Huge vent!

[sweetchix]

Sorry it's so long.

So there is a HUGE parade every year back in my hometown. People put their chairs out the day/night before. Stepdad put our chairs out this morning at 2:30am (see pic below). At 1:30pm, I swung by to put up the 2 that were laying down. I notice the area is now roped off. No biggie. So I start unfolding the chairs and this guy comes out of the business and asks what I'm doing. I told him I'm setting up my remaining chairs. He tells me the space is reserved. He claims he's the owner of the business and I can't sit there. I tell him it's a public curb and I CAN sit there. I told him the chairs were set up since 4am (guessed at the time, but it was really 2:30am). He asks why whoever set them there didn't knock and ask. I replied "at 4 in the morning?" The guy continues to be a dick about it so I told him I would move and that he had to chill because it's a fucking parade asshole. So by this time, the only spots left are across the street where it's full sun. I have no choice at this point so I walked into the business and asked if I can set up out front because I don't want to go through that shit again. She said yes. I do, and I drive back to my mom's while fuming and all pissed off.

I tell my mom, she's even more pissed because now she can't go. She can't sit in the full sun for hours. I blast them on Facebook. On my page and on their page. Said I was disappointed by the owner's attitude and that I will be unliking their FB page (a friend suggested I like it a while back) and that I will never spend a dime at their restaurant. I also post the picture below clearly showing that there was no roped off "reserved" section when they were set up. 20 minutes later I get a reply apologizing and saying that it was because of deliveries and construction going on that they had to move chairs and then they moved them back. I replied that if that were true then that's what I should have been told and I'd have not had a problem with that and would have asked what time I should come back to finish setting them up. But that I was, instead, told I couldn't sit there because it was his building and the spots were reserved. Within another 20 minutes or so the post is deleted, which I figured it would be.

I then notice I have a FB message from someone I don't know. It was one of the owners (the daughter). She again apologized and offered the space back. She mentioned the deliveries and construction again and asked me to give her a call. I call her and she apologized and said she had asked her parents if they had spoken to anyone and they both said they hadn't. She asked if we'd like the space back and that she had told some of her friends who had chairs there that she may have to move them if we came back. I told her yes, but that we had 4 chairs and a blanket. I wasn't sure if there was room anymore. She said she would make room. I agreed.

We get there, and go in to talk to her. She apologizes for the "miscommunication" again and takes us out front. She shows us where she can put us and we said we'd like to be close to where we were originally. She moves some chairs around, it's not exactly how we had it, but the kids were in front so we were fine with it. Turns out, whosever chairs she moved were NOT friends of hers, just some other poor random people. They came back and were all pissed that their chairs were all down and out of order. I didn't say a word. Also, she came out again before the parade started and was talking to some people at the other end of their "section" I was not 100% sure, but I was almost positive that the man she was talking to, possibly her father, was the man who told me I couldn't sit there. My mom said she noticed he, and anyone he talked to at first, looked over our way occasionally. My mom said she wished I knew for sure because she wanted to give him a piece of her mind.

So... This kind of put a sour taste in my mouth. The restaurant has only been there since March. But they were not the only business that had spots "reserved". In the 8 years or so that we've been doing this we have NEVER had an issue like this.

PDQ pic as it identifies the restaurant. I will delete.
The rope went all the way to that black sign post to the right of the grey/black chair (which was ours) so unless they were blind, they obviously saw our chairs set up there when they roped it.

[Deleted]

People suck and it would put a sour taste in my mouth too.  I can't say I'd ever spend money in that place after your debacle.  I'm glad it was resolved and you enjoyed your time.

[glynn]

Glad you got to sit where you wanted to.

[sparkythelawyer]

It sounds like after some bullshit at the beginning, they made some serious effort to right things with you. That was great of them.

[sweetchix]

Jul 20, 2016 11:04:21 GMT -5 sparkythelawyer said:

It sounds like after some bullshit at the beginning, they made some serious effort to right things with you. That was great of them.

Yes, and I told her her I really appreciated it. I also deleted my FB rant that was on my personal page because they apologized and resolved it, even though I think they're still full of it.

[Deleted]

How fucked up is it that they do the right thing only AFTER they are publicly shamed for it? That bullshit needs to stop in this society.

[sweetchix]

Jul 20, 2016 11:32:09 GMT -5 @lemonlover said:

How fucked up is it that they do the right thing only AFTER they are publicly shamed for it? That bullshit needs to stop in this society.

That's exactly why I said they're still full of it even though they apologized. I still do not plan on ever going there and spending money there. As much as I like local businesses to flourish, they will do it without my money.