Dessert price query

[Spoilerd]

Name changed as outing.

I think part of what I did was unreasonable, but I would appreciate some opinions on whether I was entirely unreasonable.

Out in a restaurant, ordering dessert. Very limited in what I can order, due to a medical issue, though I realise that makes no difference to the restaurant staff. There’s only one part of one dessert, which is suitable, which is a sorbet. The total dessert is a scoop of sorbet with a shot of vodka.

I asked whether I could have just sorbet and the waitress said, “so you want the ‘name of dessert’ without the vodka” and I said yes.

An alternative dessert is two scoops of ice cream, which I think was cheaper than the sorbet plus vodka.

I was brought the single scoop of sorbet and was then charged full price for the dessert.

Was I unreasonable for thinking that was less than generous on the part of the restaurant? I thought the price might have been slightly reduced, or an extra scoop offered.

And second (where I think I was probably unreasonable) is that, when presented with the bill, with the full priced dessert, I decided not to give a tip. That was probably unreasonable as it probably wasn’t the serving staff who made the decision. I probably should have checked the price before going ahead. I’m not in the US and am in a country where tipping does occur, but where staff are undoubtedly paid properly, whether you tip them or not.

Your thoughts would be appreciated as the rather sour end seems to have spoiled what had been looking like a pleasant evening.

”Just pointing out that it will be an extra hassle, but we don't work there, we don't know to what extent. But not nothing.”

Fair enough. Perspective is good.

”What was the price of the dessert?”

About £12.

Tbh id feel a bit sore paying £12 for a scoop of sorbet too

”Tbh id feel a bit sore paying £12 for a scoop of sorbet too”

Yeah. I would have been better asking differently and checking, but hindsight is a great thing!

My dh enjoys a dessert when we go out , most come with cream or ice cream , he does not like them so asks for without . He still pays whatever the advertised cost is.

I think some restaurants have just tried to claw money back at any cost after the pandemic, went to an Italian restaurant in June my son has a dairy allergy so I asked if it was possible to just have a child’s portion of plain pasta, the waitress asked the chef and it was agreed they would I didn’t bother asking the price I stupidly thought it would be around £8 the same as the other kids meals, it was £15 when I queried it apparently it’s because it was ‘off menu’ and made especially! The plain pasta was more expensive than my husbands adult portion carbonara!

Yes you were unreasonable for not leaving a tip. You did not give the server a chance to do anything for you, yet penalized her for it.

Next time order it this way “I’d like the Vodka Sorbet, can I get that with 2 scoops and no vodka, please?”

It’s tight of them but I’d have brought it to their attention first. It might just be something they’ve rushed and popped down on the bill without much thought.

”My dh enjoys a dessert when we go out , most come with cream or ice cream , he does not like them so asks for without . He still pays whatever the advertised cost is.”

As would I, without a moment’s thought. Does a bit of cream or ice cream really compare with a shot of alcohol though?

If you asked for sorbet without mentioning the vodka it's unhelpful of your server to link it to the vodka sorbet; sorbet alone is closer to ice cream as a pudding than it is to sorbet with vodka. So in that sense unless in USA you shouldn't feel too bad about tipping as you're quite out of pocket.

”I asked if it was possible to just have a child’s portion of plain pasta, the waitress asked the chef and it was agreed they would I didn’t bother asking the price I stupidly thought it would be around £8 the same as the other kids meals, it was £15 when I queried it apparently it’s because it was ‘off menu’ and made especially! The plain pasta was more expensive than my husbands adult portion carbonara!”

That’s definitely worse than mine! 🤣

Yes but you picked a dessert with alcohol so obviously that's going to be more expensive.
It's not the same as asking for no cream.

If you didn't want to pay £12 pick a cheaper dessert or go without.

Well, a bottle of vodka is around £20 and is 750ml, and a shot is 25ml (unless your in Scotland in which case it’s 35ml), so 30 to a bottle. Or £0.60odd a shot to them. Which isn’t really very much, so I’m not sure I’d be bothered making a fuss as it probably is quite similar to the cost to them of a scoop of ice cream or a serving of cream.

