason people then suddenly claim it is an allergy

OP stated in her opening post

AIBU to not leave them a tip, grumble on Trip Advisor and complain to them?

So what do you call grumble on Trip Advisor if not a bad online review?

Your suggestion of lying is also really unfair on people who do actually have allergies and are taken less seriously because of people like you

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It's hard enough with allergies without someone suggesting that they pretend they have an allergy just to get a plain cheese sandwich! 😡
When the much better option would be book somewhere that caters for vegetarians in the first place....

I very much doubt the hotel wants their customers to lie about having allergies! It’s much easier to cater for a preference than an allergy. Someone could die if you get it wrong with an allergy. It’s stressful all round.

Your suggestion of lying is also really unfair on people who do actually have allergies and are taken less seriously because of people like you.

You’re just making things up (again!!) about the review. OP has never indicated she’d leave a bad review about this and has dismissed at least one pp who made a similar suggestion.

They’d rather the customer lie saying they have an allergy or food intolerance to get what they need, rather than bring their own cheese sandwiches in a Tupperware box to a prestigious hotel followed by a bad review online.

So you come on!

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I presume prestige hotels would want their customers to have a pleasant afternoon and actually enjoy the food they were paying for. If anything, prestige hotels tend to bend over backwards to meet their customer’s (sometimes eccentric) requests. Asking for a cheese sandwich wouldn’t even register as an inconvenience at The Ritz. They’d be delighted to agree to what is a very modest request.

Yes, ‘prestige’ seems to have become a synonym for ‘snooty, incompetent and inflexible’.

It is fussy eating and I presume if the everyone in the OP wanted food that a 6 year old would make they would eat at home, it is a venue it has a menu I would either eat there or not, no I do not as for alternatives as for a high tea if there is only one thing I wont eat I would leave that and eat everything else, a 6 year old may have a tantrum ovet it me as a grown up would just move on