Less than acceptable customer service

Jan 15, 2021 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,

Permit me a few lines to express my disappointment with the service I received at, where most would consider, one of Guyana’s premium hotels. Let me be clear, I was not a guest at the hotel, but rather a customer at their poolside bar and dining area.
Upon arrival, I was pleased that they complied with the national COVID-19 guidelines. My friend and I proceeded to a vacant table, which to our surprise, appeared to have not been cleaned for the day.
A waitress came over and began to wipe it with a damp cloth. There was no noticeable scent of bleach or other cleaning agents on this piece of fabric that was used to wipe the table. Considering the current global pandemic, you’d think that some cleaning agent would’ve been used. Nevertheless, my friend and I proceeded to order drinks while browsing the menu for our meal choices.
I’d average it was about seven to 10 minutes after placing the beverage order that the waitress returned with the drinks. She placed them on the table and said she’d return soon to take the food orders. As soon as my friend proceeded to remove the remains of the wrapper from the straw in his glass, he noticed that there was a fly in the glass. This was not an ordinary housefly, but a vinegar fly, which is also called pomace fly or small fruit fly. In Guyana, we refer to them as ‘sour flies’.
We quickly signalled the waitress and after another five minutes, she returned. When we told her that she gave us a drink with a fly in it, she immediately became defensive. The young lady then informed us that it was the policy of the restaurant that those things can happen because it was an outdoor setting. She even said that it had to happen after she presented the drink to us because she had her eyes on the drinks all the time, which I find to be absolutely absurd.
After somewhat of a back and forth with the young woman, who I noticed was fitted with a supervisor tag, my friend decided to ask for another drink to be made. By that time, I was already annoyed and disappointed with the service. When she returned with the new drink, I decided to ask for the bill, we paid and left.
My point is this, even if the fly made its way into the glass after she presented it to us (which I highly doubt because it would still be swimming in the glass when we noticed it), customer service will take your business a far way. A paying customer shouldn’t have to debate with a waitress, and in such a case, an immediate offer to remake the drink with an apology would’ve done the job. We were not asking for a free meal; we were asking for a little courtesy.
I strongly suggest that the management of that entity invest in a refresher course in customer service for their staff. While you’re at it, remember we’re in a pandemic, please invest in some cleaning products for your tables too.

Yours sincerely,
Janell Cameron

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