October 13, 2009
This from a journalist friend.
Every so often I get emails from journalists who need a public platform to vent without the threat of being found out. I am generally happy to help if it seems the venting will help my clients.
This from a journalist:
The same day I got a restaurant opening press release with no mention of the opening date, I heard this story from a friend. She went with her BF to a semi-obscure ethnic restaurant with great web ratings, driving 45 minutes each way, only to discover they were closed on Tuesdays.
Her bad, should've checked. So she confirmed on the Internet, and then by calling the restaurant and listening to their voice mail, that they are open on Wednesdays.
She went back the following week, same hike, only to see the darkened facade once again. And a note in the doorway saying "We are closed for our holiday."
The moral: He who is too busy, or too oblivious to his customer's needs, to keep his restaurant's voice mail current and informative deserves a special place in restaurant hell: sitting at the table by the kitchen doors for eternity, waiting for the check to come.
I'm not worried about being found out on this issue, which is one of my pet peeves. It's not only closing for full days without notice. A lot of restaurants are very flexible about their kitchen closing times. Their Web sites and a sign on the door may say a particular time, but if late-evening business is slow, they close early. That seems to me a means of insuring your late-evening business will remain slow.
The other moral is: don't drive that far without a Plan B!