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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To expect free butter when ordering a jacket potato in debenhams?

72 replies

hophophippidtyhop · 20/06/2011 16:35

We went into Debenhams cafe last week. Under the name of the cafe, originally titled 'Deli', was written 'Soups, Salads, Sandwiches, Jackets'. Decided to have a jacket potato for lunch, got to the counter to be told you have to wait 25 mintues for jacket potatoes. Am I being unreasonable to expect a cafe that has them written up as a main attraction to have them ready to serve? Most places have them ready to go, unless they have run out - not the case here.
AIBU to also expect two of those tiny wrapped pats of butter with it included in the price - they wanted an extra 8p a pat for these?
And another gripe while I'm at it - they had the children's meals written up as being served with 'potato and vegetables' -am I being pendantic when I ask for beans and broccoli to be told "you can only have 1 vegetable" ?
In the grand scheme of things it's not that important, but Dp and I sat there whinging like a couple of victor meldrews and wondered if it was just us, or if it was a justified gripe! Couldn't be arsed to complain, I really would have felt like a grumpy old woman, but would like to know I wouldn't have been the only moany one!

OP posts:
Bettyblackeye · 20/06/2011 16:42

You do sound a bit grumpy but so am I so I will join you. I paid £150 for the four of us to eat out last Christmas day, the turkey came and was really dry, hardly any gravy at all. The waitress asks if the meal is ok? I say could I have some more gravy please. She comes back with a thimble full of gravy and tells me I will be charged £1 for it, £1 for extra gravy when I've already paid £150 for the meal!! I didn't end up paying for it though as I swiftly asked for the manager! So I think yanbu :o

Honeydragon · 20/06/2011 16:44

They have become utterly shit. I haven't gone since they took my payment and then told me it would not be a 10 minute wait, but 30 minutes for two childrens meals. When i refused and demanded a refund they refused to refund the adult meal as that would've been ready within the 10 minutes and they had ALREADY STARTED IT Hmm

I got my money back after telling them exactly what I thought. The kids and I went to the local Chinese restaurant, spent the same amount of money and were served wonderful food in under 10 minutes from ordering.

Lesson learned for me Smile

Original poster
hophophippidtyhop · 20/06/2011 16:48

Wow, that beats the butter! I'm not normally that moany, but to first be told potatoes were cooked to order, then only one veg on the children's meal and then no butter when the potato turned up, I just thought 'Feck me, they don't you anything these days!'

OP posts:
Original poster
hophophippidtyhop · 20/06/2011 16:49

or even 'they don't GIVE you anything these days!'

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BupcakesandCunting · 20/06/2011 16:50

Debenhams cafes are SHIT and very expensive. I don't know how they stay in business, I really don't. They advertise a six-item breakfast at £4.99 with a free slice of toast. Yeah, cheers for the gratis slice of Mighty White, street value 7 pence. Fucking tightwads.

Pumpernickel10 · 20/06/2011 16:51

No way are you being unreasonable, 8p for butter?thats daylight robbery.

Docbunches · 20/06/2011 16:54

YANBU on both counts.

Perhaps slightly less so with the second example, but charging extra for butter to go with jacket potatoes is really money-grabbing. If it had just been built-in to the price, no-one would even notice.

I remember once being quite shocked to be charged something like 5p for a sachet of vinegar. Again, I'd expect these small extras to be factored-in.

FetchezLaVache · 20/06/2011 16:55

What BupCakes said. Utter overpriced shit. Never again.

EightiesChick · 20/06/2011 16:56

YANBU. Don't go again. Mine is handy for food DS likes but the waiting around for things to be cooked is tedious. It's not as if it's Gordon Ramsay level.

BootyMum · 20/06/2011 16:58

Poor customer service imo. Jacket potato should come with butter - that is the RULE! I mean even Nandos give you butter with your corn cob.

And to be so pedantic re "only one vegetable" with children's meals...

Well it doesn't exactly inspire me to eat there. Small things maybe but eating out is a treat and you want to feel well looked after not like an inconvenience or an afterthought.

YANBU!

Original poster
hophophippidtyhop · 20/06/2011 17:01

Glad my gripings are justified. It was the first time I've had food in there. We were in Brighton in the shopping centre, it was pouring with rain and I just didn't want to go out in it to find somewhere else. Not again though.

