Do You Send Food Back at a Restaurant?

[fcgamer | 5,019]

Title of the thread says it all, do you send food back at a restaurant? When asking this question I'm thinking about if you ordered XYZ dish, but you received ZYX dish instead, though it could also relate to feeling the dish isn't cooked properly, the drink (i.e. beer) is skunked, the dish wasn't customized how you asked, etc.

For example, the other day I ordered a burrito from a local restaurant but instead I received a rice bowl. The contents were more or less the same, but it wasn't a wrap. I thought about saying something, but at the end of the day, the price value was roughly the same, and I thought it would be shitty to waste such food, so I just acted as if the order were correct. I've done the same thing other times, ordered "dry" noodles but received them with soup, ordered "no onions" but had onions, etc. I really hate to waste food, so as long as then value is more or less the same and I like the food, I likely won't send it back.

On a few occasions I have sent beer back, but these were times where the beer was past the best by date. In the one situation, the beer was being produced at the brewery literally 50m meters away, and the restaurant I was eating at was owned by the brewery. Yeah, that's not gonna fly, sorry...

My only exception is with sauces / dressings, or with something like pickles that leaves a test that can't be removed. I like some sauces (BBQ, soy, hot sauce, etc) but start throwing on mustard, mayonnaise, or salad dressing, and the food is more or less ruined as far as I am concerned. I'd gag if trying to eat such things, and I'd rather eat duck heads, chicken feet, or fried crickets!

[Gloves | 12,284]

Yes I send food back, especially if it's not what I ordered. The wait staff have basically one job - listen to my order and convey that order to the kitchen. If they can't do that they need to fix it, they are wasting food, not me. A full meal sent back isn't usually wasted by the way, a lot of the time it's eaten by someone in the back. 

[PII | 2,041]

Several years ago I was out to eat with a few people and when the orders came the waitress put a plate full of shrimp down in front of me.  I said: "I ordered scallops." ...which I had.  She apologized and said she'd be right back, which she did, with the correct order; gave it to me and then pronounced that we should just keep the order of shrimp too and that we wouldn't be charged for it.  Worked out great.

[Reed Rothchild | 9,968]

Once ever, when I got a hamburger that was mostly raw and felt I had no choice.

I'm a very easy, chill person imo.  Take that as a good or bad thing.

[a3quit4s | 4,386]

I usually only do this with steak and it’s because I always order Filet Mignon which is a pricier cut. I’m always damn sure to ask, even if I have been to a restaurant before, what are their definitions of medium and medium well. It’s a crime to overcook Filet Mignon and the places that are classy enough to offer it, they better know how to cook it. I’m an all pink guy for those wondering. 
 

I won’t usually send back other things like if I order a wrap and ask for no tomatoes and it comes with tomatoes, I’ll just pick them out cause that is all the kitchen will do if I send it back anyways. Obviously is something is raw or completely not what I ordered it’s going back

 

Edited August 7 by a3quit4s

[Tabonga | 2,533]

Most of the places I go to are really good about getting me what I ordered. Once in awhile I will get, say scrambled, eggs instead of basted.  No biggie - I like scrambled just prefer basted.   Or wheat toast instead of white.  

The only time I remember sending something back was one time I got some chicken fried chicken that had the consistency of a hockey puck.  Neither the waitress or I could cut the thing without a great deal of effort.  We both had a good laugh and I got a piece of chicken fried steak instead.

Edited August 7 by Tabonga

[Gloves | 12,284]

It's funny to think people *wouldn't* send things back. It costs at *least* twice (if not many times more) as much money to go out and have someone serve you food. They have literally the one job, they fuck it up, and not only do you accept the job failed and pay for it, odds are you follow that with a tip and the machines today are defaulting to 15%, 18%, 20%, etc.. 

Do you guys want me to whip and berate you too? You can call me daddy if you like. 

