This is the review I left on the restaurant's Facebook.

"My mom and I just ate here for lunch today, and we are not pleased. Since Bistro V's food is expensive, we decided to just split a cheeseburger. When they brought out our food, they split our burger for us. We thought that was so kind of them, and were happy with that. The burger (which was listed as $9) was pretty good, but it wasn't much different than a Five Guy's burger. We chose to eat there because we like the bread they bring out, and the atmosphere is pleasant. When we got our ticket, I noticed that the bill was over $17. So, I looked at everything and noticed that they charged us a $3 split fee! Seriously?! So we notified the waitress, who said that it was automatically put on the ticket. We said we could have just split it ourselves, and that we are not paying a split fee. She got the manager (if that's what you want to call him), and he immediately had a snobby demeanor (that could just be his personality; it probably wasn't directed towards us). He said, "Y'all have a complaint?" I told him that it wasn't necessarily a complaint, but that I just don't understand why I have to pay a split fee when we could have just split the burger ourselves. He said, "Well, when two people are seated at a table, and only order one meal, there's automatically a split charge." So, I said, "That's ridiculous. We could have just split it ourselves. Also, what if someone didn't want to eat?" So then he hesitates and says, "Well, we gave you more food." (Which is a complete lie. I've ordered the cheeseburger before, and it was exactly the same size and came with the exact same amount of fries as the last time I ordered it.) They never told us beforehand that there would be a split charge. We didn't even ask them to split it for us; we just said we were going to split it. He did not apologize and he did NOT remove the fee. He made absolutely no effort to show that he is a pleasant or professional person. He took our payment and walked off. When he came back, he said, "Have a good day..." in a snarky tone. (Again, that's probably just how he acts in general.) We will not be back. It's not the fact that it was $3; it's the fact that no one should be charged a split fee, regardless, especially when the restaurant doesn't have the decency to notify the customer before the order goes through. I left my Yelp review and noticed that someone else complained about the split fee. They said that there's a split fee notification on the menu. But even still, how would anyone know to look for something like that? I've never been to a restaurant that has a split fee. It's like they were being sneaky about it; like some kind of fine print scam. It's like you can't come in and sit down in peace without looking at the menu to make sure there's not a "breathing the air" fee. I shouldn't have given a single tip, but the waitress was friendly, and it wasn't her fault for what happened. So, I left a tip, anyway."

They proceeded to leave snarky replies in response. So I emailed the owner in a very professional manner. She emailed me back saying, "Yelp about it". I was shocked. I could not believe that they were refusing to handle this situation like professionals. Not only that, but the owner's friends got on my review and began insulting me personally. The owner's mother-in-law even got on there and said things along the lines of, "People of certain class know that high end restaurants charge split fees. Since when does someone go to a high end restaurant and buy only one meal?" So I said, "I recently had stomach surgery. Why would I buy a meal that I cannot finish, when I can just split it with someone?" Then, a few minutes later, the owner emailed me back and said, "We will not tolerate abuse from our customers." Since when is a complaint abuse? They claim that I insulted their employee by saying he's snarky. Well he was! Wouldn't it have been easier to just say, "I apologize for the misunderstanding."? How hard is that? When they responded to me the way they did by saying "they won't tolerate", that makes me wonder if they will try to sue me for defamation. I did my research and found that the only way they can is if I make false claims. Not a single statement was false. I'm so livid and shocked by the complete disregard for my situation.

Some of my friends got on the review and began cussing the owner's friends out, because they were insulting me. I publicly tried to contain the situation by telling them to not cuss or call names. Not once did the owner publicly try to contain her Facebook friends. Not once did I receive an apology. She even tried saying that I could have my $3 refunded to me. Why would I drive 15 minutes to get $3? Why couldn't they have just given me the refund while I was at the restaurant? I told them I didn't want the refund of $3. I said that they could just give it to my waitress, because she was actually friendly; and that if she declined, then they could donate the money to the charity of their choice.

