Has this ever happened to you and am I a beer snob?

[Laughing_Gnome_Invisible]

I don't think I have ever sent anything back. A friend of mine does, he even has called fast food places to complain about some order the got wrong at the drive-thru. Personally I thought he was being a whiny prick about it.

My missus did that once to Long John Silver's. They gave us some absolutely inedible crap at their drive-thru. Nothing whiney about it. You pay for this stuff, you expect a certain stadard, even when you are daft enough to buy from aholes like that.

 

[GuitarBob]

My missus did that once to Long John Silver's. They gave us some absolutely inedible crap at their drive-thru. Nothing whiney about it. You pay for this stuff, you expect a certain stadard, even when you are daft enough to buy from aholes like that.

A certain standard yes, but my friend was whining that they put tomatos on his taco from taco bell, personally I think thats a bit ridiculous. Just pick them off and don't worry about it.

Also my standards depend on the quality of the restaurant. I expect a lot more from a 5 star restaurant then a fast-food place. Just getting something that won't kill me from a fast-food place is all I expect from them.

 

[carnevoodoo]

There's a place by my work that serves beer. They're sort of an extension of a brewery in town and they've poured me the wrong beer a couple of times, but only when the whole table is ordering something else or when it is busy. They are very nice about taking it back, though, so I don't complain.

As for ordering beer at a chain type place... I just won't do it. Even if by some miracle they have something I like I can typically expect that a) the lines will be dirty and b) the majority of the people who eat there are drinking crap, so I'll most likely get a stale pint of beer. Bleh.

 

[flyangler18]

As for ordering beer at a chain type place... I just won't do it. Even if by some miracle they have something I like I can typically expect that a) the lines will be dirty and b) the majority of the people who eat there are drinking crap, so I'll most likely get a stale pint of beer. Bleh.

+100000.

I have no issue sending something back if it's not to my satisfaction, and I'm unwaveringly unapologetic about having expectations and standards for customer service. Bartending and waiting tables paid my way through graduate school, and I understand completely the low wages of the service industry.

 

[Munsoned]

Last week I ordered a Sam Adams at a local Red Robin. The waiter brought me a beer, but it definitely wasn't a Sam Adams. I asked, he brought it back to the barmaid who insisted it WAS Sam Adams. I took another sip, and looked at the color. No, it definitetly WASN'T a Sam Adams. I told him it didn't look or taste right. He brought it back to the bar again, then returned to my table a third time with the same glass of beer and told me "Oh yeah, the bartender said it's a seasonal--Summer Ale I think--we don't have the regular Sam Adams." I told him, "Thanks. Please bring me a Bass instead."

If it was the SA Winter or even White Ale, I would have just drank it. I'm not a fan of the SA Summer. I felt like a turd going through all of that with the waiter, but come on! If they're putting "Sam Adams" on the menu, they should at least tell you its a seasonal, or the bartender should be able to tell the waiter the difference the first time around rather than trying to foist it on the customer that way. I wondered to myself how many other customers must have gotten and just drank a totally different type of beer from what they ordered in that place... I also wondered if they spit in my Bass...

 

[TeufelBrew]

This thread is why I like Old Chicago. Wait staff is knowledgable about beer to a degree and if their not, they are willing to learn from you and the bartender.

If a beer gets messed up, NO Problem! I've had waitresses place the glass, tell me "Here is your xxx", look a the beer and realize, it was not what I ordered. She took it back and got what I asked for, then comped the beer.

 

[HenryHill]

I have had the same experiences before, I don't think your being a dick, usually I'll just drink what they brought me but if it's BMC and I ordered a craft brew I'll raise a stink. By the way the thing that annoys me more than anything is going into a brewpub and the wait staff doesn't know anything about the beer they make/sell. SWMBO always gets annoyed when I comment on this but I think it's so important for a brewery to have staff that is knowlegable about their own beer. Even if your workers are under 21 you can at least educate them about the beer. Personally I don't think I would even hire wait staff that weren't willing to try the beer that the brewery made, it's kind of like baristas that don't like coffee.

I have yet to get an answer to 'what hops are in the IPA?', in any brewpub I have been in.

Just like bringing you a wrong beer, it's not just that they don't know better, they don't really care either.

'How is everything?' is really just asking if you want to order something else. You are whining as far as they're concerned, if you are disappointed with the beer list or question their keg changing accuracy, even when done extra politely. And as said, it is the 'Obligatory Tip Syndrome' that is causing this situation. So many people will just tip consistent with the total of the bill, and not on the quality of service, that many servers feel you owe them, no matter how well they perform their job.

Beer Appreciation has greatly lessened my dining/drinking out experiences...

