For being annoyed at restaurant for giving our table away?

[diamondsareforever5]

Had a Father's Day meal booked for 4:30 at a restaurant today. Miraculously managed to get the kids out the house with plenty of time to get there (restaurant is 20 mins away and left at 3:45). Satnav said we would arrive just after 5 past.

Around 10 minutes into the journey, we got stuck in grid lock traffic. By the time we started moving, the satnav was now saying we wouldn't get to the restaurant until 4:40. I called the restaurant to let them know we would be 10 minutes late.

We finally got to the car park at around 4:42. I rang the restaurant again, as they have a 15 minute grace period, so I was aware that we only had 3 minutes to get to the restaurant and the car park was around a 5 minute walk away. Whoever I spoke to on the phone assured me they would hold the table.

We got to the restaurant just after 4:45 only to be told that our table had just been given away! I explained that I had just spoken to someone literally minutes before who said they would hold the table for us. The lady just shrugged and said "sorry, it's our policy" and that another table wouldn't be available until another hour and a half!

I understand that we were late and had just missed the grace period, but I was told that they would hold the table for us! AIBU to be really pissed off about this?

We did end up in another restaurant which everyone enjoyed so Father's Day wasn't completely ruined I suppose, but just annoying as I really wanted to try this new restaurant!

@LolaSmiles has hit the nail on the head. We would have held the table for you until the end of the grace period only, as you had rang with in that time. And they had no idea what car park you were in, how mobile all of your party was, etc.

What you have to remember is restaurants stagger bookings to allow the kitchen to run smoothly, so no one has long waits for any of their courses. 15 minutes grace is pushing the limits already, by the time you were seated it would have been closer to 20/25 minutes....and then the whole service starts going to shit, especially on one of the busiest days of the year.

There may have been miscommunication between staff, but equally there may have been misunderstanding on your part. That person who took you call probably had another several things going on, more customers walking through the door, calling up etc. So when they didn't see you arriving through the door with a couple of minutes, they had to release the table.

I would have resigned myself to the situation at hand. No different to a plane being delayed beyond your means. Sometimes logistics suck. Yes you called them but they could have been called by plenty of others many times before who said “Nearly there… nearly there…” but never showed. It’s no dint on your reputation, just bad luck. Plus it was all alright in the end wasn’t it? And who of us hasn’t turned up on spec to a place hoping to get a table on a mad night and they have squeezed us in (probably because of a no-show). Works both ways. Goodness my stupid suitcase didn’t turn up in Spain for my mum’s birthday at Christmas one year and was actually delivered to my home address many weeks later. Only shops open at the time were tourist ones, so I wore a flamenco dress one day and then my denim jeans and T-shirt the next - for a week - washing each outfit in a sink each night. Life is life.

I would be very pissed off tbh. Especially as you kept in contact with them and let them know you were definitely coming. I would leave a review with the honest truth. It may help someone in the future if they are considering being late 🤷🏻‍♀️

100% get why you are frustrated - and it would have been better if the person on the phone had said they couldn't guarantee the slot not being given away after 15 minutes

I do have one question though - when you rang the second time (the 4.42 call) did you make it clear that your booking was at 4.30? is there a chance that the person on the phone thought you were saying you were running late for your 4.45 table and you'd be there within 5 minutes - hence saying thats fine, thinking you'd be within the 15 minutes

In all likelihood though you spoke to a different person than the one giving away the table and by the time they had got off the phone with you and gone to the correct person the table was gone

As someone who is always on time for my restaurant bookings I'd be absolutely delighted if I knew they didn't allow in piss takers who turned up 20 minutes late for their booked table!

I still think that the OP was an unfortunate victim of circumstance - one person was on the phone at 4:42 saying they will hold the table but by the time they've finished their conversation with the OP, hung up the phone and gone to see the host it could easily have already been 4:45 and the booking system or the host has automatically released the table as a no show as soon as they had walk ins that were waiting to be accommodated and it just so happened that those two occurrences happened simultaneously so by the time the person who answered the phone got to the host, she had already seated a walk in group at the OPs table and so could hardly go back and say "sorry, turns out that the OP is enroute, not arrived yet and can't guarantee she will be here as she has already called to delay twice but we're going to turf you out of the table I've just sat you at just in case"

At this point they have to make a decision - either leave the walk-ins at the table and disappoint the OP (if she turns up) or go back and take the table off the walk ins and hope the OP turns up and they haven't just turfed out a guaranteed service for a potential one - and it is better customer service to serve the people who are actually in the restaurant, not the ones who are late, called twice and still arrived after the grace period.

