A chef has hit back at a disgruntled diner who labelled his restaurant a “rip-off”.
left a review this week on Tripadvisor for the Sticky Walnut – a bistro Chester, northwest England.” data-reactid=”13″>The woman left a review this week on Tripadvisor for the Sticky Walnut – a bistro Chester, northwest England.
She clearly wasn’t happy with her meal, writing she would “never eat here again”.
“If you want to pay 45 pounds (A$79) each for an average piece of sirloin steak and some parmesan chips then this is the place to go,” she said.
“A really misleading menu along with eye-wateringly expensive steak which is not worth it.
“When we mentioned to the waitress we thought the menu was misleading instead of apologising and trying to fix our distress she got extremely agitated, defensive and frankly rude.”
She added anyone looking for a meal in Chester should avoid the Sticky Walnut “like the plague”.
The woman included images of her bill, which totalled about $214, in the review, calling it “outrageous”.
Her review didn’t go unnoticed by the Sticky Walnut’s owners though.
Chef and owner Gary Usher responded to the woman’s damning comments.
He said people complaining about a restaurant being a “rip off” is pretty common, but decided to respond to defend his staff.
“So why am I responding? Simply because you wouldn’t allow Becky the manager to explain at the time. In fact it was you who got extremely agitated, defensive and quite frankly rude,” he wrote.
Mr Usher went on to explain the cost of the woman’s meal and pointed out she had no complaints about paying more than $870 for four people in another review for a separate restaurant, which she gave five stars.
“Whilst your online presence is a display of your love of luxury we are a humble neighbourhood bistro, serving the best produce we can source, served by fantastic teams, whilst trying to survive a global pandemic,” Mr Usher said.
“You are a self professed expert in comms and brand awareness and still manage to be so short sighted not to see how devastating your words can be. ‘Avoid this place like the plague’ really Emma? My counsel to you in this recession we find ourselves in is to think before you write.
“Be kind. It won’t cost you as much as a first class flight to Dubai.”
Mr Usher received mixed responses after sharing the review on Twitter.
One man tweeted there was “no need” for the woman’s bad review.
“Good for you Gary. Leadership is standing up for your staff, yourself and your brand,” another man tweeted.
Others argued Mr Usher’s response didn’t endear him to customers.
“A customer has a problem, right or wrong, and the first thing you do is find a way to attack the customer?” one man said.
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