 

[Donthoseme]

When i first was dating my wife i would never complain or send anything back. Food, beer, flat soda. It was just the way i was brought up. My parents never complained and i'm a pretty agreeable guy.

No i guess the spagetti is better than the chicken parm i ordered......

But after a few years with my wife. Flat soda....go F yourself. Forgot my toast with my omlet....instant headlock! Beer came out way flat/soured.....stab barstaff with a broken beer bottle. Sometimes it's a little over the top but you know what you should get what you pay for.

I will take **** no longer. Life is too short!!

 

[Ysgard]

Another Anecdote: A few weeks ago at our local Bier Garten, I saw they had both Ayinger BrauWeisse (my alltime favorite hefe, the beer that kicked off my homebrew habit) and Ayinger Celebrator Dopplebock. I flipflopped at first with the waitress, but landed on hefe.

When asked later if I wanted another, I responded Sure, gimme the dopplebock this time. Comes back with a dark cloudy beer, announces my Aventinus. I guess it's hard to miss the mark in a disappointing way at a Bier Garten

I argued briefly with her over naming, correcting her perception that Aventinus was a Wheat Dopplebock, informing her it was instead a Weizenbock, but she could take the Aventinus back over my cold dead body.

Ah...happy endings.

 

[cercueil]

I had 2 experieces with bad beer..I guess thats not bad but I think what everyone here is saying is true. The wait staff really doesn't care nor are they trained. I guess we are lucky we get the right food sometimes. I ordered a Blue Moon at Applebees (Seems to be a re-occuring theme here) and the tap was definitely not cleaned and the beer was sour..I said something and she took it away and got me another beer but she told me "The bartender said there was nothing wrong with it"..umm..ok..Another time I had a Newcastle in a pub in manhattan. There was something wrong with it similar to dirty lines as well. I got the same "The bartender said there is nothing wrong with it" I've been drinking Newcastle for at least 12 years and no I'm not Michael Jackson but I think I know what a normal beer should taste like and not a skunk'd beer. I usually don't complain about food or beer but I think its important that you get the correct beer and food that you ordered. Here in manhattan its about $6 a pint and I'll be damned if I don't get the right one!

 

[ohiobrewtus]

Last week I ordered a Sam Adams at a local Red Robin. The waiter brought me a beer, but it definitely wasn't a Sam Adams. I asked, he brought it back to the barmaid who insisted it WAS Sam Adams. I took another sip, and looked at the color. No, it definitetly WASN'T a Sam Adams. I told him it didn't look or taste right. He brought it back to the bar again, then returned to my table a third time with the same glass of beer and told me "Oh yeah, the bartender said it's a seasonal--Summer Ale I think--we don't have the regular Sam Adams." I told him, "Thanks. Please bring me a Bass instead."

If it was the SA Winter or even White Ale, I would have just drank it. I'm not a fan of the SA Summer. I felt like a turd going through all of that with the waiter, but come on! If they're putting "Sam Adams" on the menu, they should at least tell you its a seasonal, or the bartender should be able to tell the waiter the difference the first time around rather than trying to foist it on the customer that way. I wondered to myself how many other customers must have gotten and just drank a totally different type of beer from what they ordered in that place... I also wondered if they spit in my Bass...

This is a major pet peeve of mine. You sit down and ask whta they have on tap, then after they get through rattling off 12 different versions of BMC, they say Sam Adams.

I say "which Sam Adams?"

The say "Just the regular one."

I say "I don't know what you mean by 'the regular one', they make over 20 different kinds of beer. Is it Boston Lager, Boston Ale, Sam Adams Lite, a seasonal?"

"I don't know, I'll have to go check."

Makes me want to whack someone upside the head. Then my poor wife has to listen to me complain about that for the next 10 minutes.

 

[Homercidal]

I have had the same experiences before, I don't think your being a dick, usually I'll just drink what they brought me but if it's BMC and I ordered a craft brew I'll raise a stink. By the way the thing that annoys me more than anything is going into a brewpub and the wait staff doesn't know anything about the beer they make/sell. SWMBO always gets annoyed when I comment on this but I think it's so important for a brewery to have staff that is knowlegable about their own beer. Even if your workers are under 21 you can at least educate them about the beer. Personally I don't think I would even hire wait staff that weren't willing to try the beer that the brewery made, it's kind of like baristas that don't like coffee.

Precisely! My wife hates it when I ask the waitress what beers they have. "Here we go..."

But I want to know what options I have! Once they get past, "Bud, Bud Light, Miller, etc..." and see my face, they get all worried looking and ask what do I want. Well, I already know they don't have what I want, that is why I'm asking for a list!

