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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Or was this restaurant useless?

141 replies

mslevine86 · 22/02/2018 15:10

Starting to doubt myself a bit so thought I would ask for opinions.
Last night was our anniversary and OH had booked a restaurant, told him to keep where it was a surprise but knew it would probably be one of about three places.
Turned up at said restaurant and it was closed!! Ok surely a mistake made somewhere, rang them no answer, stood outside in the cold. Went on their Facebook page and there was a post from the previous day stating they were shut from Tuesday til Thursday (no reason) my OH has fb but doesn't really use it and clearly hadn't seen the post. I didn't know we were going there and don't follow the place on fb as haven't been before so I didn't see it either. Checked his phone and they had actually tried to call him a week ago, one missed call. Rang voicemail number as no notification that they've left one and there was a message from them to say can you give us a ring please? He was in work at the time and it wasn't saved in his phone so ok he could have checked who had rang him, but could but am I being unreasonable that they should have made more effort to let us know? In this day and age a text even? And if it was something like this rang more than once? He had actually rang them yesterday afternoon to confirm with them as it's a 'fine dining' type of place (tasting menu wine flight etc) and he would have spent quite a bit on the meal and drinks, when we've eaten at these types of places before they normally ring to confirm were still coming. They have a cancellation policy on the website that if the customer cancels with less than 48 hours notice they charge 50 pound per head so although they didn't answer he assumed all was ok.
I was really disappointed as was my OH and commented on their post to tell them we were stood outside and did they think it was acceptable to which I've not yet had a response and I've drafted what I think is a very reasonable message to tell them this in detail as I think we deserve an apology. Luckily we managed to get in at another restaurant after my OH phoned round a few places so it wasn't a wasted journey but it wasn't what he had planned so did put a bit of a downer on the evening.

OP posts:

BoomBoomsCousin · 23/02/2018 04:59

Sorry, Red you're right. I was reading "yesterday" and thinking "day before they ate". Still, not while "he was stood outside" the restaurant, and still time to rearrange a table for the evening.

HuskyMcClusky · 23/02/2018 05:04

YANBU.

They should have left a message saying they were going to be closed!

Leaving a message saying ‘call us’ is not good enough.

HuskyMcClusky · 23/02/2018 05:07

surely, he checked the Facebook page not just the website?
After all, this is 2018 - not 1998.

Huh? I don’t have Facebook, yet I eat in restaurants often. Ditto many of my friends. Its normal, even in 2018.

DalekDalekDalek · 23/02/2018 05:45

They rang and left a message asking you to call them back? Sure it would have been helpful to mention in the message that they were closed but tbh not their fault that you didn't pick up the message.

YABU

PositiveVibes18 · 23/02/2018 06:01

No offence to you but they put it on their Facebook, rang your DH and left a voicemail. They don't have time to be chasing up everyone. YABVVVVVU

HuskyMcClusky · 23/02/2018 06:03

They don't have time to be chasing up everyone.

What?! Of course they do. It takes 20 seconds to leave an actual informative voicemail saying they can’t honour the booking.

skittycat · 23/02/2018 07:39

I think your husband is at fault here. Even if they had said in their voicemail that they were closed he still wouldn’t have listened to it therefore the same thing would have happened.

Did he ring to confirm at a time when the restaurant was supposed to be open? If so why did he only try the once and gave up when he got no answer? Ringing more than once and getting no answer surely would have flagged something was amiss.

Butterymuffin · 23/02/2018 08:51

They should have said they were closed in the voicemail. Stupid of them not to.

Doublechocolatetiffin · 23/02/2018 09:34

I don’t think it was managed brilliantly. They should have told your DH in the voicemail that there was a problem with his booking and ideally tried again if they hadn’t heard from him. I’ve frequently had restaurants call to confirm boooking and they have always tried again if they didn’t get an answer so it can’t be that hard for them. I would assume that they would try harder if they were reneging on a commitment.

For me it’s the same as if you were cancelling meeting a friend, I would be concerned if I’d left a message saying call me but heard nothing back. I would make more effort to contact them again.

Ideally, they should also have left a similar message on their answerphone saying that they’d be closed so if people called they’d know. Probably a note on their web page too.

OP I can see why you were a bit irritated.

diddl · 23/02/2018 10:15

". Even if they had said in their voicemail that they were closed he still wouldn’t have listened to it therefore the same thing would have happened."

But even though he didn't listen to the message-he did call them back, as requested.

There was no answer from them & no message left at that number.

chocorabbit · 23/02/2018 10:18

Give them a call???

People at work can't always use their phone and many are not allowed to use it at all. At night who knows how many messages and calls might have piled up which can be easily missed?! People drive and are not allowed to use hold the phone either. Or are in public transport and there is too much noise to hear. A few rings or even better a text would have been a lot better.

YADNBU

Oh, this has just reminded me to charge my phone which has turned off. Who knows how many missed calls I might have

chocorabbit · 23/02/2018 10:20

Huh? I don’t have Facebook, yet I eat in restaurants often. Ditto many of my friends. Its normal, even in 2018.

Exactly, Husky

BoomBoomsCousin · 23/02/2018 22:19

Even if they had said in their voicemail that they were closed he still wouldn’t have listened to it therefore the same thing would have happened.

The DP isn’t blameless because he really should check his voicemail. But the OP didn’t ask if she WBU to think her DP was useless, she asked if the restaurant was useless. And it really was. Leaving one message asking for a call back and not having an announcement on the line is not a reasonable standard of effort for a restraint to make when it’s cancelling bookings, regardless of what her DP did or didn’t do.

BoomBoomsCousin · 23/02/2018 22:20

*restraunt not restraint!

abilockhart · 24/02/2018 19:08

Huh? I don’t have Facebook, yet I eat in restaurants often. Ditto many of my friends. Its normal, even in 2018.

Yes, but don't complain if you arrive at a restaurant and find it closed if the restaurant had indeed made the effort to contact you and also had put information regarding its closure on its Facebook page.

HuskyMcClusky · 24/02/2018 23:48

also had put information regarding its closure on its Facebook page.

Why would that help? As if people book restaurant tables and then regularly check the restaurant’s FB page.

I was on FB for years up until 12 months ago, don’t think I looked up a restaurant page once.

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