The $7 quibble at the Oregon Grille restaurant
Reader Jeffrey Hudson thought I was being quite clever when I ended my Sunday column on Hank Larsen and his beef with the Oregon Grille in Hunt Valley by letting readers decide who was being petty and wrong in this complaint.
Upon reading the ending again, I have to agree with Jeffrey that it may lead people to interpret it differently. I really wasn't trying to be clever. It was unintentional. Here's what I wrote:
But the bottom line in this case is that Larsen could have chosen to dine anywhere that night. Given that he chose the Oregon Grille, that he has consistently visited the restaurant every year for eight years, and that he spent $350 on dinner that night, one would think that quibbling over a $7 price difference for a drink is more than just petty.
It's downright ridiculous.
While some read that to mean that I was criticizing Mr. Larsen for speaking up about the change in price for that drink, I want to clear it up by saying that I was, in fact, criticizing the restaurant.
As a consumer, you have every right to expect the advertised price to be correct. While the restaurant did inform him about the price difference before the drink came to the table and before he was charged, it is still Mr. Larsen's right as a consumer to ask that the listed price be honored. That's Maryland law. They restaurant doesn't have to sell it to you at its listed price, as I said in the column, but Maryland law allows you to ask for it and then file a complaint if it is not honored. While the money in this complaint is small, think about how you would feel if they told you at the counter that a TV you wanted to buy wasn't $1,000 like it said on the display case, but really $1,200. Would you feel like you were misled?
To lose a customer, who just spent $350 on dinner, over a $7 dispute is crazy. Any restaurant worth its salt would have owned up to the mistake (they did, after all, give him the incorrect menu to start with) and given him the drink on the house or honored the price listed. A happy customer will keep coming back and recommend it to friends and family. An angry customer will tell everyone they know and don't know about the bad experience. Why risk bad word of mouth?
Mr. Larsen's experience hit a nerve with other readers, too, who shared their own bad experience there, including Valerie Earwood who said:
A few years ago, my husband and I were celebrating our 25 anniversary in early August. I called the Oregon Grille and told them that my husband has a severe hearing problem and we that we needed to sit side by side so that he could hear me. I also told the restaurant that we could dine at any time, but preferred when the restaurant would be the least crowded.
We arrived when the restaurant opened for dinner and were dressed appropriately for our special occasion. We were the only patrons in the restaurant. We were offered the option of having a cocktail in the bar and decided to do so. When we entered the dining room for dinner, we were shown a small table with 2 chairs across from each other. I explained about my husband’s hearing problem and that I had requested side by side seating. Again, we were standing in a deserted dining room and were the only ones in the restaurant. I was told that all the other tables on the main dining floor were booked, but that they could accommodate our seating request upstairs.
The air conditioning was not turned on upstairs and it was very hot and muggy. My husband and I had a debate as to whether to leave and we mistakenly decided to stay and make the best of it.
However, when we finished our meal (around 6:30pm) and descended the stairs, we saw an empty dining room! I was livid! We had endured the heat upstairs when there was plenty of room downstairs. Again, I asked about the main floor seating and was told that it was booked. My husband and I frequent other upscale restaurants and all are usually very accommodating, especially when we arrive early and leave by the time the main dinner service is starting.
Later in the week, I wrote a letter to the manager at the Oregon Grille. We were not as lucky as Mr. Larsen, as we never received a reply or an apology.
So, when I read your article, I understood immediately how Mr. Larsen was treated and how he felt. Apparently, both initial and return customer satisfaction is not a high priority at the Oregon Grille.
Here's how the Oregon Grille should have handled this incident, says reader Doug Robinson who wrote:
Amazing these days that a restaurant would risk losing a customer. I am a firm believer of speaking up for poor service or poor food quality and sending letters to the owners or corporate offices. But seven dollars, how stupid is that.
I frequent, among other favorites, the Wine Market on Fort.
At a brunch with family and friends, the listed special my wife ordered turned out to not be available after she ordered it. So she picked something else. When it came time to pay, the Wine Market had not charged for her meal and dessert and drink.
Needless to say we were surprised and continue to spend money there.
(Sun Photographer Algerina Perna)
Comments
Not to pile on The Oregon Grille, but the only time I went there was for a Sunday brunch. I figured that would be the best time to check it out because it would be a little more relaxed (no coat and tie required) and they would be a little more at ease about my bringing along my then 5 year-old.
The moment we walked in the door we got a look from the host that said, "Great, here we go with the children." He sneered as he led us to our table and the wait staff, while competent, was not particularly thrilled that we took a few extra moments to place our order and weren't particularly friendly.
My son was perfect during our time there, but we were not made to feel welcome because of how he was pre-judged on our way in and we've decided to not return, no matter how good the food was (and for the brunch it wasn't all that great).
Posted by: brstevens | June 30, 2008 3:19 PM
I agree that the restaurant should have given him the drink at the price the menu quoted. Regardless of whether he went there every year for this occasion or if this was the first time at OG, if he's dropping $350 or so on dinner, what is another $7 really? I know that restaurants have a thin profit margin but customer service has to be the focus and this "fight" can only hurt OG--especially now that it has gone public. Too bad because it is a very nice restaurant, but they're not the only one in town!! People talk about picking their battles, and this (to me!) doesn't seem worth drawing the line in the sand for. It's only $7!!!
Posted by: Os Fan | June 30, 2008 3:31 PM
Though a warm atmosphere awaits, the new chef is quite gifted and the regular service personnel are very professional and accomodating, the management at this restaurant (it's local for me so I go somewhat often) has for some time been a bane to an otherwise enjoyable venue.
Posted by: Topo Gigio | June 30, 2008 3:50 PM
we had a similiar experience about seating and the main dinning room. This was on a Sunday afternoon and were told that all the seats had been reserved in the 'main" dinning roo. we were placed on the front porch, very hot and muggy.
When we left there was no one in the dinning room. We have never been back since our first experience.
Posted by: EJ Woznicki | June 30, 2008 4:36 PM
So Ted Bauer--do you see any problems that might need to be addressed or are you content to just keep things as they are? Apparently there is a pattern of management treating customers poorly.
Posted by: Hmmm | June 30, 2008 6:51 PM
As a local restaurant owner I would like to go on record as saying the Oregon Grille should have honored the listed menu price. If the restaurant failed to change a single menu insert it is not the fault of any customer and the price should be honored, period. The concept of the customer always being right should have been applied in this instance. Any customer spending $350 on dinner shouldn't have to argue a pricing error that is clearly the restaurants error.
Posted by: anonymous | June 30, 2008 11:00 PM
Rather interesting comments. We have been patrons of The Oregon Grille for over 15 years and have always enjoyed tremendous service and wonderful meals. We did on one occasion have a poorly prepared side dish and were given the option of having it replaced or taken off the bill. Not sure why everyone seems to be piling on. As anyone in the service or retail industry knows, customers can be quite amazing with their requests. So while I do not doubt the veracity of these posts, does seem a bit one sided, considering the accolades and the Mobil Rating that The Oregon Grill has been awarded.
Posted by: Christopher Smith | October 16, 2009 10:36 AM