Agh! I'm So Mad!

[cgilsing]

So a new restaurant openned a few weeks ago in town....It is very nice and my husband and I have been several times. I have gotten to know the manager by name and I generally call him at 5:00 (when the nightly menu comes out) on the nights that we plan to go, and he helps me through the menu. Jim (the manager) has been very helpful every time I have spoken with him, and I hadn't had any problems at all. This time (in the interest of convenience) they sent me the entire menu via e-mail and then I wrote back with the menu selections that I was interested in and they were to tell me if it was ok or not. Simple enough and I really thought it would work better anyway since the e-mail could be printed and shown to the chef directly. I didn't recieve the e-mail from manager Jim though.....instead I recieved it from owner Kristie.....here is the message I wrote back:

Hello Kristie,

Thank you for sending me over a menu! If you get this I'll be near my computer.....if you don't I'll just give you guys a call in a little while! I think we will be coming up tonight with another couple around 7:00. Would you mind verifying for me if a few items are gluten free (no wheat, rye, barley, or oats)?

Fresh Maine Mussles with Dijon (sans the baguette)

Seared Ahi Tuna for main dish

Baby Green Beans

I'm assuming that the Chocolate Mousse Napolean has Phyllo dough....but just in case....

Just so you know blue cheese and soy sauce contain gluten as well (but they aren't as obvious a source so I like to mention it!)

I really appreciate all that you and your staff has done to assist me! It's very rarely that I get to enjoy dinning out and I have had nothing but good experiences at your restaurant! Thank you so much!

As you can see I clearly explained that I cannot have soy sauce!!!

Well she wrote back that all of my selections were ok. I ordered the tuna. It came with ginger and wasabi (which should have tipped me off that not all was right since the majority of asian inspired food contains soy sauce) and a pile of greens. I ate a bite of the tuna and then a bite of the greens and realized that the greens were SOAKED with soy sauce!! I asked the waitress to find out if it was soy sauce and sure enough it was! I spit out what I could but my mouth was coated with it! They were mildly appoligetic and brought me something else free of charge (but still charged for the tuna which was 25 bucks and more expensive than what I ended up having). I'm so mad!! I'm going to be so sick. I already have D.....which has never hit me this quickly! Did she just not read my e-mail?! Did she not care enough to check?! UGH Thanks for reading.....I just had to vent!

[Nantzie]

Vent on! I would be so hurt. It sounds like you have to deal with the manager only. You might want to mention the mix-up to him so that he can talk to her. We get portrayed as hypochondriacs so much that maybe that's what she assumed. She may not even be aware that, as bizarre as this sounds, it's all true.

Sorry you're feeling gross already.

HUGS

Nancy

[jenvan]

That really really stinks girl. Hey--they also spelled your name wrong!! Not such attention to detail, huh? I can't believe they charged you for the tuna either... If you don't think they really "got" the mistake or how serious it was I'd say you will have to reiterate your situation to them again. Hopefully this will be a wakeup call. I hope your symptoms go away quickly and that you feel better!!

[ravenwoodglass]

So a new restaurant openned a few weeks ago in town....It is very nice and my husband and I have been several times. I have gotten to know the manager by name and I generally call him at 5:00 (when the nightly menu comes out) on the nights that we plan to go, and he helps me through the menu. Jim (the manager) has been very helpful every time I have spoken with him, and I hadn't had any problems at all. This time (in the interest of convenience) they sent me the entire menu via e-mail and then I wrote back with the menu selections that I was interested in and they were to tell me if it was ok or not. Simple enough and I really thought it would work better anyway since the e-mail could be printed and shown to the chef directly. I didn't recieve the e-mail from manager Jim though.....instead I recieved it from owner Kristie.....here is the message I wrote back:

Hello Kristie,

Thank you for sending me over a menu! If you get this I'll be near my computer.....if you don't I'll just give you guys a call in a little while! I think we will be coming up tonight with another couple around 7:00. Would you mind verifying for me if a few items are gluten free (no wheat, rye, barley, or oats)?

Fresh Maine Mussles with Dijon (sans the baguette)

Seared Ahi Tuna for main dish

Baby Green Beans

I'm assuming that the Chocolate Mousse Napolean has Phyllo dough....but just in case....

Just so you know blue cheese and soy sauce contain gluten as well (but they aren't as obvious a source so I like to mention it!)

I really appreciate all that you and your staff has done to assist me! It's very rarely that I get to enjoy dinning out and I have had nothing but good experiences at your restaurant! Thank you so much!

As you can see I clearly explained that I cannot have soy sauce!!!

Well she wrote back that all of my selections were ok. I ordered the tuna. It came with ginger and wasabi (which should have tipped me off that not all was right since the majority of asian inspired food contains soy sauce) and a pile of greens. I ate a bite of the tuna and then a bite of the greens and realized that the greens were SOAKED with soy sauce!! I asked the waitress to find out if it was soy sauce and sure enough it was! I spit out what I could but my mouth was coated with it! They were mildly appoligetic and brought me something else free of charge (but still charged for the tuna which was 25 bucks and more expensive than what I ended up having). I'm so mad!! I'm going to be so sick. I already have D.....which has never hit me this quickly! Did she just not read my e-mail?! Did she not care enough to check?! UGH Thanks for reading.....I just had to vent!

First of all I would not delete those emails. I would send them a copy of them and demand politely to be reimbursed for the tuna. I would also try to make sure my contact is with the head chef not the management or waitstaff. As a past head chef I can assure you of all the folks there they are going to be the most likely to understand your needs and comply with them. The best way is to find out when they first get there and try to call early. I hope you feel better soon.