I’d love to see the faces behind the absolutely mental posts that Grace Mumsnet these days 😂

@diamondsareforever5
When you made the reservation, you committed to arrive at a certain time and then things changed.

They said that they would hold your table and then things changed.

Neither of you did what you agreed to do. In what way are they worse than you. Commitments were not met on either end.

The consequences were that they did not receive your money and you did not receive their service.

You’re dreaming if you think on the busiest day of the quarter staff are going to be effectively communicating with each. If if flags you red on the system (many restaurants use des res) then I could be seating a table of 4 on your table whilst you’re on the phone to someone else - unfortunately you’re already late the system won’t know you’ve telephoned and it turns red regardless.

unfortunately the staff aren’t going to turn customers away when you’re looking like a jo show and they don’t know if you really are 2 minutes, just cis you say that doesn’t mean you are - but they knew they’d got another table 30 minutes later, so no great shakes

Of course you're not being unreasonable! You called and they said it was ok - they should have said no if it wasn't!

You’re dreaming if you think on the busiest day of the quarter staff are going to be effectively communicating with each.

@OttoGraph at work if I'd have said to my manager, 'sorry, I haven't communicated effectively with my colleagues today because it's been a bit of a busy day' I don't think she would be too impressed...

Effective communication is part of the role, regardless of whether it's a busy day or not.

Some of these replies are bonkers.

OP, I don't think you're unreasonable to be a bit miffed. The person on the phone should have said, 'I'm afraid if you're not here by 4.45, we'll have to release the table,' instead of telling you they'd keep it beyond that time.

Though I think @LolaSmiles makes a good point (as the OP has acknowledged).

Glad you found somewhere else to go, and hope you all enjoyed yourselves in the end.

You gave a busy restaurant 5 mins notice. Staff work in sections and gave different jobs, the call taker probably just didn't have enough time to communicate! what if the phone had rung again immediately and they answered that first? or had another customer, who was actually there, ask a question as they got off the phone to you? I'm guessing the call taker intended to try and keep you table but wasn't able to do so in the tiny amount of time you allowed!

You are wrong.
I did communicate/was honest with the tables in my restaurant, they just didn't care.
I didn't call the OP entitled I said,
" It would be nice if more people respected the hospitality industry rather than be self entitled"
Meaning more people in general.
Personally, I would have/do actually saved the OP's table a little longer, purely because she had taken the trouble to ring. If the timings were tight as a result, I would have/do explain that they would have less time on the table. I would/do also say that if they order quickly (rather than chat and browse the menu for 20 mins) they would make up the time they had lost and could relax and enjoy their meal.
I hope this clarifies for you

diamondsareforever5

This isn't your manager or work and if you gain a table of 4 and the figures add up thats mostly what the boss will be concerned - no body died isn't not brain surgery

there isn't an abundance of hospitality workers, you start telling them they're doing a shit job and they'll get another one elsewhere. It really is that easy to walk into a job earning NMW and you can hop from one to another if you like.

YANBU. Entirely because you called and they said fine.

I would be annoyed too

It's only 15 mins and you called them twice

Just don't go there again. That's all you can do

So you'd give a restaurant you've never been to a bad review? People like you are why small businesses struggle 🙄🙄🙄

You set off late, didn't account for traffic, which is bound to be busier on Father's day, and then arrived over the 15 min grace period. Entitled much!

Just don’t go there again. They have lost your business. Put a review on social media explaining what happened.

I’m with everyone else, and I know hindsight is 20/20, but next time you are running late drop off everyone else at the restaurant and then one person go park the car. My husband and I do this even when we aren’t running late so I don’t have to walk in heels.

Tough one for you. What you need to say is can I rebook for... So rebook for 16:45 or 17:00 to give yourself the extra time. If they have a known 15 mins period, they won't be able to keep it longer than that because it might affect an evening booking or they may have customers waiting. The fact they didn't find you a table suggests they were incredibly busy.