This is how you complain properly.

[BuryMe]

A couple years ago, I worked under the golden arches. Fun time.

One day, we had a customer through the drive through order an angus burger. She paid for it and went home. This all happened as I was working the front counter.

She comes up and talks to my co worker and tells her story.

Cast:

NSC: Non-sucky customer
CW: Coworker
M: Manager

NSC: So I went through the drive through and got an angus burger, and when I got home to eat it, (she opens the box now) i saw there was no meat on it.

So we look, and yeah, there was the bun condiments and vegetables, and absolutely no meat.

So my coworker takes the meatless burger and drops it in the wasted food bin, and yells at the kitchen to make a new burger, with meat.

A manager hears the commotion and approaches

M: We're very sorry about the situation here.

NSC: I appreciate it. But please have them make a fresh burger, don't just add meat to the old one. (She was firm here, but never snotty or rude.)

M: Of course, we have them starting it now.

So she waits calmly for her food and cracks a couple jokes with us "(I thought it was Wendy's that asked 'Where's the beef?'") The manager gave her a coupon for a free meal as compensation (though she never actually asked for anything other then her burger to be made properly, and she left happy. After she left, the manager had a good talk with the kitchen about checking the quality of the products before they leave.

So to recap: We messed up her order. She realizes when she gets home. She comes back, and calmly and politely tells us what's wrong, and how we can make it up to her. Why can't other people be like this when it comes to human error?

[Teefies2]

Because if they were, there would be no reason for this site ;-)

[Slayer]

Over the years, the arches have messed up countless orders for me. Anytime I go back, I barely have time to finish saying "hi, I ordered a whatever and got this instead" before they're already calling in a new order. They're awesome about owning up to mistakes. The habit of throwing food in the trash is one that annoys me to no end though.

I'm sure your place appreciated a customer like her and helped keep morale.

[Teskeria]

I can see why it annoys you Slayer, but it is a safety issue when it is returned food. Although most people are decent (hard as it can be for us to believe with what we have to deal with) you never know if someone is a secret crazy who added something to the product.
And also in every state I've worked in, they have had regulations that food that has sat out a certain length of time must be discarded for health reasons.

[Slayer]

No no. Don't mean to serve to other people but to just give back to the customer if they want it. A couple of weeks ago they gave me a medium fry instead of large. They just threw it out. I know I get what I paid for only, it just hurts to see food go in the garbage like that.

[Kristev]

It's a health and safety issue, nothing more.

[Slayer]

Even when the product doesn't leave my hand? I've only been asked once if I wanted to keep the item because it was on the 4th try to make my iced coffee lol.

For the fry example, it never even left the bag. They peeked in and chucked it. I was raised in a don't waste mentality so that's why it bugs me. Not because I want free stuff.

Health and safety I understand when it comes to customers, don't worry.

[notlovinit]

Slayer - if the item they are fixing is a sandwich, we aren't supposed to re-use the sandwich because we aren't supposed to touch food that customers have touched as per health code (in my county).
If it is an issue like they stated with the fries - I don't really want to admit this, but I will. Sometimes we get cynical. We see so many people a day lie to get free food. So the worker could have thought that you were trying to get free fries and to discourage that threw away the old fry before making a new one. They could have let you keep it and it is good customer service to do so, however we sometimes will throw away the mistake so that the customer doesn't get double the food for the money, because some people take advantage of this a lot so we start to think that everyone does. Doesn't make it right, I'm just being honest here.

[JustaCashier]

Years ago, probably 20-ish, I stopped by the Wendy's downtown in my City, a place I visited quite regularly. Usually I'd dine in, being that it was my lunch break, but this was after an unexpectedly short fill-in shift, so I ordered it to go.

Got home, about 7 miles, already to unwrap my burger in it's juicy glory. Did so, and noticed there was no meat! (I thought the order had come up awful quickly, but attributed it to being later in the day, instead of my usual time of visiting during the lunch rush.)

Called down there, much in the manner of the customer in the OP--being pleasant, and even joking. The employee on the other end said just bring it in, and we'll fix it. I mentioned that I was far enough away that I really didn't care to go back at that time, but could I be compensated on a future visit? The employee said yes, and I was, as I recall, without hassle.

Hated to see all the burger fixings go to waste, (not to mention the fries and drink) so I popped down to the grocery store, picked up some ground beef, and made my own burger!

Mike

[Kristev]

Where's the beef?