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DoodleAlley · 20/06/2011 17:57

Sainsburys don't give you butter with jacket potaoes and dont warn you. So if you've ordered a jacket it'll be delivered without butter and if you want it you've got to queue again to buy it separately. Not ideal with a fidgety toddler!

You have been warned!

eyethangyou · 20/06/2011 17:59

BettyBlackEye - you ate at a Debenhams caff on Christmas Day? Confused

Bettyblackeye · 20/06/2011 18:13

Ha ha! No I was just telling my grumpy story, I felt right ripped off by the lack of gravy with my Christmas meal. £1 when I had already paid £150, I nearly through the plate at them. I would agree though that debenhams is an absolute rip off though the food is usually very over cooked and really expensive. Boycott it I say :o

Mandy2003 · 20/06/2011 18:26

Apparently there's a cafe in my local Debenhams. I've never found it though, judging by this thread I can count myself lucky!

ENormaSnob · 20/06/2011 18:34

Yanbu

I went to the Manchester city centre one a few weeks ago and it was utterly shite.

Terrible service and the food was disgusting.

Won't be returning ever again.

zipzap · 21/06/2011 09:36

My dad once asked for some chips to go with his steak in a restaurant and they refused because the owner didn't believe that people should have chips with steak Shock. He complained, owner got into quite a tizz about it. (my dad was exceptionally good at complaining when things needed to be said - great usually unless I was in the receiving end of it!).

Can't remember if he got his chips but a couple of years later he happened to be listening to the radio, heard the restaurant owner being interviewed and he was asked about his strange views on chips, whereon he said that he had to be right as in all his time doing it only one gentleman had complained - my dad Grin. The idiot completely ignored the lost custom from all the people that coulnt be bothered to go back but hadn't complained and other miserable diners who wanted chips but didn't feel able to say amything. He also didn't mention my dad had received a round of applause from the rest of the diners when he finished complaining...

Mind you it can go the other way when things are too cheap... Some friends took another couple out to dinner at their nice cheap local Italian. As they got close the guy said 'we're not going to xxx are we?'

Oh yes say the friends, great food, good prices, friendly owners etc. We go there lots.

At which point the guy - a senior police guy - said keep walking on past it (they were there at this point) I can't go in there, it's under constant police supervision for being a mafia money laundering place, and you need to stop going in too otherwise you'll be investigated too!

That was an end of being able to pop to their nice friendly local mafia sponsored trattoria Grin

zipzap · 21/06/2011 09:38

Oh and what I meant to say was yadnbu, whereas they were, as were the people that even thought of charging for gravy at Xmas.

manchestermummy · 21/06/2011 09:56

Yanbu!

I was in Debenhams getting myself and DD1 lunch. DD1 spotted the little water bottles on the kids' lunchbox stand and wanted one. The sign about clearly stated that lunchboxes could only have a cordial thing (forget what exactly) or milk. I queried this and was told of course she could have water. I told them to change their sign. They said they didn't need to Hmm

olderyetwider · 21/06/2011 10:00

YANBU. What really pisses me off though, is sandwich/jacket potato shops who say 'do you want butter', then when you say yes, they smother the damn thing in marge, rendering it inedible (to me, can't stand the stuff, but love butter)

If I remember, I'll ask, but why can't they just say bloody marge if they mean bloody marge!

And by the way, shop owners, those 'bugger me it's marge' products do not taste just like butter!

Feel better now.

Toughasoldboots · 21/06/2011 10:04

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Animation · 21/06/2011 10:06

YANBU

How tight is that!

Thanks for the tip off. I won't be eating in Debenhams if I can help it.

octopusinabox · 21/06/2011 10:10

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
hophophippidtyhop · 21/06/2011 10:12

I also really hate it when they put the topping all over so it's hard to put the butter in without mashing the top in - acceptable with cheese, but not chilli. I think it's because I'm an 'on the side' person!

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HappyAsIAm · 21/06/2011 10:15

I am in my local town centre once a week (at least) with DS (3 yo) and we always have our lunch in town - coffe shops, bistros, delis and the like. There is a cafe in the Debenhams store, but I have always refused to go in there - overpriced, stale smell, slow service etc. And now that you've given your experience I know I will never be tempted to go in!