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AIBU?

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Original poster

Left a medicore restaurant review. Restaurant wants me to email them to discuss....what?

109 replies

roses2 · 06/07/2023 10:36

I went to a restaurant a few weeks ago. It was just alright, not as wow as I was expecting from the 4.6* Google reviews. My food was wrong, they returned it then the new meal was under cooked. DS wanted to order ice cream and the guy was in a rush and told DS "I will order you vanilla" when DS wanted a few seconds to think about what flavour after the man told him what they had.

It was £140 for 4 of us (2 adults & 2 kids). Not high end but not cheap either.

So I left 3* on Google and the restaurant posted back "please email us back to discuss".

I'm not sure I have anything else to say. It was in a village we went to visit for a day so I won't be back.

Does anyone ever reply? What do they want to discuss that I didn't already write about objectively in my review?

OP posts:
qazxc · 06/07/2023 11:26

There doesn't really need to be a "discussion". If you feel so inclined, you might reply : I left this review because of X,Y and Z. (basically the facts that you had in the review and the ones in your post here).

Frabbits · 06/07/2023 11:27

TequilaNights · 06/07/2023 11:21

If you leave a bad review, I would 100% give the restaurant an email to discuss and remedy the issues you had.

If they don't know who and what happened in further details, they can't act on it.

Reviews aren't left for the benefit of the business, it's to inform other customers of experiences.

PeachesOnTheBeaches · 06/07/2023 11:30

The answer to your question is in your reply - they want to resolve it. They want to make it better (and make it look to other potential customers that they care and fix any mistakes).

Ting20161987 · 06/07/2023 11:36

This wasn't in Woodstock by any chance was it

Diddykong · 06/07/2023 11:37

There's a local restaurant here that attacks low reviews with accusations "well we have reviewed our cctv and saw you did get the broccoli and that you dropped a fork on the floor so we should bill you for bending that, stop being so ungrateful" it is mind boggling what the manager hopes to achieve with this tactic.

KomodoDodo · 06/07/2023 11:43

Hospitality is a really difficult business to be in at the moment…and businesses live or die by word of mouth trade or reviews to bring in new/extra business.
Rising costs and cost of living (meaning less customers with less money) have hugely taken a toll. Any restaurant or bar worth its salt will want the opportunity to rectify a mediocre experience.

Roselilly36 · 06/07/2023 11:46

I agree with a PP, hospitality has struggled, I would give them a chance to rectify the poor experience.

Unknownunknowns · 06/07/2023 11:48

Email them with the same as what you put in your TA review. If they do offer you "compensation" of a bottle of wine when you spend £100, I wouldn't even think of using it. But if they're genuine and it does fall below their "usual high standards", and they offer you a new meal FOC I'd take them up on that.
Of course maybe it's all for show on TA and you went even get a response.

Stravaig · 06/07/2023 11:49

I'd take that at face value - small business, care about their work, genuine dismay at your poor experience, and they want to learn, resolve, make it right.

Unknownunknowns · 06/07/2023 11:51

Unknownunknowns · 06/07/2023 11:48

Email them with the same as what you put in your TA review. If they do offer you "compensation" of a bottle of wine when you spend £100, I wouldn't even think of using it. But if they're genuine and it does fall below their "usual high standards", and they offer you a new meal FOC I'd take them up on that.
Of course maybe it's all for show on TA and you went even get a response.

Sorry saw it was a Google review, I got mixed up and thought it was TripAdvisor.

Anyway, point stands.

doorstopper123 · 06/07/2023 11:52

Was it a chain? I had this. They sent me £10 off valid for about a month. I didn't bother to go

TellySavalashairbrush · 06/07/2023 11:52

I’d ignore it. I got something similar from a beauty brand I reviewed. They offered sod all in return just wanted to know more about why I gave it a poor review- not even a free sample!

Georgyporky · 06/07/2023 11:54

Something similar happened to me, & the owner gave me a generous voucher for my next visit. He politely suggested adding to my review that the problem had been solved. I was quite happy to do it.

TerribleMouse · 06/07/2023 11:57

I left a bad review one time and the owner replied to say I was a disgruntled ex-employee who had gone to work for a rival business!! Funnily enough all of their negative reviews had this same response…

Bluevelvetsofa · 06/07/2023 12:04

I was asked to review something on Trip Advisor - a beauty brand. It took three weeks to arrive and when I used it I didn’t think it effective at all. In the review, I said it had taken too long to arrive and I wasn’t impressed with it. They wanted to know details about the order, long since deleted from email because it had, by then, been months and said they would take down the review if I didn’t provide what they wanted.

I told them the review was factual and truthful and I didn’t care if it was removed.

Nickknackpattywhack · 06/07/2023 12:12

I left a poor review once for a restaurant that normally gives good service (and I did say that)
The owner sent me a nasty e-mail to my Trip Advisor Account telling me never to go back !
Maybe they want to fix things OP ?

LivinDaylights · 06/07/2023 12:13

Don't reply and don't change your review. When I read a review I want people to give me an honest opinion. How many of the other reviews were actually 2* and had the same issues. OR I'd be tempted to sign up for a new email account and reply, wait for them to offer vouchers for removal and then update your review to say they asked you to remove your review for x amount. Leave it as that. I'd like to know if a restaurant's reviews are real when I'm deciding where to eat.

TimesRwo · 06/07/2023 12:14

I left a mediocre review for a hotel restaurant once.

They asked me to get in touch and they offered me a free meal if I gave them another go. It wasn’t a cheap meal either.

Monster80 · 06/07/2023 12:14

Ask for a refund and offer to remove the review. If 4 people ate for free and you won’t be going back, what’s the conundrum?

NowItsLikeSnowAtTheBeach · 06/07/2023 12:16

'If the conversation doesn't go well, we may well knock it down to 2 stars. Are you sure you want a conversation?' I'd email this.

GeorgeMichaelsCat · 06/07/2023 12:17

Some restaurants put that on there so it seems as if they care about feedback and want to discuss further. My own experience is you email them and never hear back from them again - looking at you Duck and Waffle.

babbscrabbs · 06/07/2023 12:22

GeorgeMichaelsCat · 06/07/2023 12:17

Some restaurants put that on there so it seems as if they care about feedback and want to discuss further. My own experience is you email them and never hear back from them again - looking at you Duck and Waffle.

Yep - it makes it look like a concerned boss trying to make things right with this anomaly of a bad review.

I'd email them, you never know they might refund you!

oakleaffy · 06/07/2023 12:22

Frabbits · 06/07/2023 10:49

Less ethical places will do this in an attempt to get you to remove your review, completely destroying the point of review sites in the first place.

The reason why mediocre restaurants have nothing but rave reviews on tripadvisor etc is exactly because of this.

Absolutely true!
If a bad one is removed because of a refund, that completely defeats the whole point of reviews.

Reviews need to be honest.

Sunshineandflipflops · 06/07/2023 12:24

I left a negative review for a beauty salon near me recently and would have liked it if they had responded to be honest to offer an apology but nothing. I would email them and see what they had to say if it were me.

Sunshineishere1988 · 06/07/2023 12:33

I would politely email them exactly what you wrote in the review. They may have had staff shortages/a different chef that day and want to put it right. You may get a discount or a free meal!

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