Split fees are relatively common where I live, which is why I now know to scan the menu to see if it's listed before deciding on the order. I've seen the charge fee on menus at casual, medium-cost places as well as high-end ones. I wouldn't split a meal at a truly fine-dining restaurant, but from the description of the bistro it was pleasant but not swanky. I would split a sandwich there, or bring half of my meal home for later. I often will split meals with my mom at such places, not out of cheapness but practicality. She has a very limited diet due to health issues causing restrictions, and for her a plain baked potato constitutes a whole meal rather than a side. What we'll typically do is order the meal we're sharing plus something small - a side dish, or a salad, so that at least we are both ordering something. We also give a tip like we've both ordered two full meals so the server is fully compensated for serving both of us.

It sounds like the bistro really needs to learn some social graces. It's smarter for a business to resolve a matter that is small and fixable, such as a $3 split fee that can be removed (they could have even said something along the lines of "in the future, please be aware this is our policy"), than to consume time and energy bickering on social media and receiving a negative review.

@@Hiraeth Or infamous. Notorious, even.

20170104124725.pdf

Do you have the Bariatric Patient card? If not, you should get one and keep it with you whenever you dine out. I've never been told I can't order from the kids menu or pay the kids price at a buffet.

@@Kaylamh When she and i got LB surg years ago they gave us a card with all the information about our band... Not sure if they do that for the other WLS.

For the sleeve I received a credit card size card for my wallet and a key chain card as well as a discount coupon code for an alert bracelet ( cheaper through Amazon)...

Sent from my SM-N920P using the BariatricPal App

Anyone know if they have a similar card in the UK?

Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

If you can't get a card ...check Amazon for an alert bracelet with your on it info which I bought for only for emergencies.. Never thought to use it for anything else..on the front is my name, birth date n seafood allergies..just in case I'm an coherent... Safety first

Sent from my SM-N920P using the BariatricPal App

Anyone know if they have a similar card in the UK?

Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

You can get OPA cards to download which let's you order smaller sized meals but DO NOT automatically entitle you for discounts. Very similar to Gluten Free or Lactose free cards.

Fridge Pickers Wear Bigger Knickers ????

Split fees are relatively common where I live, which is why I now know to scan the menu to see if it's listed before deciding on the order. I've seen the charge fee on menus at casual, medium-cost places as well as high-end ones. I wouldn't split a meal at a truly fine-dining restaurant, but from the description of the bistro it was pleasant but not swanky. I would split a sandwich there, or bring half of my meal home for later. I often will split meals with my mom at such places, not out of cheapness but practicality. She has a very limited diet due to health issues causing restrictions, and for her a plain baked potato constitutes a whole meal rather than a side. What we'll typically do is order the meal we're sharing plus something small - a side dish, or a salad, so that at least we are both ordering something. We also give a tip like we've both ordered two full meals so the server is fully compensated for serving both of us.

It sounds like the bistro really needs to learn some social graces. It's smarter for a business to resolve a matter that is small and fixable, such as a $3 split fee that can be removed (they could have even said something along the lines of "in the future, please be aware this is our policy"), than to consume time and energy bickering on social media and receiving a negative review.

Thanks so much for your very thorough input! I see that you live in Cali, so I'm certain there are many fine-dining restaurants where you live. (Would love to visit there one day! ) But in Alabama, I don't think there are very many. I'm 25 and just recently got my first real job (I work for the city; before that I just worked retail and in restaurants), so I haven't had the luxury of eating at a bunch of fancy places. The restaurant I gave a bad review to isn't really even that fancy, to be honest. They share a building with other businesses, they only have one restaurant and no corporate office, their workers aren't dressed in a fancy manner (they wear black, but are allowed to wear their own clothes), etc. Plus, I'm certain that if they really were as fancy as they claim, they never would have acted so rudely over the confusion of a customer's $3 split charge. You're right about everything you said.