”Yes but you picked a dessert with alcohol so obviously that's going to be more expensive.”
”It's not the same as asking for no cream.”

”If you didn't want to pay £12 pick a cheaper dessert or go without.”

I asked if I could have the sorbet on its own, I didn’t ask for the specific dessert. As another poster pointed out, it was the person waiting who linked my request to the vodka and sorbet dessert, rather than the two scoops of ice cream, which (in my mind, and obviously in the minds of others on this thread) was closer to what I asked for.

I doesn’t compare to removing a minor side item, as far as I’m concerned. It’s more like if there was a dessert with two equal elements and I asked if I could have one of them on its own.

It was bad communication on both sides. This wasn’t a young, inexperienced person waiting tables, it was a competent adult, who should probably have considered how it would look to a customer to only get half a dessert for the full price.

Yes, I probably should have challenged it, but I chose not to tip, which would have been fine and is perfectly acceptable here, if my son hadn’t stuck his oar in.

It’s a bit shit all round. Not a big deal, obviously, but sometimes it’s good to talk to other people when something frustrating has happened.

”Well, a bottle of vodka is around £20 and is 750ml, and a shot is 25ml (unless your in Scotland in which case it’s 35ml), so 30 to a bottle. Or £0.60odd a shot to them. Which isn’t really very much, so I’m not sure I’d be bothered making a fuss as it probably is quite similar to the cost to them of a scoop of ice cream or a serving of cream.”

Not in the UK, and alcohol costs a lot here.

The most expensive place in the world to buy vodka seems to be Malaysia, but even there’s it’s only double the cost in the U.K., so I think my point stands.

www.globalproductprices.com/rankings/vodka_smirnoff_price/

We’re talking about a cost price to the restaurant of the equivalent of not much more than £1 or so. How much would you expect them to knock off the price of the desert? Surely not more than the ingredient cost…?

I’m not entirely sure it’s distinctive, but here we are.

Meh, it’s just not a battle to have even raised imo.

Pudding sounds like something served up hot in a 1950s boarding school, not a sorbet in a restaurant in 2022.

Dessert is similar to pardon, lounge and toilet. We say pudding, what, sitting room, and lavatory.

Pudding, what, sitting room, loo here

If you're modifying a dessert, which is what you had by agreeing that you wanted <Dessert option minus an ingredient> then I would expect to pay the advertised price unless otherwise agreed when ordering.

I have dietary requirements so if I am out somewhere and can't have any menu items I ask directly for substitutions to the best value (ie the icecream/sorbet substitution) and if they say no then I will ask directly for price reductions on modifications (Vodka sorbet minus the vodka) .

So I'd ask something like "I can't have any of the dishes on the menu due to my dietary restrictions, is there any way to have the 2 scoop ice cream dessert but with sorbet instead of ice cream?" If they say no and offer a modification of the vodka sorbet dish instead then I'd respond with, "Thanks but I don't really want to pay £12 for a single scoop of sorbet, as its only half a dish. Can I either get a second scoop instead of the vodka or is there any way to get a price reduction if I'm only having part of the dessert?" That then sets out plainly what I am requesting and it's clear what the options are so the server can speak to whoever makes the decisions (if they can't) to decide if either option is acceptable to them.

I can understand that if you go out for a meal you want the whole experience, especially if you have dietary restrictions that make the whole experience more of an effort, but for the sake of one or two scoops of sorbet, I would not have had a dessert at all.

They are not in the slightest bit filling, they can be refreshing if you have had a very spicy meal, but if I was going to be charged £3 for a 2 scoop sorbet I would consider that excessive, and if I did want it with a shot of vodka, I would buy the vodka separately and add it to my sweet myself.

Variations on a food when you ask for one less ingredient doesn't bring price down. Say you order the meat lover pizza, but you don't want the hot sausage, only the other ingredients, your pizza will not detract the price of the sausage.

And seriously not tipping is a shit act. In the US, tips are the staff's wages.

I would have asked for ice cream but swap in sorbet instead of ice cream.

Even if they had given 2 scoops I'd still have begrudged paying £12 for it tbh. How much do they charge for 2 scoops of ice-cream OP? I don't think for one minute YABU.