[fcgamer | 5,019]

3 minutes ago, Gloves said:

It's funny to think people *wouldn't* send things back. It costs at *least* twice (if not many times more) as much money to go out and have someone serve you food. They have literally the one job, they fuck it up, and not only do you accept the job failed and pay for it, odds are you follow that with a tip and the machines today are defaulting to 15%, 18%, 20%, etc.. 

Do you guys want me to whip and berate you too? You can call me daddy if you like. 

I can get a non fast food meal here in less than five minutes, and for around $3-$5, and there's no tip. To cook a meal for one will cost a hell of a lot more.

Sorry bro, not everyone lives in Canada, similarly I'm quite chill. No need to bitch over a spoonful of scallions on a $3 meal.

[RH | 5,237]

1 hour ago, PII said:

Several years ago I was out to eat with a few people and when the orders came the waitress put a plate full of shrimp down in front of me.  I said: "I ordered scallops." ...which I had.  She apologized and said she'd be right back, which she did, with the correct order; gave it to me and then pronounced that we should just keep the order of shrimp too and that we wouldn't be charged for it.  Worked out great.

Yeah, this happens.  Legally, they can't serve food that's already been served to someone else, so the shrimp would have been tossed.  They can re-serve your food back to you, if the issue is something like the food is cold, but since they can't serve it to you, many places will just let you keep the wrong meal free of charge.

5 minutes ago, Gloves said:

It's funny to think people *wouldn't* send things back. It costs at *least* twice (if not many times more) as much money to go out and have someone serve you food. They have literally the one job, they fuck it up, and not only do you accept the job failed and pay for it, odds are you follow that with a tip and the machines today are defaulting to 15%, 18%, 20%, etc.. 

Do you guys want me to whip and berate you too? You can call me daddy if you like. 

Even though I 100% agree with you, there are some issues that aren't the servers fault. A portion of your meal could be cold or... you could find a foreign object in your meal.

 

[Gloves | 12,284]

2 minutes ago, RH said:

Even though I 100% agree with you, there are some issues that aren't the servers fault. A portion of your meal could be cold or... you could find a foreign object in your meal.

Sure but I'm speaking specifically to if they fuck up your order. If there's a spider on my plate I'm gonna laugh, pick it up, and chuck it on the floor. I'm not an asshole, I just believe that if I pay for a service, that service should be rendered appropriately. 

[Gloves | 12,284]

6 minutes ago, fcgamer said:

I can get a non fast food meal here in less than five minutes, and for around $3-$5, and there's no tip. To cook a meal for one will cost a hell of a lot more.

Sorry bro, not everyone lives in Canada, similarly I'm quite chill. No need to bitch over a spoonful of scallions on a $3 meal.

If you have to say you're chill all the time... 

Anyway, you don't have to live in Canada to have standards. It's fine if you don't have the self-respect to advocate for what you're owed, I'm sure those racist folks you've claimed to be surrounded by are totally respecting your pasty presence and definitely not giving you the shaft cuz it's funny. 

[Tabonga | 2,533]

16 minutes ago, Gloves said:

 

Do you guys want me to whip and berate you too? You can call me daddy if you like. 

     Heh - in my case that sounds really really kinky.  

 

 

[Gloves | 12,284]

1 minute ago, Tabonga said:

     Heh - in my case that sounds really really kinky.  

 

 

That was the point lol.

[Tabonga | 2,533]

4 minutes ago, Gloves said:

That was the point lol.

Are you gonna dress like Frank-N-Furter?

Edited August 7 by Tabonga

[Reed Rothchild | 9,968]

28 minutes ago, Gloves said:

It's funny to think people *wouldn't* send things back. It costs at *least* twice (if not many times more) as much money to go out and have someone serve you food. They have literally the one job, they fuck it up, and not only do you accept the job failed and pay for it, odds are you follow that with a tip and the machines today are defaulting to 15%, 18%, 20%, etc.. 

