Possible suckiness? I only wanted a cheese burger!

[Retail's Bitch]

Yesterday we received coupons in the mail for Burger King... Around 10:30 I started craving a hamburger, the ex didn't get home until 11, he was also feeling a little peckish. The coupons said they were open until 12. Only thing was the bus doesn't run after 9. So we walked... All the way across town for a cheese burger.

We get there and the kid won't let us in. He says it's drive through only. Mind you the coupon booklet doesn't say that. It says "Craving BK? Open Until Midnight." Now most places along the fast food strip are open until 1am for drive through. Rotten Ronnies is open 24 for drive through. BUT Dairy Queen is also open until 12am. FOR EVERYONE. Walkin patrons included. So it was justifiable to assume that they'd also be open until 12 for everyone. Since it's not an isolated incident and the flyer never said "Drive thru only."

So we get there after walking across town for nothing - the kid won't let us in. Which okay, understandable. He's just doing his job. But how were we to know that it meant drive through only. We left. and this morning I phoned the 1800 number to complain about their flyers not being clear about their policy on being open until midnight. I didn't demand anything free... I just told them that they need to state their policies clearer. Because other fastfood joints are able to serve all customers and not discriminate for lack of a vehicle.

Was I sucky? Or should I have left well enough alone?

[Customer Beating Robot]

Several things are keeping you from being sucky:

1. You understand the employee was just doing his job.
2. You didn't yell threats of bodily harm.
3. You didn't call the police.
4. You didn't wait around in the parking lot for them to close so you could catch the employee and give them a good thrashing.
5. You didn't ask to speak to the manager.
6. You didn't swear that you would never come back.
7. You didn't demand that you get something free.
8. You didn't stand outside saying you won't leave till you get a burger.
9. You didn't walk around to the drive thru window and try to order.
10. You didn't proclaim what an important person you are and how you know the mayor.
11. You didn't threaten to have anyone fired.
12. You left quietly, if not a little upset.
13. You didn't bang on the glass for an hour.
14. You didn't try to break in.

[Ryu]

some places, particularly the taco bell across from my college, end up letting people walk through the drive thru if its not busy, you could have tried that
but no you werent sucky

[AFpheonix]

My sister and I have walked through the drivethru before, but that's because we had the truck and 4 horse trailer on the back. We didn't think they'd appreciate us taking the rig through the drive thru

[Rapscallion]

"...and a vanilla shake for Binky..."

Rapscallion

[AFpheonix]

Mom's horse, Jet prefers Sprite

[Ree]

What's with all the recent "Was I a sucky customer" threads, just because someone made a valid complaint and did it in a respectful manner?

Have we become that picky around here, that we view any customer exercising their rights to decent service as being sucky?

You were most definitely not sucky.
They should have specified "Drive-Thru only", but perhaps it's a generic BK flyer produced and printed by Head Office, that goes out in all areas, and in some areas, it's left up to the individual restaurant to set their opening hours.
If your particular BK name and address was printed on the flyer, then they should have taken the time to have them add 'Drive-Thru only" along with their location info.

Did you get any results from making that phone call?

[Retail's Bitch]

Did you get any results from making that phone call?

No... not yet... I don't expect to really... It's probably best for our arteries that they wouldn't let us in. We were eyeballing the Quad burger... Holy Jesus that's a Quad-ruple bypass if I ever saw one. :-)

[Spiffy McMoron]

You didn't walk around to the drive thru window and try to order.

Actually, if I was in your shoes, RB, that's probably what I would have done. And if I was the guy working at BK, I probably would have told you to go around to the drive-through window, and taken your order that way.

[COMINATCHA]

What's with all the recent "Was I a sucky customer" threads, just because someone made a valid complaint and did it in a respectful manner?

Have we become that picky around here, that we view any customer exercising their rights to decent service as being sucky?

I've noticed that as well. There's nothing wrong with making a complaint if it's justified. Places of business aren't always kittens and rainbows, and sometimes you need to say something in order to get good/better service, no need to feel guilty about it.

[Crafty1289]

Me and a friend rode our bikes through a KFC drive through once. The staff member at the window was like , then I explained that we have 4 wheels between us. Only reason we did it was because we didn't have any bike locks, so didn't fancy going inside to order.

[SuperDan]

Most fast food restaurants will not serve walk-ups at the drive-thru due to insurance and liability concerns, but my brother-in-law said something about legally being required to serve anybody at the drive-thru if the lobby is not open but the drive-thru is. At this point in time I'm too lazy to go around searching for such a law though.

And I agree, not every complaint indicates a sucky customer. Sometimes business aren't all that great at conveying policy. I wish everyone reacted as calmly as you did and with as much understanding. There is fault to be had on both sides of a retail counter.

[LostMyMind]

All restaurants have the option of not serving you (as long its not base on race or disability, since there are federal laws against that).

They can say "No, we only serve those in 18wheeler semis.", if they want to.

Burger King was sued because they refused to "take a order" through a drive-thru by a deaf person because it wasn't taken at the "speakers". Burger King won that suit, why because they have a right to say "you must order in this method/vehicle/etc...., or we won't serve you".

[MadMike]

Burger King was sued because they refused to "take a order" through a drive-thru by a deaf person because it wasn't taken at the "speakers". Burger King won that suit, why because they have a right to say "you must order in this method/vehicle/etc...., or we won't serve you".

On a somewhat related note, some friends and I played a prank at McDonald's once by going thru the drive-thru with one of our guys sitting on the hood of the car. When we got to the window, they told us they couldn't serve us unless everyone was inside the car.