Here at Meadowbank we’ve made the rather unusual decision to publicly air and respond to each and every written complaint that we receive. We’d love to include the positive feedback too, but there’s so much of it that we just don’t have the time.
Excerpts from the Meadowbank Visitor’s Book 26/07/2009 from guests all on the same table:
‘Was extremely disappointed that our birthday girl host did not have her meal requirements catered for- very poor performance!!’
“Found the portion size appalling”
“Really a little bit scabbie! Poor show guys”
“Customer service leaves a lot to be desired”
Meadowbank’s Response:
The guest in question has for many years been suffering from extreme allergies to almost every type of food imaginable, and for this reason rarely eats out. Wanting to celebrate her birthday in style, she booked a birthday lunch here at Meadowbank, providing us in advance with a very short and specific list of the foods she was able to eat.
For example while able to eat broccoli and cauliflower, she is extremely allergic to other members of the brassica family. On a shopping expedition to purchase some of the ingredients from the list our chefs were unaware of the genetic distinction between broccoli and broccolini, a naturally occurring hybrid of broccoli and gai lan (Chinese Kale). As a result she was unable to eat the main meal we had prepared for her.
Here at Meadowbank we understand the difficulties of those suffering from extreme allergies and do our utmost to accommodate their needs- something which many restaurants are unwilling to do. It this case what seems a trivial distinction was in fact an important one- and one which should have been made on our part. Meadowbank regrets that this oversight spoilt this special occasion.
We try very hard to provide every customer with good service as should every restaurant. Whilst we believe every effort was made to try and cater for the acute allergies discussed with our staff we did not follow it as accurately as perhaps we should have and grossly under estimated the extent of the allergies. For this we have no excuse.
It is unfortunate that this customer had an unpleasant experience which affected the rest of the party as a result of a misunderstanding. We have taken this on board and discussed at length at management meetings on procedures for customers with allergies. It is an ongoing issue which is difficult to resolve for restaurants as often the extra cost of catering for customers with allergies cannot be recouped through meal charges.
Our portion sizes are based on the menu concept which is explained on the front of the menu and should have been explained by our staff on the day.
