People Reveal The Proper Way To Send Food Back At A Restaurant

Is it rude to send back your dinner that you order if you don’t like the way that it tastes or turned out? You are paying for it and the customer is always right…right? So, I mean yes you should be able to send the meal back and not pay for it if it didn’t turn out the way you expected. But, not everyone is comfortable doing so. There’s a lot that goes into it. For one, people are often times worried the chef of employees will tamper with their food (ever seen the movie Waiting?) Also, people don’t want to be rude, especially when it’s busy in a restaurant. In all reality, no one wants to pay for food that they do not like, so  Quora users share how to properly return your meal if need be, and when it’s completely not okay.

Honestly, it is the server’s job to just ask me if it is good.

“On the contrary, as a restaurant owner I’d MUCH prefer a guest let our staff know if they do not prefer the taste of their dish and be open to trying something else from the menu. Actually, in that case, I’d typically approach the guest myself and ask them the types of dishes and flavors that they typically choose and ask that they allow me to select something from our menu for them specifically. And in truth, it’s this style of service that I look most forward to providing in our restaurants. Most guests don’t realize that honest and open communication about their experience is the most sought exchange in the industry.”

Just eat the fires on the side, that is all you need.

“It looks like fried bait. It also TASTES like fried bait. It’s really gross. And this is from a guy who successfully tried lutefisk. I dipped it in tartar sauce. I covered it in catsup. I drowned it in salt. No go.I resigned myself to enjoying my fries when the waitress (I was a regular) noticed my distress. Without even asking, she brought me a cheeseburger, prepared how she knew I liked it. I told her that it was not necessary, as the meal was prepared as promised and ordered, but she insisted. Isn’t it better for a customer to leave happy and not hungry than disappointed? And; NEVER order the smelt.”

Take that sh*t off my bill.

“A good restaurant should handle a situation like this very graciously. Of course, the customer should be gracious as well. After you’ve been served, the waiter should come back in a few minutes to see if everything is okay. That is the time to tell them you don’t like what you ordered. They *should* apologize and offer to bring you a menu to select something else. They should also take the first dish away and take it off your bill. They should not take it back to the kitchen, be gone for several minutes, return with the same dish (which we sent back because the fish smelled bad), put it back in front of you and say “the chef says it’s fine”. This actually happened to me once. We got up, told the manager what happened, told him we refused to pay for anything, and then left. It’s never happened anywhere else, though.”