The wait staff should know what beers they have as well as any of the food choices. If they don't then management should print out simple beer lists that they can carry around with them listing exactly what they have. I'm not talking about a corporate menu with the big breweries' logos. I want to know exactly what is on tap. So many times I've heard people say they don't carry certain beers because nobody buys them. But how can they buy them if they don't even know they are there!? Is it so hard type the name of your beers in word and print on your little inkjet printer?? Once a week maybe change the seasonal??

Gah. I'm getting pissed just reading this thread. If not for my wife with me all the time, I'd just get the manager and ask questions, or get up and leave and tell them they don't know how to do their job good enough.

 

[humann_brewing]

Knowing something about beers has definately changed the whole eating out scene for that portion. I often like to know what they have on tap if I didn't see the taps on the way in and the waiters/waitresses are never up to speed on what they have let alone know the differences between them.

I hate it when a brand is generalized like "we have sierra nevada" Oh, ok you have all of there beers, that is great. "no we have the one with the green label" You have to learn their simple lingo and assume a few things instead of them being educated on what they are serving.

I have a server a a place that brewed 1 beer that they served and it was a brown ale, but the guy tried telling me it was a porter and I had to restrain myself there.

Anyways, a lot of the time, if there is not a good selection or if there is just not a beer they serve that I feel like having, I just say to myself "I will just wait until I get home and have some homebrew". That just doesn't work when I am out of town

 

[GuitarBob]

Precisely! My wife hates it when I ask the waitress what beers they have. "Here we go..."

But I want to know what options I have! Once they get past, "Bud, Bud Light, Miller, etc..." and see my face, they get all worried looking and ask what do I want. Well, I already know they don't have what I want, that is why I'm asking for a list!

You know it's a real shame places don't have more variety. What the point of having a bunch of different kegs that contain basically the same beer?

What a frustrating world for a beer snob to live in. Maybe we need to claim Mars for our own and make sure the colony has good beer on tap.

 

[carnevoodoo]

I hate it when a brand is generalized like "we have sierra nevada" Oh, ok you have all of there beers, that is great. "no we have the one with the green label" You have to learn their simple lingo and assume a few things instead of them being educated on what they are serving.

Oh come on! Int the eyes of 95% of the population, there is one Sierra Nevada. There's one Sam Adams. The big companies have a flagship product, and luckily companies like New Belgium were smart enough to call it something different than the style. Most people wouldn't know the difference. Even in a great beer bar, if I were to order a Sierra Nevada, they would know what I was saying. I would be more specific if I wanted a Bigfoot or a stout.

Assuming an Applebee's is going to have Sierra Nevada stout is like assuming their food will be good.

 

[Homercidal]

Oh come on! Int the eyes of 95% of the population, there is one Sierra Nevada. There's one Sam Adams. The big companies have a flagship product, and luckily companies like New Belgium were smart enough to call it something different than the style. Most people wouldn't know the difference. Even in a great beer bar, if I were to order a Sierra Nevada, they would know what I was saying. I would be more specific if I wanted a Bigfoot or a stout.

Assuming an Applebee's is going to have Sierra Nevada stout is like assuming their food will be good.

I agree, but the Applebees I've been to (Big Rapids and Plainwell Michigan) have always had good food.

 

[humann_brewing]

Oh come on! Int the eyes of 95% of the population, there is one Sierra Nevada. There's one Sam Adams. The big companies have a flagship product, and luckily companies like New Belgium were smart enough to call it something different than the style. Most people wouldn't know the difference. Even in a great beer bar, if I were to order a Sierra Nevada, they would know what I was saying. I would be more specific if I wanted a Bigfoot or a stout.

Assuming an Applebee's is going to have Sierra Nevada stout is like assuming their food will be good.

Sierra Nevada's seasonal beers are popular around here, especially the celebration. Your right about New Belguim somehow skirted around that problem, I guess because no one likes saying I'd like a New Belgium please.

Anyways, this thread is hilarious and makes me mad at the same time. I have to show this to the wife and she will now know that I am not the only one.

 

[vtchuck]

but I had lunch at one yesterday and they had Sierra Nevada PA, Switchback, Magic Hat #9 & Long Trail Ale on tap... as well as SA, Bass, Blue Moon. Pretty decent selection for a chain.

 

[jerrysfinger]

Is it wrong to ask for a glass that is not frozen? My local bar has a few good things on tap. At the moment New Castle is nice. They keep glasses in the freezer and when it gets to you it is pretty cold. Too cold IMO. I felt kinda like a d-bag when I asked for a unfrozen glass last time I was in there.

