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!

I'm imagining that a restaurant that takes sittings at 4.30 is a "familyesque" outfit: Frankie & Benny's/Harvester, etc. I'm sorry your booking was dropped but surely it would have been more hellish than usual on fathers' day.

FWIW my DH would rather have stuck pins in his eyes than go to a family restaurant heaving with under 10s. He might have given me £50 to take the DC to the cinema/bowling/out whilst he settled down to some tinnies and the cricket in peace

Leave a review on Google so future customers know about their strict 15min grace period. I would.🙂

@diamondsareforever5
You were late beyond the grace period on one of the busiest service days of the year. The grace period is in place to accommodate reasonable delays . The reason for your delay was irrelevant. The restaurant has to run on a schedule, and they attempted to accommodate you within that framework.

Your expectation that they accommodate you beyond the stated policy on one of their high volume days was completely unreasonable.

If I read a review saying that it would make me like the restaurant more.

I think YABU. Traffic etc isn't a reason to hold your table. If tables are fully booked that's guaranteed income. The restaurant expects a certain amount of food to be consumed and therefore a certain amount of profit. I wonder how many people have called before and said, we're coming, honest! and don't show up. Far better to make a little money than potentially no money from a table.

If I sound harsh it's because the hospitality industry is struggling right now and so many establishments have imposed strict policies to counter no-shows. I wonder how well this particular restaurant does outside high days and holidays.

Your issue shouldn't be that they gave the table away your issue should be the misinformation.

If your restaurant trip entails a period of time on any motorway then you should leave much earlier than that!

Suppose you will try to blame google maps now?

That’s pretty poor of the restaurant, OP. Especially since they told you they would hold it when you phoned. Father’s Day must be busy for them but they should have told you they wouldn’t hold it when you called.

There’s not much you can do about it now, though. Going over and over it in your head will just make all the bad memories of the day overshadow the good ones.

I think it's very poor of the restaurant. You rang and let them know and they said they would hold it. They didn't.

It sounds like you kept track of the time and communicated although a bit late and so I would expect them to keep the table. However if I'd known I'd already be late by 5 mins , then got in gridlock traffic I don't think I'd want til moving again to check the timings as already running late. I think in your head booking was at the 15 min late slot time and this is where you made a mistake. But generally if I'd rung ahead I'd be annoyed if they then let the table go.

Not ideal but then turning up late on an occasion day isn’t great either, some places are only busy certain days a year and need everything to run smoothly so they can get maximum occupancy. Maybe the server was trying to help you out and manager said no

It's their policy. You knew this. It's Father's Day, so they were very busy.

I agree with others. If I'm running late for a restaurant booking, my first priority is to get people to the restaurant. Parking comes second.

You did everything you could and you’re right to be pissed off. They told you one thing on the phone and did another. That’s shit service.

I’d probably drop an email to them about it.

Ignore the absolutely bonkers ‘being late is a choice’ posters, they’ll find fault with an OP, whatever the circumstances.

No it wasn't your choice to be late, but the fact is you were. After 15 minutes someone made a decision to take the guaranteed business of people waiting over people who might never actually make it. They're a business, and many establishments aren't going to make it through the COLC, maybe they're determined not to go under.

I would be annoyed to, but at the traffic and with myself for not dropping one adult off while the other parked.

I think you are getting a rough ride here OP! She wasn't already late before she got in Gridlock traffic. She allowed 45 mins to get somewhere 20 mins away and then found gridlock. I'm known for stressing about leaving early in case of traffic and even I wouldn't leave more than double the time to get to a local meal out unless I knew there was a hold up in advance. I know someone was saying to check Google maps, but it is possible for crashes / road closures etc to happen after you decide what time to leave the house, or indeed after you leave the house, and then you can't go back in time!

As for multiple posters saying you should have dropped people off, in hindsight yes that would have helped but I wouldn't have thought it necessary if I'd phoned ahead either. And if your route to the car park didn't pass the restaurant then you've just made the driver and therefore the time you can order etc, even later by going out of your way, particularly if traffic is bad, so it doesn't help the restaurant with their planned service.

I can understand why the restaurant needs a policy of giving tables away, but you are not being unreasonable to be a bit annoyed you were told something different on the phone, and I would feedback to the restaurant so they can remind staff to be clearer with people. I guess the ultimate outcome would have been the same for you though, ie having to look for somewhere else to eat. I hope you hadn't had to pay for a parking space you then couldn't use though!

Your lateness has a knock on effect further follow on bookings, so other customers will arrive an will be unable to be seated which reflects badly on the business.
You knew the policy so why cut it so fine?

YANBU. When you called they should’ve said that they wouldn’t hold it past the 15 min grace period, not say it was fine then give the table away.

I read it as being already 5 mins past 4.30 when first checked on arrival time before getting stuck in traffic , did you mean 5 past 4 OP?

But 2 minutes or 20 minutes it's still after the grace period.

They gave your table to someone who was actually there.

Are you talking about

"(restaurant is 20 mins away and left at 3:45). Satnav said we would arrive just after 5 past"

20 minutes after 3.45 is 5 past 4.

they were following their policy. You should have dropped someone off to go in, then gone and parked. Also checked the traffic in advance. No shows are a high financial loss, especially on busy days like Father’s Day, and I bet so many people lie and say they’re 2 mins away

It's not unreasonable they gave the table away if their policy is 15 minutes.

It is unreasonable of them to say that it's fine when you called them so close to the grace period ending, say they'll hold your table and then do something different.

They arrived outside the 15 minutes grace period though

Yeah it's not your fault you're late but you were. They need bums on seats.