The Customer is Always Right

From The Fayette News:

 

Lunching with an Atlanta girlfriend on a Friday, I was
asked, “What would you like to drink?”
“A Bloody Mary, please.”
“I’m sorry, we don’t serve Bloody Marys Monday
through Friday. We only offer it on the weekend,” the restaurant’s
hostess answered.
“Excuse me?”
“We have stopped offering Bloody Marys during
the week.”
“Wait a minute, you mean to say that I cannot order a
drink today, Friday, that you serve at this restaurant on the
weekends?” I asked.
“That’s correct,” she said.
“I can order vodka?” I inquired.
“Yes.”
“And tomato juice?”
“Yes.”
“Can you add that other stuff and not call it a Bloody
Mary?” I continued.
“No. We cannot. We only offer our signature Bloody
Mary on weekends.”
“But you have lemon juice, horseradish, Worcestershire
sauce, Tabasco, salt, and pepper?”
“Of course.”
“But you can’t throw them in with the vodka and tomato
juice?”
“We cannot.”
“Would you bring them to me and let me mix it up?”
“No.”
“Listen, I know you don’t want people saying they bought
an ordinary Bloody Mary here when you are so proud of your
signature drink that you are making it available only on
weekends, but I promise I won’t diss it. I don’t even know
what your specialty drink’s name is. I just remember getting a
pretty good Bloody here for thirty years.”
“Management won’t let us sell it except on weekends.”
“May I see your manager?”
Manager makes himself available and will not budge.
I was in shock that they would refuse my money, for one,
and two, not try to please a—future—customer. And I am
not alone.
When I returned home, I got online and discovered this:

Bloody Mary Lovers Rejected!
Very strange… [a very popular Atlanta restaurant] has
long been a favorite lunch spot. The food is good, not
great, but with larger servings than expected. It was also a
place to enjoy a good but not great Bloody Mary. When I
asked for one last Thursday, I was told “we no longer sell
Bloody Marys on weekdays.” I laughed, thinking she was
toying with me, but, no, she said they had been instructed
by headquarters to stop weekday sales as of 10 days ago.
She said, since they customize their Bloody Mary mix, too
much was being wasted on week days, so, no, I can’t have
one. I suggested I buy a glass of tomato juice, a shot of
vodka and she give me access to other ingredients. That
way I make my own. No again, with a laugh. So I asked to
speak to the manager. A nice guy came from the kitchen,
powerless, saying the bosses have spoken. I have to do
what they say.
I suggest he tell their bosses to retake Restaurant
Management 101 and note the section on providing
customers the products they seek. Liquor service is the profit
backbone of most restaurants, with huge profit margins. To
refuse to make weekday bloodies is a collective slap in the
face to those who, like me, enjoy them, not just on weekends.
We Bloody Mary lovers, and there are many, SHOULD
NOT PATRONIZE [restaurant name] UNTIL MANAGEMENT
BRINGS BACK OUR BLOODIES!
PS: MY fish sandwich was good, not great, and at $18.00,
overpriced. My 3 stars are for decent food.

Sound familiar? Identical experience! And guess
what I had ordered for lunch? The fish sandwich.
And a beer.

P.S. I found their special drink recipe. Who’d like it?

P.S.S. I hear they now have started serving their bloodies again during the week.