And we are going out to eat (not our usual) when a little women gets home and all these stories will be fresh on deck. I'm just going to walk over to the bar and find out on my own from now on so I'm less annoyed with the clueless wait staff.

 

[johntangus]

i ordered a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale at a Buffalo Wild Wings after seeing it was the best beer they had on tap. Also after quizzing our poor clueless waitress as to their lineup.

She brought me a PBR. She went back and got me a SN after i pointed it out and let me have the PBR for free. yipee.

I will actually drink a PBR once in awhile, but not when i paid $5 for a SN and instead get a $2 PBR. After i got the SN and drank it, i couldn't bring myself to finish the PBR.

I really won't stand for overcooked steaks, wrong beers, or anything in a restaurant. I've worked at restaurants in different capacities, and know that as long as i'm not a dick about it, they don't seem to mind fixing their mistakes (or the bartenders).

 

[Mutilated1]

At TGI Fridays here in Alabama they have DFH60 on the menu, but they never have it when you get there. So the last time I was there I asked them what they had on tap, other than BMC they had SNPA and a Sam Adams seasonal. So I decided on the SNPA and she brought the Sam Adams seasonal instead.

So when I told her she brought the wrong one, when she came back she had a little shot glass of the SNPA and I just looked at her like - what the hell is this shot glass ?

So she insisted that it was the same beer I already had in front of me, when any doofus could look at color of the beer or smell it and see it wasn't the same.

I told her I was sure the Sam Adams was a very fine beer, however it wasn't what I ordered and SNPA was not what she brought, so could she please return next time with a real glass of SNPA instead of a shot glass.

Dumb bitch.

This other time, we went to Outback and the server there got my draft beer order wrong, but really what she did was come back and tell me they were out of the draft I ordered and here I could have this bigger beer of a different kind for free. Well who am I toargue with getting a huge beer for free instead of paying for the smaller beer I ordered. The free beer was Sam Adams Winter Lager I think, not really sure - something with a lot of Tettang taste and aroma -- it was pretty good and the server was nice and didn't give me the piss about not having what I wanted so I was happy.

 

[GearBeer]

I use a sliding tip scale just for these types of situations. It starts at 15% and can migrate up to 20% and down to a single penny tails up (it goes down to zero and then back up to a single penny).

I'll drink a wrong beer if it's not objectionable and in the same price bracket. I've fought that battle and unless you ordered a porter and they brought you a cream ale it's going to be an uphill one. If they do bring you the wrong beer most places are gracious enough to let you drink it, it's not like they're going to sell it to someone else!

HH,
Did you really think the one you called "tits-for-brains" was going to be able to tell you what was in that beer? You could have asked the brewer what was in it... he was standing across the room.

 

[Keim]

I have not had exactly this happen, but three times in the past year I have been out to eat and ordered whatever the bar had that was most drinkable (Sam Adams, Sierra Nevada, whatever) and the waiter brought me what was clearly a Bud. I would ask about it and they always say no, that is a xxxx. I always tell send it back and order a tea instead. This has a happened at different restaurants. I wonder if they don't know, or if they are trying to sell me a $2 beer for $4.50. I wonder how often it works and no one complains.

My guess is the waiter is ringing it up as the cheaper beer, and pocketing the difference.

 

[hukdizzle]

I've had several instances where the wrong drink has been poured or I ask for their selection and get some half assed response.

This would be my favorite dialogue,

Me - "Well what imports do you have"
Bartard - "Heineken, Stella, Bass, Guinness, Corona, SAM ADAMS, YEUNGLING..............."
Me - "Oh, I wasn't aware that Sam Adams was an imported beer. I always thought it was produced state side. I'll be having a Sam Adams"

This has happened to me on multiple occasions at different bars/restaurants with bartenders, not waitresses/waiters.

On another note we have a brewery/restaurant that has great beer and food but I have no idea how they sell their seasonal brews. They do not advertise them and apparently do not tell their waitresses/waiters about them either. You have to insist and bet your 1st child to the waiter/waitress that they DO IN FACT have such beers on tap regardless of what they think.

 

[jgln]

So my lady and I are eating at a small chain pizza place with a pretty decent draft beer selection. I order a French Broad Brewing Company Altbier (which I've never had) and she gets a Victory Hopdevil. The waiter, a friendly college age kid, brings out two very hoppy IPAs. After tasting mine, I ask him if he brought out two Hopdevils by mistake, and he says no, that mine is the altbier. I was doubtful, but I thought maybe the folks at French Broad brewing took some creative license. For my next beer I order a Rogue Dead Guy (which I've had many times) and he brings out an orange/red, very tart, almost lambic beer. I told him that I believed that he poured me a beer from the Rogue Dead Guy tap, but that this wasn't it. He was very polite, but I could tell that he was thinking what a tool I was. Has this type of thing ever happened to you, and how big of a deal did you make of it? Am I being a beer penis?

