To not want to download a bloody app to order a drink in the pub or wait for waiter sevice

[Hilsea]

Grr

So this afternoon I had 2 hours to spare before picking up daughter and so I thought I would go to the pub to sit outside, relax and take in the sun. I havent been to many pubs over the past two years owing to lockdowns etc so I was pleased to have this opportunity

First pub I went to (traditional pub, part of chain, classy (not spoons!)) I went in to the bar and was told rudely - 'its only table service now - take a seat and we will come and take your order'. So I went outside and sat down in sight of the door expecting a server to come shortly. One passed by twice and I tried to catch her eye, neither time did she make eye contact or seemed to want to take my order - I waited 10 minutes before leaving.

Pub number two (again part of chain, classy, good range of wines) I went in and was stopped from ordering being told that I needed to download the app and order that way and basically to get out of the bar. So I walked straught out of the door - I cant be bothered to download an app

Third pub (individual, but I found out later actually part of chain, classy) I walked into, ordered drink at bar, paid and walked outside to table where I was able to drink it. Hoorah -

Why cant pubs just get back to normal and offer the service that customers actually want? The value of a pub is going to the bar and seeing the range of drinks available and then making a choice and making a swift transaction. If I want table service I will go to a bar or cafe, I go to a pub for the minimum of hassle of obtaining the drink.

AIBU to expect this? Will things ever get back to normal?

There; rant over!

I hate this too OP. I already spend far too much time staring at a screen (why I also hate online shopping) and this is yet another thing to fold people away into their phones and away from real life. My phone doesn't have space for any more apps anyway.

'Progress' isn't always good. I will be actively seeking out places where I can forget this fucking pandemic ever happened.

I find the apps very convenient. I like ordering and paying at the table, and always did hate paying at the bar. I guess lots of pubs started trialling them due to covid and now some will keep them. Luckily, you get to choose which type of service you like and select your establishment accordingly op so not a problem really imo.

There should be a choice. However, I've gone from being unsure about them to liking them having seen how it bypasses the 'freeloader trying to order a steak and champagne then split the bill despite everyone else having salad and water' scenario. You have the option to pay up front for your own, and if others want to split the remainder after the meal they can. At the very least it starts the conversation 'shall we order on the app or split it afterwards' so there's less chance of being left unexpectedly paying for someone's else's lobster.

I also have a regular lunch out with a group of friends who are lovely and would never freeload but who are absolute buggers for ten minutes negotiation after every meal. 'If you give me five and her three, then she gives you two and Morgan eight. But you have to take four out for the parking and I'll buy you a coffee later to make up the balance. Now what are we doing about the tip?' type of thing. So now I just pay up front on the app, and if they want to negotiate they can, but I can sit it out, and with one less person in the mix it does speed up slightly.

The pandemic didn't end because you are bored of it, dear. Sorry about that

I always feel it’s a bit of a “poor war” when they do this. Not everyone can afford a phone that is compatible with the app, not every one can afford an iPhone.

I have a spare basic phone because my iPhone runs out of power very quickly. It’s quite eye opening when you get refused service because your phone isn’t good enough to scan a barcode etc.

I am intrigued by the choice of ‘classy’ pubs too. I am now wondering if my local pubs are classy or not.

Love ordering on the Apps the best bit being no waiting around for the bill or awkwardness re tips. Even my parents in their 80s have got with it and like it.

My issue with the apps is many are unable to make changes, such as swapping rice for chips on a meal or asking for no gravy etc.
I went to one place recently where I tried to order a curry and wanted half rice half chips but there was no ability to do this. The woman at the bar was clearly a bit annoyed to have to deal with the order and said I could have ordered that way via the app. She was so insistent I opened the app and went through the ordering process to show her it couldnt be done.

If the apps were a bit more intuitive and allowed for this like that I'd happily use them, but the few I've tried so far don't work that way.

Part of the issue is lack of staff due to covid/brexit so ordering via an app means less work. Dd works behind a bar/cafe (a classy one OP will be pleased to hear) and her boss (it’s a chain) is very much pushing the app. The orders ping through behind the bar and means Dd just has to make the drinks and take them over. Which is quicker than putting them through the till, taking money and then making the drinks.

I heard someone in the pub saying apparently there is a pandemic and people are dying. Probably just a rumour as it wasn't a chain and wasn't classy.

