A client who complained that they had to wait an hour and a half for their dinner to arrive received retaliation from the proprietors of an Indian restaurant. One of the better-rated south Asian restaurants in Lancashire is Sai Surbhi in Fulwood, Preston, which has a rating of four and a half out of five on TripAdvisor.
The restaurant’s “genuine Indian style,” “excellent food,” and “extremely sophisticated” service have been praised in recent reviews. However, a contemporary consumer disagreed, according to Lancaster Live.
“I Would Rate 0 If I Could” was the review’s tagline. “Extremely long wait times,” the client said, adding that after placing a phone order for two curries and matching bread, they were left waiting for an hour and a half.
The client claimed that after being “told no three times by the service member,” they eventually received a refund from the eatery.
The complete review reads: “Ordered simply two curries and a bread that, after one hour and thirty minutes of waiting, was still not ready. The same response was given when asked how long the dish would take: “shouldn’t be too long now.”
“I eventually received a complete refund, which was difficult because I repeatedly told the staff member and myself that I could wait for my lunch. What I was hearing was so obviously incorrect; the staff needs training.
“No organization, inadequate personnel.” “I can’t comment on the meal, but if it was ever put on, I would guess it was overcooked.”
Because their order was just “10–15 minutes late from its allocated time,” Sai Surbhi claimed in response to the review that the customer had “berated” personnel and “threatened” to give a negative review.
The response explained the situation from their perspective: “Your order had a scheduled time of 9.30 p.m., but you started making a scene around 9.40 p.m. By 9:45 p.m., your refund had been handled.
“It simply goes to show again your nature that you were waiting “1 hour and 30 minutes” for an order that was refunded within 1 hour since the time of the phone call placing the purchase, which you showed us.
Because it was Saturday night, all orders were given 45 minutes to an hour. “Because we are that organized and are aware of how long our kitchen takes, at the very least.” Since we make each dish from scratch, it’s not just a matter of “I only ordered two curries.” We don’t just whip up curries. We put your order down for 9.30, and after hearing you berating my employee for making you wait, for which she constantly apologized, I intervened and informed you that it was now 9.40 p.m the owner clarified.
The letter also mentioned that the restaurant was busy and that the foods ordered “took longer to cook” than other meals. Sai Surbhi acknowledged that the order was running behind schedule but added that it had given the customer a discount as compensation.
“You chose the lamb shank, a dish that takes longer to prepare but is exceptionally soft and gently cooked till the meat falls off the bone in a lovely curry sauce. It’s late because we’re busy (there was an entire restaurant to view).”, stated the owner.
The management team then elaborated on the source of the purported “threat” of a negative review as part of their response. “Following this information of no additional discount, you threatened to leave us this negative review for being kept waiting, as if you should have been compensated?” We, therefore, advised you to proceed with your review. The situation would have been different if you hadn’t done this.
“I departed after that to check on your order, which was just being started. Five minutes later, when I came back, you said you wanted a refund. I did indeed say “no.” I’ll repeat what I said when I first told you. I wouldn’t say I like the way you behaved or the threats of negative comments since your order was delivered 10-15 minutes later than expected”, the heated argument between the two noted.Â