Much more of that talk though and you might have been tasting penis beer.

 

[sundaybrewingco]

I ordered a Chimay Red from a semi-nice restaurant, and first the bartender just gives me the Chimay bottle with no glass. I flag her down and ask for a glass.. I was hoping to get the "Chimay" glass or a tulip shaped glass, but instead she ended up giving me a pint glass. UGH!

 

[carnevoodoo]

I ordered a Chimay Red from a semi-nice restaurant, and first the bartender just gives me the Chimay bottle with no glass. I flag her down and ask for a glass.. I was hoping to get the "Chimay" glass or a tulip shaped glass, but instead she ended up giving me a pint glass. UGH!

I would have returned it. I'm a whiny bitch about glassware though.

 

[hukdizzle]

I would have returned it. I'm a whiny bitch about glassware though.

I am super anal about glass ware, it has to be room temperature and completely free of any residual detergents or water spots. Don't even get me started on the shape!

 

[Bob]

I don't tolerate poorly-trained hospitality personnel. I worked in the restaurant industry, both in a brewery and waiting tables/tending bar.

Tell you what the difference is: I take pride in my work.

When I brewed full-time, the staff knew what the beer tasted like, how to describe it, a basic roster of ingredients. All of them knew the process (and most spent at least one day a month in the brewery) and could describe it. Flagships and seasonals; didn't matter.

When I worked the front of the house, I knew the specials, I knew the beers on tap, the drinks specials, you name it. I always upsold dessert. And I'm not the smartest guy; my memory stinks. But I worked at it, because it was my job. That's why I'm so impatient with poor service.

I cannot abide arguing with people about what I ordered. Happened to me in a restaurant in New Hampshire a coupla months ago. They've got SA Winter Lager. Great! I'll have one. They bring me Boston Lager. I start out nice, 'cos I know mistakes happen.

Me: I'm sorry, Kevin; this isn't the right beer. There must have been some mistake.
Waiter: Oh, gosh - let me get you another. [pause] Here you are.
Me: Sorry, Kevin; still the wrong beer.
Waiter: But the bartender...oh, damn. I'll be right back.
Me: [waits]
Manager: [walks over with Kevin] Here you are, sir.
Me: Sorry, lady. Still off.
Manager: [increasingly snooty] I've checked the taps myself.
Me: Check the kegs. It happens.
Manager: [irritated as hell, presumably because this mere customer is infringing on her smoke break] Sir, I...
Me: Missy, look. I've spent more time in a brewery than you have in a bra, okay? I know beer when I see, smell and taste it. I've had more Boston Lager than you've had iced tea. The beer coming out of that tap is Boston Freakin' Lager. Now check the thrice-damned keg, and be quick about it!
Manager: I'll do that. [stomps off in huff]
Waiter [horrified look on his face]: Man, I am so sorry.
Me: You're sorry?! All I wanted was a frelling beer!
Wife: [giggle giggle, seen-it-all-before giggle]
[Manager returns] Sorry, sir; it appears the kegs were mixed up.
Me: There ya go. The moral of the story is that the customer is always right. Now make sure you clear the lines before you bring me a pint of what I ordered, K?

Got three pints for free, too, plus dessert.

I never take it out on the server, unless the server richly deserves it. I take it out on the management. After all, management has the responsibility of training their staff and running a friggin' restaurant. If they can't or won't do that, they deserve an ass-chewin', and if her boss won't do it, I sure as shootin' will. In front of the server, always. Including the server, if I'm really peeved. Usually, if the food order hasn't come out, that's when I simply get up and leave.

Know what I got? It ain't nerve. It ain't being a 'beer penis'. It's standards. And I never let 'em slip.

Bob

 

[Beerdrop]

I've had several instances where the wrong drink has been poured or I ask for their selection and get some half assed response.

This would be my favorite dialogue,

Me - "Well what imports do you have"
Bartard - "Heineken, Stella, Bass, Guinness, Corona, SAM ADAMS, YEUNGLING..............."
Me - "Oh, I wasn't aware that Sam Adams was an imported beer. I always thought it was produced state side. I'll be having a Sam Adams"

This has happened to me on multiple occasions at different bars/restaurants with bartenders, not waitresses/waiters.

Too funny! I've more than once seen Sam Adams listed as the import ON A MENU! To them, "import" is just another price point where anything besides BMC ends up.