And often Dd is the only staff member at work….so she would struggle to keep up with doing the till and making drinks.

YANBU to not like it

YABU to believe that what you want is what everyone wants. I bloody love the app ordering, it's so much better

This. @NuffSaidSam said it all.

Table service great, qr for menu great, app for ordering is just shit customer service tbh. I have loads of the stupid fuckers on my phone and they just clutter it up and always fuck things like side orders and mixers up. The whole point of tech is to improve things not make them worse. Some people fail to undertsand this.

@Pedalpushers

I love table service/apps and absolutely loathe queueing up at the bar, and many people I know feel the same, so yabu to say this is 'the service that customers actually want'.

This. Apps are so much easier.

My DD works in a spoons... they can and do bypass the app and order for people who don’t have a smart phone or can’t work one.

But she says most people who ask to do that are basically just being awkward, do things like insist they don’t have a smartphone but then have it out afterwards.

They’re usually the same people who complain about wearing masks.

@HailAdrian

Gosh, how lazy are you lot if you can't even cope with standing at a bar for a bit? 😂

Lazy? I'm disabled, but thanks.

@tabulahrasa

My DD works in a spoons... they can and do bypass the app and order for people who don’t have a smart phone or can’t work one.

But she says most people who ask to do that are basically just being awkward, do things like insist they don’t have a smartphone but then have it out afterwards.

They’re usually the same people who complain about wearing masks.

That's unfair.

The Wetherspoons app is very basic. There isn't the function to make amendments on it, eg. my friend is allergic to eggs, she has to order at the bar as she needs to request they don't plate up eggs on her breakfast.

There's also no option to order on the app and pay in cash. Many people don't want to give card details to order a single cup of coffee, or might only have cash on them but nothing in the bank.

@BashfulClam

I prefer an app. It takes two minutes to download and usually there is a QR code to make it easier. The less interaction, the better. No queuing etc.

This! Apps are pretty intuitive and make life so much easier!!

I was at a cocktail place last Saturday afternoon for a few hours. For 90 mins they were happy to serve us. Suddenly we had to use the app. We said no. They took our order made us pay and then we waited 25 mins for 4 drinks. We were sat next to the bar so were actually able to watch them pour and serve every other table in. We were clearly being punished. That's shit customer service and we won't go back.

It’s not just about COVID to be honest - it’s a way of them coping with the staff shortages. If they don’t need a person to take orders it relieves the pressure on the rest of the team.

I'm quite happy to sit and be waited on. What could be better? YABU

YANBU to not like it. We used to go to pubs for Sunday roast quite a lot as a family this Spring when things opened. I run a fairly minimalist phone and the number of apps that I had to get, log into, enter credit card details, blah blah really annoyed me.

But others like it and it is Covid safe.

YABU to keep mentioning how classy these pubs are, that sounds like what Mrs Bucket (pronounced Bouquet) would say

@Ritasueandbobtoo9

I don’t really want to be staring at a screen to order food in a restaurant if I go out. The is the whole point of going out is to be social and what are you really paying for without the interaction? Just the food - I can make that myself so why bother going out?

I'm sorry - are you saying that you go out to eat at the pub just to have a nice chat to the bar staff?

@Ritasueandbobtoo9

I don’t really want to be staring at a screen to order food in a restaurant if I go out. The is the whole point of going out is to be social and what are you really paying for without the interaction? Just the food - I can make that myself so why bother going out?

I socialise with those I'm out with

Ordering ones meal on an app hardly equates to "staring at a screen".

@Itsnotover

I'm quite happy to sit and be waited on. What could be better? YABU

Exactly. Go in (to classy pub) sit down and that's it. No getting up and down, queuing at the bar etc. When you're done, get up and go, it's all paid for.

@NuffSaidSam

'It's sad that people go out to a pub and then want to avoid human interaction. Surely that is the point of going to a pub?'

There are many point of going to a pub. For me it's the interaction with the people I'm meeting there, not the bar staff. Also you are allowed to interact with them when they bring the drinks/do the table service....there's no ban on talking to them!

Also depending on the pub, perhaps the bar staff would rather not interact with you

Thinking back to when I worked in pubs etc at uni, if it's a busy enough place to have apps then no sorry I don't want to chat with customers. It's too busy!

If it's a smaller, more of a 'local's' pub with established regulars then that's a little different.