Service vs Food

Last week, I posted in my IG story that I would sadly not return to a business that gave me poor customer service.  I was surprised at how many people asked me where it was (I purposely posted what I thought would be a non-identifiable photo).  

To me - service matters more than food.  I don't care how excellent the food is, but if the service is poor, I would much rather give my business to a restaurant that serves "okay" food, but has excellent service.  As I heard one chef say - "No one ever intends to cook a bad meal."

And I believe that's true for the most part - if you go to a restaurant, the cooks and chefs will want to give you their best.  Servers and other customer service staff should do the same.  

I can usually tolerate customer service issues - long wait times, mixed up orders, etc., but when an employee says rude things out of nowhere, especially after messing up to begin with, my business is lost.

Mistakes happen - I know, and I'm okay with that.  When restaurant staff are apologetic or management takes the initiative, I'll return.  I remember at one restaurant, a manager gave us a free dessert because of a long wait time, and it wasn't an issue in my mind - I knew it was busy, I ate my meal, and appreciated the gesture.

But when there is no accountability - that's a deal breaker.

Once, when Nat and I and a couple other people were dining in LA, our server kept making errors.  Finally, after forgetting yet another dish, the server said "You should've told me earlier."

We were taken aback, and Nat ended up talking to the manager (while the server came to find out what was wrong).  

A couple years ago, at one of the best restaurants in the world, my dining experience was marred by a rude response by our server.

I give those who work in the industry a lot of credit, because I know there are people out there who are not nice.  

But if you make a mistake, own it and apologize.

What matters more to you - service or food?