20170104124725.pdf

Do you have the Bariatric Patient card? If not, you should get one and keep it with you whenever you dine out. I've never been told I can't order from the kids menu or pay the kids price at a buffet.

@@Kaylamh When she and i got LB surg years ago they gave us a card with all the information about our band... Not sure if they do that for the other WLS.

For the sleeve I received a credit card size card for my wallet and a key chain card as well as a discount coupon code for an alert bracelet ( cheaper through Amazon)...

Sent from my SM-N920P using the BariatricPal App

wow... that's pretty cool. My card is also credit card size.... but i didn't get the rest ... maybe i should look into it...maybe they now have keychain card i can get... Hmmmm Thanks

In the days before online reviews, I had the absolute WORST experience at a restaurant in Ft. Worth. It was an Italian place with singing waiters and booths with swinging doors (the teens LOVED the place because you could make out with your date... LOL). Anyway, Ex#1 and I went there on Valentine's weekend. We knew it would be crazy, but we wanted a nice dinner before our concert that evening. We waited a long time for a table, but not out of line with it being V-day weekend. We placed our order, and waited. And waited. And waited. Our drinks/water were not refilled, it had been 45 minutes since we placed our order and nothing had come out. I flagged down our waitress, and asked how much longer, keeping in mind we had concert tickets and while we'd left what we thought was plenty of time for V-day delays, it was getting late. She came back and said the kitchen was starting on our meal next. I was surprised that we'd been there almost an hour and our meal had not even been *started*, and said so. I wasn't rude, didn't ask to speak to the manager, nothing. Just surprised.

The next thing I know, the owner is at our table, wanting to know what the problem was. I said there wasn't really a problem, I wasn't lodging a complaint, I was just surprised that we'd been there over an hour and no one had even started cooking our order yet. She leaned in over my shoulder, started shaking her finger in my face, yelling at me that we had NOT been there an hour, she'd checked the time, it had only been FIFTY minutes. And that she had a line out the door waiting for tables, and we should feel lucky that we had a table. Ex#1 informed her that she could HAVE the table, in that case. She called the waitress over and very loudly told the waitress to make sure we were charged for our drinks (sodas, btw, we hadn't had any alcohol).

I was floored. I'd never been treated like that in a restaurant before. Until she got literally in my face shouting and shaking her finger in my face, neither I nor Ex#1 had gotten upset or raised our voices, or even said we had a complaint. But as I said, this was before Yelp and Google reviews, so I didn't think I had any recourse.

At the time, I was an administrative assistant in the executive offices of a large hospital chain in Ft. Worth. We started doing one of those "paradigm shift" quality initiative programs where every employee (several thousand) was required to attend. As part of the exec team, I was in the first group to go. We were asked to share customer service experiences, and I shared mine. The team leaders were so horrified by that customer service experience, that it was repeated to EVERY group that went through the program with my hospital, and very likely with other corporations as well. And named the restaurant by name.

It was closed by the end of the year. I don't know that I had anything to do with it, but I don't know that I didn't.

You never know when your story will make an impact that will change a business.

I always let management know when I have a bad experience, because I want them to have an opportunity to fix the problem. I also make sure they know when I have exceptionally good service, because I know they get more complaints than attaboys. (Freaks the servers out too when you ask to see a manager, and they can't figure out what they've done wrong... )

I agree that the split fee itself is not that big of a deal. But if I'd gotten that response from the manager, I'd have posted a complaint as well. And to have the owner come back with an attack instead of a reasoned response tells me that the owner has no business in the restaurant industry. Customer feedback, even when it's not an attaboy, is an opportunity to improve your business. Treating it as an attack has no place in a customer service industry. It would have been different if the OP had been antagonistic or upset with the manager or server to start with, which it doesn't sound like she was. Even if a manager doesn't have a duty to de-escalate, they certainly have a duty not to escalate a situation, which he clearly did here.

