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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Starbucks St Albans SHAME ON YOU!

217 replies

StarkAndWitchesWillFindYou · 30/10/2010 21:22

After dragging my two preschoolers (one with asd) all over town house hunting we take them into your cafe for a promised drink and marshmellow lollipop.

DH has to queue for ages as you only have one member of staff serving. My children sit quitely, well-behaved and expectantly.

You tell my DH as he is ordering that you close at 6pm (earlier than published time)but that he is welcome to sit down. It is 5:58pm. He orders.

As SOON as the children receive their consumables one of your staff members comes around saying that you are closed. We say politely 'okay'. A minute later we are told that you really need to close and can we now leave.

We point out that we were sold our items and told we could sit down. You tell us that you have already let us stay there for 5 minutes and that we were told that you were closing. You tell us that there was obviously some mis-communication but it wasn't from you because you were very clear.

We mention to our autistic ds that he needs to finish his drink but he gets distressed at the implication that the promised milkshake is about to be taken off him. This results in a meltdown making it difficult for us to get his coat on. All the while one of your member of staff is arguing with us and telling us to hurry up making ds (And now dd) more distressed.

Your member of staff tells us that she is now not being paid for the time. I tell her to take it up with her managers.

And I'm taking it up with you here!

OP posts:
Trillian · 31/10/2010 15:16

I am sorry but I think YABVU it is not the staffs problem that you took your children in to a closing coffee shop then expected to be allowed to sit there for how ever long to prevent your child having a melt down.

Why should they be expected to stay open just so your child can have a milkshake?
Having a special needs child does not mean the world has to revolve around them and you

Original poster
StarkAndWitchesWillFindYou · 31/10/2010 15:27

'Having a special needs child does not mean the world has to revolve around them and you'

Where have I said it should? I didn't mention it to the staff. I am not complaining about the staff's treatment of an autistic child. I am complaining about staffs treatment of a young family who were put in a difficult position because of their bad customer service, and then who proceded to blame the family for the inevitable fall-out.

OP posts:
leandro · 31/10/2010 15:29

I wouldn't complain if I were you, you knew the shop closed at 6 and so your staying beyond that time is at the staffs discretion which they didn't give you so you should have left. I wouldn't leave it so late next time

pagwatch · 31/10/2010 15:35

How bloody stupid.
The staff charged drink in price, served in drink in cups. They did so in the full knowledge that it takes 10 mins or so to drink a drink.
They are idiots

If people working in a coffees shop don't know that it takes 10 mins to drink a drink then they should be looking for a job were being a total twat is acceptable.
They should have said, 'no sorry - we can only serve you take away as we are closing up'. When they didn't do that they obliged themselves to let the op finish up.

If I go into a shop at 5.58 and the assistant tells me I can go try a dress on then she can't start banging on the door telling me to get out now. Same thing.

Original poster
StarkAndWitchesWillFindYou · 31/10/2010 15:36

How would I know it shut at 6pm? There was nothing on the door about it.

OP posts:
SauvignonBlanche · 31/10/2010 15:36

Twats - complain!

scarylooker · 31/10/2010 15:46

I know that Starbucks, they're a bit strange in there - it's always really busy with businesspersons running the world on their laptops and hogging the tables for hours (on the basis of a single coffee) while tutting loudly at anyone who has the temerity to sit within a 20 metre radius of them. Miserable buggers! Maybe the staff are understandably fed up and can't wait to clock off!

Go to Costa instead, the staff there are charming. One of my ds recently knocked an entire hot chocolate to the floor, all over me and all over the table and floor. I was really embarrassed at the mess, but a wonderful young lady not only insisted that she cleared it up (while I faffed about with tissues and apologies), but also replaced the drink free of charge (despite my protests that it was completely our fault it had ended up on the floor). Or try the Beech Tree Cafe opposite Morrisons, haven't been for ages but they serve wonderful strong coffee and homemade cakes.

Original poster
StarkAndWitchesWillFindYou · 31/10/2010 16:31

Brilliant scary! Now you have solved my coffee shop problems, are you able to solve our house-buying problems.

Need something affordable within walking distance of Aboyne Lodge for 2 adults and 3 children. What do you think? Any chance this century?

OP posts:
Trillian · 31/10/2010 16:40

Clearly you expected them to stay open to avoid your child having a melt down.
You went in just before 6, you were told they were closing, and yet you still feel hard done by.

Would you have had such an issue with it if you had just been able to leave without the meltdown????

I am sorry but you are being unreasonable

GeorgeOsborne · 31/10/2010 16:46

I think if they served you in china mugs they were BU. Clearly it is going to take longer than 2 mins to finish your drink.

