A restaurant manager has told a diner he is barred for his "disgusting attitude" and "appalling behaviour to staff" following a fallout on Tripadvisor.
The customer had left a one-star review on Tripadvisor complaining he and his party of 26 had received "shocking" service during a visit to Bombay Pickles in Stourbridge, West Midlands. But the manager hit back with his own complaints — and added he had banned the reviewer, the Birmingham Mail has reported.
He said the man who had organised the party, who claimed in his review to have been a customer at the Indian restaurant for 10 years, was "whistling and clapping as if our staff were their personal servants" and talking to them with a "disgusting attitude and manners".
The diner, named on the review site as Philip, said his group had waited three and a half hours for their food, and that a service charge had been added to their bill without being disclosed beforehand. But the manager retorted that the group had not paid their deposit upon booking — a requirement for such a large party — and had refused to order their food in advance, also restaurant policy for such big groups.
The manager also said the main group organiser was "whistling and clapping as if our staff were their personal servants" — talking to them with a "disgusting attitude and manners".
Bombay Pickles, in Stourbridge's Lower High Street, has a 4.5 rating on Tripadvisor - with more than 500 independent reviews. The restaurant was last week named as a finalist in the English Curry Awards.
One recent review complimented the "great customer service" and "amazing" food. While another called it the "best Indian in Stourbridge or the area."
But Philip wrote: "After eating at this venue for the last 10 years and supporting it through Covid as a group we are disgusted. They have now lost our business which is 25 diners at least 4 or 5 times a year . . . Shame."
The general manager of Bombay Pickles, identified as Kashim, left a lengthy response — calling out the party's behaviour throughout.
He wrote: "We are sorry that you were not pleased with the service provided on this occasion, given that we were willing to accommodate 26 guests without a deposit, given as the group organiser is always adamant to not pay a deposit to secure the table. Although at Bombay Pickles we do whatever it takes to make sure our customers get the best experience possible."
He added that they had also had to move a previous group of diners from their table early because Philip's group had turned up 30 minutes early for their 7.30pm booking. And he complained that the group clogged up the bar area despite being asked to take their seats and allow a waiter to take their drinks order.
He went on: "Moving on to the food orders, for large groups (if accepted) we always ask for orders in advance to avoid delays in service and maximum satisfaction. Ensuring every little bit is prepared to get your food to you on time.
"However in this case that wasn’t how the orders had been taken, rather every individual of the 24/26 guests had wanted to order individually ON THE DAY. Yet we did the best we could with a warning of slow service in advance due to such a large order of food not being given in advance.
"Following this the main group organiser was whistling and clapping as if our staff were their personal servants speaking with such disgusting attitude and manners. Possibly a gentleman with low self esteem targeting the opposite gender to feel good about oneself.
"In regards to the service charge. It clearly states on our menu that we will provide a minimum service charge which had been 10 per cent on top your £165.85 bill which had come to around £181.50 and I can assure this as I keep copies of every bill for the day. It is unfortunate that the mandatory service charge calculated of less than 99p per person had caused such distress to your group.
"We do not tolerate such appalling behaviour to our staff and disruption to our guests therefore refuse to take any more bookings by this organiser. Kind regards, Management."
Bombay Pickles has 567 independent reviews on Tripadvisor - with 480 of them either "excellent" or "very good".
For more stories from where you live, visit InYourArea.
Find recommendations for eating out, attractions and events near you here on our sister website 2Chill
Find recommendations for dog owners and more doggy stories on our sister site Teamdogs