Regardless of whether or not the restaurant was right in charging the fee (they have the right), the way the management handled the situation was outright rude and not good customer service. Anyone who owns a business and wants repeat customers would have handled the situation apologetically and with some grace, even if they stuck to their guns.

There literally would have been no harm in the manager apologizing about the misunderstanding and even offering to take the $3 off. That would have probably ensured that the OP would have returned with a good feeling, repeat business.

Now, because the management was so stringent on $3, the OP will not return and also let lots of people know. BAD judgment on the management's part.

Edited January 5, 20179 yr by The New Kel

In the days before online reviews, I had the absolute WORST experience at a restaurant in Ft. Worth. It was an Italian place with singing waiters and booths with swinging doors (the teens LOVED the place because you could make out with your date... LOL). Anyway, Ex#1 and I went there on Valentine's weekend. We knew it would be crazy, but we wanted a nice dinner before our concert that evening. We waited a long time for a table, but not out of line with it being V-day weekend. We placed our order, and waited. And waited. And waited. Our drinks/water were not refilled, it had been 45 minutes since we placed our order and nothing had come out. I flagged down our waitress, and asked how much longer, keeping in mind we had concert tickets and while we'd left what we thought was plenty of time for V-day delays, it was getting late. She came back and said the kitchen was starting on our meal next. I was surprised that we'd been there almost an hour and our meal had not even been *started*, and said so. I wasn't rude, didn't ask to speak to the manager, nothing. Just surprised.

The next thing I know, the owner is at our table, wanting to know what the problem was. I said there wasn't really a problem, I wasn't lodging a complaint, I was just surprised that we'd been there over an hour and no one had even started cooking our order yet. She leaned in over my shoulder, started shaking her finger in my face, yelling at me that we had NOT been there an hour, she'd checked the time, it had only been FIFTY minutes. And that she had a line out the door waiting for tables, and we should feel lucky that we had a table. Ex#1 informed her that she could HAVE the table, in that case. She called the waitress over and very loudly told the waitress to make sure we were charged for our drinks (sodas, btw, we hadn't had any alcohol).

I was floored. I'd never been treated like that in a restaurant before. Until she got literally in my face shouting and shaking her finger in my face, neither I nor Ex#1 had gotten upset or raised our voices, or even said we had a complaint. But as I said, this was before Yelp and Google reviews, so I didn't think I had any recourse.

At the time, I was an administrative assistant in the executive offices of a large hospital chain in Ft. Worth. We started doing one of those "paradigm shift" quality initiative programs where every employee (several thousand) was required to attend. As part of the exec team, I was in the first group to go. We were asked to share customer service experiences, and I shared mine. The team leaders were so horrified by that customer service experience, that it was repeated to EVERY group that went through the program with my hospital, and very likely with other corporations as well. And named the restaurant by name.

It was closed by the end of the year. I don't know that I had anything to do with it, but I don't know that I didn't.

You never know when your story will make an impact that will change a business.

I always let management know when I have a bad experience, because I want them to have an opportunity to fix the problem. I also make sure they know when I have exceptionally good service, because I know they get more complaints than attaboys. (Freaks the servers out too when you ask to see a manager, and they can't figure out what they've done wrong... )

I agree that the split fee itself is not that big of a deal. But if I'd gotten that response from the manager, I'd have posted a complaint as well. And to have the owner come back with an attack instead of a reasoned response tells me that the owner has no business in the restaurant industry. Customer feedback, even when it's not an attaboy, is an opportunity to improve your business. Treating it as an attack has no place in a customer service industry. It would have been different if the OP had been antagonistic or upset with the manager or server to start with, which it doesn't sound like she was. Even if a manager doesn't have a duty to de-escalate, they certainly have a duty not to escalate a situation, which he clearly did here.

Wow, I truly appreciate the time you took to write all of this.