Do you guys want me to whip and berate you too? You can call me daddy if you like. 

My mother-in-law always has an excuse to be displeased with every service provider she deals with, including restaurants.

In her mind they've all come up short.  In reality, 90% of the time she's just being a difficult Karen.

I'd say sending back food is a spectrum.  If someone feels they have to do it a lot... well, they're the common denominator.

[fcgamer | 5,019]

6 minutes ago, Gloves said:

If you have to say you're chill all the time... 

Anyway, you don't have to live in Canada to have standards. It's fine if you don't have the self-respect to advocate for what you're owed, I'm sure those racist folks you've claimed to be surrounded by are totally respecting your pasty presence and definitely not giving you the shaft cuz it's funny. 

We're talking about paying for shit bro, you stated it costs atleast twice to go out so why wouldn't people send shit back. That's not the case at all for me, it costs much more to stay in and cook. Funny you try to drag other shit into the simple question I initially posed, even to the point of wondering why folks don't have the "self-respect to advocate for what you're owed" - if I go to a shop and they make a minor mistake occasionally (it happens), why the need to make a big deal of it? Trying to show off some manliness you lack in the bedroom? Or is there some better explanation?

[fcgamer | 5,019]

1 minute ago, Reed Rothchild said:

My mother-in-law always has an excuse to be displeased with every service provider she deals with, including restaurants.

In her mind they've all come up short.  In reality, 90% of the time she's just being a difficult Karen.

Nothing wrong with having standards I guess! 

[Gloves | 12,284]

20 minutes ago, fcgamer said:

We're talking about paying for shit bro, you stated it costs atleast twice to go out so why wouldn't people send shit back. That's not the case at all for me, it costs much more to stay in and cook. Funny you try to drag other shit into the simple question I initially posed, even to the point of wondering why folks don't have the "self-respect to advocate for what you're owed" - if I go to a shop and they make a minor mistake occasionally (it happens), why the need to make a big deal of it? Trying to show off some manliness you lack in the bedroom? Or is there some better explanation?

It does not cost less to eat out than to cook at home, that's simply false. Drop me in Taiwan and say "make a meal which costs less than $3 per portion" and I'll make a bowl with twice the food your favorite restaurant serves and it'll cost half as much. 

And it's nothing to do with "manliness" or some show of bravado at all. Equating it to lacking something "in the bedroom" is also a personal dig and inappropriate. You talking about porn and dicks so regularly is getting annoying especially as you've been told in the past not to do so. 

And again, I'm not talking tiny mistakes, OBVIOUSLY we're all (I'd hope) capable of determining the difference. I've stated that I'm referring to them fucking up my order. If I order a sandwich and they give me a wrap I'm asking them to give me the sandwich I ordered. If there's tomatoes on my sandwich I can remove them. If I wanted tomatoes and there are none, I'm asking for tomatoes to be added. It's not rocket science, and it's obviously not black and white like you like to make everything out to be. 

And who said anything about making it "a big deal" in the first place? I don't go off on people for this shit, I politely tell them that the food I've been given doesn't match that which I ordered. I'm not berating them, I'm just getting what I asked for, and literally every server ever is always completely accommodating. 

I'm not returning every meal ever, I've returned like 5 or 6 that I can think of, ever. But if it's not what I ordered you bet your ass the number is going up. 

[Tulpa | 3,728]

22 minutes ago, fcgamer said:

We're talking about paying for shit bro, you stated it costs atleast twice to go out so why wouldn't people send shit back. That's not the case at all for me, it costs much more to stay in and cook. 

The hell are you eating at home that costs twice as much as restaurant food? Or are you eating at the greasiest spoons in Taiwan? 

[spacepup | 2,488]

There's nothing wrong, inappropriate, or selfish about sending your food back when it's warranted.  It all just depends on the situation and the person's attitude when doing so.  I've sent food back plenty of times but I'm always respectful about it and there is always a good reason.  For example, I don't eat meat, so if I order a tofu curry and they bring out a chicken curry, I politely say something and they resolve it.  