But I think YABU not to just take it up with SB directly.

JeMeSouviens · 31/10/2010 16:55

They didn't go in just before 6pm. OP says he dh waited for AgES to be served, was served at 5.58 and was then told they were closing at 6pm, but that he was welcome to sit down, which would lead me to believe, sit down, finish your coffee, not just sit down until we make your drinks then you can eff off

ItsGhoulAgain · 31/10/2010 17:03

Sounds like an irritating end to a depressing day, Stark :( St Alban's is overpriced upmarket, isn't it? No chance of looking somewhere a bit further out (is Colney still cheaper for housing?) then using the train to get to school?

Wishing you better luck, anyway :)

FolornHope · 31/10/2010 17:03

i think tis not the end of the wold
things happen
get over it

MrsJohnDeere · 31/10/2010 17:12

Yabu but so were they.

Fwiw the customer service in that branch is always slow and rude. Strongly recommend the little coffee shop opposite(ish) BHS instead.

elastaghoul · 31/10/2010 17:18

Ohh, St albans... I used to live within walking distance of Aybone Lodge before my twat of an ex moved us to Derbyshire and then dumped us Sad

BTW the coffee shop next door to starbucks is much nicer - and cheaper!!

Original poster
StarkAndWitchesWillFindYou · 31/10/2010 17:32

ItsG Unfortunately the houses next to stations either side of St Albans are even more expensive, but I suppose I could look at bus routes.

Trillian No, I expected them to stay open because we had been waiting ages for our drinks, they said we could sit down and we paid 'drink in' prices. The consequence of their poor customer service was that my ds had a meltdown, but then so did I!

OP posts:
Original poster
StarkAndWitchesWillFindYou · 31/10/2010 17:33

Thanks Mrs and Elasta. I have a good list of coffee shops for the next depressing wander around trying to find a house that will fit us and two very bouncy children in.

OP posts:
newwave · 31/10/2010 21:46

I would have got out my phone and told her i was recoring the incident and it would be posted on Facebook and sent to Head Office.

This one does work even if your phone does not record, puts the fear of God into stroppy staff.

extremepie · 31/10/2010 23:18

I worked in a Starbucks for 2 years and I would never have spoken to a customer like this, especially one with young children! Half and hour before we closed we would tell every customer that we were closing and serve them in takeaway cups so they had the option of taking the drink with them if they chose, and I know for a fact that it takes at least an hour to close and clean all the equipment so them saying they won't be paid for their time is complete bt! Unless you are prepared to work an hour for free in which case you are an idiot anyway! I would complain, maybe in a letter, they usually take that kind of thing pretty seriously as you pay a premium for their services so there is even less excuse for that kind of blatent rudeness! Say you feel 'disappointed' or 'let down' by them, you never know they might offer you something to try and make it up to you :D

Trillian · 01/11/2010 09:16

Oh for crying out loud, they did their jobs, it is not their fault your husband had to queue, it is not their fault you went in there at the end of the day, it is not their fault your child has a condition that will always make life hell, it is not their fault he/you had a melt down, and for someone to say oh tell them you are recording it and will put it on face book, grow up.

If the only thing you have to worry over in life is that you could not sit and have your child drink a bloody drink then you are doing bloody better then most.

Get over it, I am off to starbucks!!!!

Bunnyjo · 01/11/2010 09:38

YABU for going to Starbucks - I much prefer Costa Grin

I do think Starbucks should have pointed out to your DH that they were only doing takeaway orders and that the doors shut at 6pm. I never go to Starbucks ( IMO, their coffee is horrid), always Costa, but both of our local Costa shops stop serving drinks 30 minutes before closing time, giving customers more than enough time to enjoy what they have paid for.

cupcakesandbunting · 01/11/2010 10:10

YABU because they told your DH they were closing in two minutes. He should have asked for the drinks in take-out cups or opted to go elsewhere. You say that this wasn't an option as your DS would have gone into meltdown. Well, that's yours to deal with. Common sense would tell me that it wasn't feasible to down hot drinks in two minutes. You were supplied with this information and chose to stay anyway. Hmm

GettinGhoulish · 01/11/2010 10:16

YANBU, they could have just locked the doors to stop anybody else from coming in and let you drink up while they got on with clearing up/whatever.

I should complain and not bother to go there again.

TheEvilDead2 · 01/11/2010 10:19

Well god forbid they had shut their doors 15 minutes early like in the Clarks shoes thread. This is why you can't let some on in 2 minutes before a store shuts down.

cupcakesandbunting · 01/11/2010 10:23

What exactly would OP complain about, GettinGhoulish? That the world isn't revolving around her individual set of circumstances quite as much as she would like?