Comments on: Danger blogging, Fawlty Towers and Restaurant 08 http://www.tomatom.com/2008/05/danger-blogging-faulty-towers-and-restaurant-08/ The insiders' guide to food and drink in Melbourne. Since 2005. Tue, 07 Feb 2012 07:40:44 +0000 hourly 1 By: the Gobbler http://www.tomatom.com/2008/05/danger-blogging-faulty-towers-and-restaurant-08/comment-page-1/#comment-31433 the Gobbler Thu, 29 May 2008 05:53:38 +0000 http://www.tomatom.com/2008/05/danger-blogging-faulty-towers-and-restaurant-08/#comment-31433 Fair enough Ed. Funny though, we both know how egoccentric those of us in the hospitalty game can be at times so I'm sure there were a number of places that thought it was 'them'! The place that emailed you just lost their nerve & spoke out! Fair enough Ed.
Funny though, we both know how egoccentric those of us in the hospitalty game can be at times so I’m sure there were a number of places that thought it was ‘them’! The place that emailed you just lost their nerve & spoke out!

]]> By: Ed http://www.tomatom.com/2008/05/danger-blogging-faulty-towers-and-restaurant-08/comment-page-1/#comment-31432 Ed Thu, 29 May 2008 04:42:53 +0000 http://www.tomatom.com/2008/05/danger-blogging-faulty-towers-and-restaurant-08/#comment-31432 Gobbler, I think the"sorry' is just being practical about resolving problems especially when there has been a genuine mistake or misunderstanding. I just received an email from another two hatter that thinks the story above was about them. It wasn't! Gobbler, I think the”sorry’ is just being practical about resolving problems especially when there has been a genuine mistake or misunderstanding. I just received an email from another two hatter that thinks the story above was about them. It wasn’t!

]]> By: the Gobbler http://www.tomatom.com/2008/05/danger-blogging-faulty-towers-and-restaurant-08/comment-page-1/#comment-31431 the Gobbler Thu, 29 May 2008 04:35:27 +0000 http://www.tomatom.com/2008/05/danger-blogging-faulty-towers-and-restaurant-08/#comment-31431 I'm not defending poor form Ed just pointing out why some react the way they do. I agree that some restaurants are behind the times when it comes to saying sorry but sadly they are not alone, show me a business that does?. I will point out though that there is a difference between 'handling' a complaint in order to manage the damage control & demonstrating a trully genuine regret with an appropriate apology. The times that we live in see large faceless corperations using every slippery trick at their disposal to avoid any responsibility, look at the disgusting way that James Hardie has prolonged is Asbestos related damage payments in order that the victims die off before they get a cent. I am not criticising the rights of people to rightly seek an appropriate outcome should they suffer food poisoning at the hands of a negligent restaurant. Your exaple though of some companies encouraging people to say sorry to avoid a loss of advertising revenue does not seem to me to be a at all progressive but merely a sneaky way of getting in first to minimise the damage-in other words, they couldn't give a shit really as long as sales dont suffer. In that case they are no better than my old boss who didn't look up to acknowledge the accident in his cafe. I’m not defending poor form Ed just pointing out why some react the way they do. I agree that some restaurants are behind the times when it comes to saying sorry but sadly they are not alone, show me a business that does?. I will point out though that there is a difference between ‘handling’ a complaint in order to manage the damage control & demonstrating a trully genuine regret with an appropriate apology.
The times that we live in see large faceless corperations using every slippery trick at their disposal to avoid any responsibility, look at the disgusting way that James Hardie has prolonged is Asbestos related damage payments in order that the victims die off before they get a cent.
I am not criticising the rights of people to rightly seek an appropriate outcome should they suffer food poisoning at the hands of a negligent restaurant.
Your exaple though of some companies encouraging people to say sorry to avoid a loss of advertising revenue does not seem to me to be a at all progressive but merely a sneaky way of getting in first to minimise the damage-in other words, they couldn’t give a shit really as long as sales dont suffer. In that case they are no better than my old boss who didn’t look up to acknowledge the accident in his cafe.