If someone is a complete ass about the situation, or berates the server about it, or does it at EVERY single little thing, then they are the problem.  But otherwise, there isn't anything wrong with speaking up about an issue if it's worth it to you, and that should be normal and expected in the industry unless you are the over-the-top and ridiculous.

I certainly can't infer from Gloves' statements above, that he is over the top or makes a big deal out of it when it happens.  I doubt most people do this to any extreme degree.  

[Code Monkey | 2,151]

Unfortunately almost every time I go out which is rare. Here are 2 from this year.

I ordered a pizza without olives and it came out with olives. I paid $22 for it, I'm not wasting my time picking them off, cook it again. If it was a $5 pizza on special, maybe I would think about it.

I ordered a burger with no mention of pickle on the menu but came out with a pickle attached to the bun. I sent it back but it still tasted like pckle so I sent it back again. It wouldn't have bothered me so much but I cannot stand the disgusting taste of pckles and I did my due diligence of checking the menu before I ordered. Why would they even add that?

I just think there's some responsibility on the restaurant when I can get a $3 cheeseburger down the street but I choose to pay $18 in your restaurant and you're still going to find a way destroy it?

[twiztor | 921]

i'm pretty chill. it's rare that i will send food back, but it does happen. but mainly it's situation-dependent.

if i'm ordering a burger, i always order it plain. i don't eat onions or lettuce. If a burger comes out fully loaded, i will just scrape all those toppings off. It's not worth the hassle and doesn't diminish my enjoyment of the meal in any way.

this is over a year ago, but i was out and ordered a pasta dish. it arrived cold. not lukewarm, not room temperature. cold. sent it back, they (re?)heated it or whatever, brought it back out. tasted fine. i think they offered me a couple bucks off my tab or something. wasn't a big deal.

i have never had the complete wrong item served to me, but i would have no issue sending it back to get what i ordered. 

 

[The Count | 600]

I can't recall ever doing it and I dine out pretty frequently. I suppose I am a soft touch when it comes to that though. If there's a hair in my food then I will 100% not pay for it, but at that point I'd have lost all my appetite and not request a replacement. 

[Mega Tank | 1,101]

I do send food back. I'll also talk to a manager if I have to. If I'm going out to eat, I expect to be served what I ordered.

I've had burgers come out like manhole covers at the Hard Rock before. No thanks. Wrong food item? No thanks. I'm not going to a place craving a certain menu item and be served something else. I'm not taking the loss on that.

If you're so concerned about food being thrown, try getting a law passed or starting up a company that can make use of wrong items. There is actually a company that does that here in the US. If a bakeshop has an order canclled or done wrong, people can buy those at a discount. Maybe the cookies came out in the wrong shape.

Also, around here in the US, sometimes wrong items get sent to the back and workers get to take it home from what I have heard.

Edited August 7 by Mega Tank

[Gloves | 12,284]

22 minutes ago, Code Monkey said:

Unfortunately almost every time I go out which is rare. Here are 2 from this year.

I ordered a pizza without olives and it came out with olives. I paid $22 for it, I'm not wasting my time picking them off, cook it again. If it was a $5 pizza on special, maybe I would think about it.

I ordered a burger with no mention of pickle on the menu but came out with a pickle attached to the bun. I sent it back but it still tasted like pckle so I sent it back again. It wouldn't have bothered me so much but I cannot stand the disgusting taste of pckles and I did my due diligence of checking the menu before I ordered. Why would they even add that?

I just think there's some responsibility on the restaurant when I can get a $3 cheeseburger down the street but I choose to pay $18 in your restaurant and you're still going to find a way destroy it?

Yeah, olives aren't really a "just pick em off" food, that shit leaves a taste. Ruins the pizza entirely if you're not into olives, completely reasonable.