I cannot believe you were treated so horribly. I was picturing the whole scenario in my head, and realized my reaction was like:

The fact that you didn't even react badly makes this whole thing even more horrendous. You did absolutely nothing to deserve that awful behavior from the staff. It's also questionable as to why the manager assumed you had a complaint. The assistant manager in my situation also assumed I had a complaint; but truly, I just wanted to know why there was a fee. I'm willing to bet that your customer service experience notification played a big part in them going out of business. It may have not been the main reason, but it definitely took a seat in the audience. I was told that the place I'm talking about may have the same luck; because no business should ever have that much pride, and to not even apologize. I'm not asking for a refund. I'm not asking for a free meal. I just want an apology.

A few years ago, I ordered a t-shirt from a website. At the time, the website wasn't very well-known. I calmly emailed them asking why I haven't gotten my item yet. They emailed me back the same day with an extremely apologetic response. They even sent me the item free of charge. I never asked for a free item. I was so happy by their friendly response, and I promised them I'd be sure to order from them again; and I have many times. Now, that website is known as CafePress. They have always been so friendly and professional, which is why they have succeeded.

I have given the rude owner's restaurant a review on Facebook, Yelp, Zomato, TripAdvisor, and Google. It may not do much, but I know at least a few people will see it, and those people have family and friends.

I am not a rude person by nature. Though, I can get to a certain level when provoked. If they could just swallow their pride and apologize to me, I would let it go. But they haven't, and they probably won't. I hope that my review helps someone avoid that kind of treatment in the future.

Again, thanks so much for your response.

@@Hiraeth Well, to be fair, Ex#1 made a bit of a scene when he VERY loudly announced to the owner that she could HAVE her F*ING table, and then when the poor lady at the front said "have a nice evening" on our way out, he turned around and shouted in front of the line of people waiting for tables that we would never come back to that place again. But that was well after the owner had made a butt of herself. LOL.

Regardless of whether or not the restaurant was right in charging the fee (they have the right), the way the management handled the situation was outright rude and not good customer service. Anyone who owns a business and wants repeat customers would have handled the situation apologetically and with some grace, even if they stuck to their guns.

There literally would have been no harm in the manager apologizing about the misunderstanding and even offering to take the $3 off. That would have probably ensured that the OP would have returned with a good feeling, repeat business.

Now, because the management was so stringent on $3, the OP will not return and also let lots of people know. BAD judgment on the management's part.

If they would have been polite, I would have told them to keep the $3 fee and even apologized for the misunderstanding. We approached him politely, and he came out acting as if he was annoyed and frustrated. He even slumped and acted uninterested in us.

A part of me wants to post the name of this business just so everyone can see the constant unprofessional behavior, but I don't want to put the owner at risk of extreme backlash. She's already getting it on Facebook and Google. I posted 2 pictures on Google, and made sure to edit her name out of the emails to protect her identity.

Thank you for your response. I'm glad a lot of you see my point of view.

@@Hiraeth Well, to be fair, Ex#1 made a bit of a scene when he VERY loudly announced to the owner that she could HAVE her F*ING table, and then when the poor lady at the front said "have a nice evening" on our way out, he turned around and shouted in front of the line of people waiting for tables that we would never come back to that place again. But that was well after the owner had made a butt of herself. LOL.

LOL! Well, she made an ass of herself, so in some way, she deserved that reaction. But, the poor girl at the front probably didn't. Good thing it wasn't directed at her, and I hope it didn't upset her. Hopefully she has a better job, as well.

I can understand asking about the charge, I question anything on a receipt when I don't know what it is. Where I live a lot of place have a plate share charge on their menu. I always buy a meal and take home the leftovers.

oh dear, feel free to block me maybe you can review me on Facebook then spend a whole day whining about me here on BP. Seems like YOU have way to much time on YOUR hands!

I have the right to complain about a BUSINESS. You obviously have a lot of pent up anger. There's medicine for that.

@@Aggiemae I have extra if you need some. My don't make manda mad pills come doubled for incase I need to take two instead of one.