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He's 17 years old and had saved money from his weekly pay check to take his girl friend to dinner at her favorite restaurant on her birthday. They have been dating for 10 months and her birthday also fell on their "anniversary", so he wanted it to be a special evening.
Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way. Their greeting was less than courteous, and although they were served bread and her salad, there was no sign of their entrees -- or their server. An hour later, the food arrived, just in time to be packed up in to-go cartons, for there were family and friends waiting at home with cake and presents. It was a night of dessert in place of dinner.
Knowing how disappointed they were, a call was made to the restaurant manager. Within moments of explaining what had happened, it was clear he wanted to make it right. He understood how important the evening had been to both of these young people, and what a let down the actual experience had been. In his words, he wanted to fix it, and give them the celebration they had been hoping for.
Within two days, a gift certificate arrived, along with a handwritten note (complete with business card!) Needless to say, the two young people were thrilled ... and definitely learned from the experience.
Thank you, Patrick, manager of the Outback Steakhouse here in Vancouver. I was impressed and very pleased at how well you stepped forward to make this situation right. I also appreciate that you took my phone call in the spirit that it was intended. The young people were not looking for a free dinner; there had been a real problem, and when brought to your attention, you took care of it.
This is how you take care of your customers.
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