]]> By: Ed http://www.tomatom.com/2008/05/danger-blogging-faulty-towers-and-restaurant-08/comment-page-1/#comment-31417 Ed Wed, 28 May 2008 07:39:35 +0000 http://www.tomatom.com/2008/05/danger-blogging-faulty-towers-and-restaurant-08/#comment-31417 Kitchen hand, journalists have forgotten the old skills of pounding the streets and asking questions. On my first day i was told to write things that people didn't want me to know. Nowadays costs are driving many to writing exactly what the PRs want us to know. AA Gill is bigoted, self indulgent and arrogant. Bring him on. Gobbler, everyone is scared shitless of everything. In the old days journalists were never allowed to say they are wrong for legal reasons. Nowadays some organisations encourage people to say sorry and "handle" a complaint to prevent legal action and the loss of advertising income. Maybe restaurants are a little behind the times. Kitchen hand, journalists have forgotten the old skills of pounding the streets and asking questions. On my first day i was told to write things that people didn’t want me to know. Nowadays costs are driving many to writing exactly what the PRs want us to know. AA Gill is bigoted, self indulgent and arrogant. Bring him on.

Gobbler, everyone is scared shitless of everything. In the old days journalists were never allowed to say they are wrong for legal reasons. Nowadays some organisations encourage people to say sorry and “handle” a complaint to prevent legal action and the loss of advertising income. Maybe restaurants are a little behind the times.

]]> By: the Gobbler http://www.tomatom.com/2008/05/danger-blogging-faulty-towers-and-restaurant-08/comment-page-1/#comment-31415 the Gobbler Wed, 28 May 2008 02:18:10 +0000 http://www.tomatom.com/2008/05/danger-blogging-faulty-towers-and-restaurant-08/#comment-31415 On the blogging Vs Trad media panel-careful Ed, dont run with the foxes & hunt with the hounds! The simple unavoidable fact why restaurants dont respond to issues of possible food poisoning is that they are scared shitless of the implecations to their business & reputation. Not really surprising is it? I worked somewhere once where an owner watched as a womam slipped on his floor, injuring herself in the process then kept his head down & said that he didn't see a thing. She confronted him about this & he totally denied that he witnessed the incident, she left understandably upset. Later he told me that in an earlier cafe he once owned, a homeless & intoxicated man walked through a glass door & his lawyers sucessfully sued, forcing him to lose the business. Since then he just just ignored issues like this because of the the threat to his livihood. I'm not making excuses here but not many restaurants could weather a food poisoning scare so it dosn't surprise me that the complaint wasn't handled as well as the patron would like it. On the blogging Vs Trad media panel-careful Ed, dont run with the foxes & hunt with the hounds!
The simple unavoidable fact why restaurants dont respond to issues of possible food poisoning is that they are scared shitless of the implecations to their business & reputation. Not really surprising is it?
I worked somewhere once where an owner watched as a womam slipped on his floor, injuring herself in the process then kept his head down & said that he didn’t see a thing. She confronted him about this & he totally denied that he witnessed the incident, she left understandably upset.
Later he told me that in an earlier cafe he once owned, a homeless & intoxicated man walked through a glass door & his lawyers sucessfully sued, forcing him to lose the business. Since then he just just ignored issues like this because of the the threat to his livihood.
I’m not making excuses here but not many restaurants could weather a food poisoning scare so it dosn’t surprise me that the complaint wasn’t handled as well as the patron would like it.

]]> By: kitchen hand http://www.tomatom.com/2008/05/danger-blogging-faulty-towers-and-restaurant-08/comment-page-1/#comment-31405 kitchen hand Tue, 27 May 2008 08:32:06 +0000 http://www.tomatom.com/2008/05/danger-blogging-faulty-towers-and-restaurant-08/#comment-31405 Shame about the libel laws here. We could do with some A. A. Gill to keep us entertained. At least you wouldn't fall into your weetbix in a dead stupor from the sheer boredom of it all, like you do with most Australian restaurant reviewing. It's fatally boring. Even Stephen Downes' posturing is tired, while the national newspaper is devoid of anything interesting beyond recycling PR releases and calling it a column. Newspaper editors don't seem to understand that it is about the writing first. The last great restaurant reviewer here was Sam Orr - and even that was a pen name and his column ran in a paper that you wouldn't want to sue. Shame about the libel laws here. We could do with some A. A. Gill to keep us entertained. At least you wouldn’t fall into your weetbix in a dead stupor from the sheer boredom of it all, like you do with most Australian restaurant reviewing. It’s fatally boring. Even Stephen Downes’ posturing is tired, while the national newspaper is devoid of anything interesting beyond recycling PR releases and calling it a column.

Newspaper editors don’t seem to understand that it is about the writing first.

The last great restaurant reviewer here was Sam Orr – and even that was a pen name and his column ran in a paper that you wouldn’t want to sue.

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