Long recognised as people of fortitude, British consumers will often suffer silently rather than stand up for their rights. We need the confidence to ask for a better deal, to complain if goods or services are below standard, and to give praise where due. Only in this way will standards improve.

Giving feedback is especially important in the food industry, where restaurants thrive or fail on their reputation:  feedback may be official (as in the renowned Michelin guides), semi-official (see www.toptable.co.uk) or totally unofficial (“My cousin’s nephew got campylobacter from there”). Two major factors can make or break a restaurant—its food and its service. (Other factors such as ambience, music and decor are usually matters of taste, rather than for complaint.) 

Food should be well prepared, attractively presented and as described on the menu. Waiting staff should be attentive (but not overbearing), efficient (but not too fast at whipping your dishes away), helpful (but not servile) and friendly (but not familiar). Difficult? Yes. Impossible? Definitely not.

It is reasonable to expect edible food and friendly, informed and efficient service from a restaurant. That is what you are paying for. Unfortunately there is no guarantee that is what you will receive, so if food or service (or both) are unsatisfactory you should offer the restaurant a little gift—the gift of a complaint.

The first rule of complaining in a restaurant is to do it quickly, so the restaurant has the opportunity to remedy the situation without fuss. Most good restaurants, jealous of their reputation, will be happy to replace a meal, or offer the services of a different, hopefully better, waiter, once the problem is established.

Which brings us to the second rule: know what you want to achieve by complaining. Would an apology suffice (especially if it is from a member of the waiting staff who promises to do better)? Or do you require a deduction from the bill at the end? If hygiene is the problem (you found the ever enduring fly in your soup) you may prefer to get a deduction from the bill and eat elsewhere. Suggest the solution politely to your waiter.

Your suggested remedy should be congruent with your complaint. If, for example, you are allergic to beans and did not realise “haricots verts” on the menu meant the rabbit came with green beans, it would be unreasonable to expect not to pay for the meal. However, a smile can work wonders, and many places will gladly offer you an alternative green vegetable.

Speaking of smiling—the third rule of complaining effectively is to keep your anger under control. Remember, a well managed restaurant will welcome your complaint so they can do something about it (and you won’t tell ten of your closest friends about your bad experience, who will each tell ten of their friends, and so on...) Waiting staff tend to react negatively to rude and aggressive behaviours. Just beckon the waiter discreetly and explain the problem quietly.

While remaining calm is important it is equally important to remain assertively in control of the situation. Remember that you are entitled to complain and to expect a remedy.

Let’s say, however, that your waiter chooses not to understand the situation, or will not accede to your proposed solution. Or is the one displaying rude or aggressive behaviours, like the waiter, who, when told by an elderly lady that the steak was tough, belligerently asked if she had her own teeth – true story. Then it’s time to speak to the manager. When the manager arrives, again explain the problem and say you are not happy with how it has been handled by your waiter. (This gives an extra gift to the restaurant, since the waiter should subsequently be given some much needed training in handling complaints. Aren’t you the generous one!)

In some restaurants, waiters are not allowed to make decisions about discounts or complimentary dishes. If that is the case, the waiter should know to summon someone who can make such decisions—speedily.

If your complaint is then resolved, all is well. If not, there are a number of remedies you may wish to resort to – as they say, knowledge is power!

Tipping:

The quickest way to prove your point in terms of poor food or sub-standard service is to withhold the tip. Keep a close eye out for the “optional service charge” which some establishments automatically add to the bill (how helpful of them!).

Withholding payment:

Your meal is a contract between you and the restaurant for the provision of food, drinks and service. When the restaurant does not deliver to the required standard then they have broken the contract and you are entitled to make reasonable deductions from the bill to cover this. If you are going to pay only what you think the meal is worth, rather than the amount presented on the bill, your offer must be reasonable (and it would be advisable to have gone through the steps described above in terms of complaining), and you must leave your name and address. Don’t be scared by any threats of calling the police. You are not committing an offence by doing this.

The Heavies:

There are a couple of legal remedies depending on what your complaint is. If the food you are served is not the food described on the menu then, if your complaint is not resolved, you may wish to report the restaurant to the local trading standards office, as they may have committed an offence under the Trade Descriptions Act 1968. If you get ill from the food, then make a report to the local environmental health office. It is an offence under the Food Safety Act 1990 for a business to sell food which is unfit for human consumption.

Remember:

And don’t forget the deserved compliments—for excellent service or delicious food. Feedback of any sort is a very real gift to managers attempting to meet the needs and wants of valued customers.

Article by Kate Moriarty. Editing and Additional Reporting by Chris Dreyfus.