Restaurant service
Discussion
Tootsies, Reading Oracle lunchtime today. Earlyish so not too busy. Service/meal fine up to when we'd finished the meal and were waiting for the plates to be cleared/be asked if we want desert/coffee etc.
Waiter seems to forget/pretend not to see us a few times, not a big deal (I had a nice view of the goings-on). However, from what I could see he then got an order for some fancy cocktails and went behind the bar and was obviously busy (but IMO shouldn't have forgotten the other tables he was serving). 10 minutes+ later I'm getting impatient. Lots of staff see us looking annoyed. Nothing. We get up and head for the entrance where there is a reception/till island. Waitress comes up ... "oh I'll just get your waiter" - I explain that I'd just like the bill, we don't want to wait. Then manager comes up and tries to say the same thing, I retort and he gives me some "they all have different codes for the till" line. Probably true, but he can override I say. He's not keen. I had to rather aggressively tell him it was obvious our waiter was busy (could see him out back mixing drinks) and virtually growl loudly "just print our bill". Magically he does so in about 2 seconds and we pay (by which time several waitresses have called our waiter out. I told the manager that he was mostly at fault, not the waiter - how can he be expected to serve tables and mix cocktails.
Second time we've eaten there and each time there has been a problem with the service. We will vote with our feet from now on and go to Nandos.
Waiter seems to forget/pretend not to see us a few times, not a big deal (I had a nice view of the goings-on). However, from what I could see he then got an order for some fancy cocktails and went behind the bar and was obviously busy (but IMO shouldn't have forgotten the other tables he was serving). 10 minutes+ later I'm getting impatient. Lots of staff see us looking annoyed. Nothing. We get up and head for the entrance where there is a reception/till island. Waitress comes up ... "oh I'll just get your waiter" - I explain that I'd just like the bill, we don't want to wait. Then manager comes up and tries to say the same thing, I retort and he gives me some "they all have different codes for the till" line. Probably true, but he can override I say. He's not keen. I had to rather aggressively tell him it was obvious our waiter was busy (could see him out back mixing drinks) and virtually growl loudly "just print our bill". Magically he does so in about 2 seconds and we pay (by which time several waitresses have called our waiter out. I told the manager that he was mostly at fault, not the waiter - how can he be expected to serve tables and mix cocktails.
Second time we've eaten there and each time there has been a problem with the service. We will vote with our feet from now on and go to Nandos.
Had a similar problem in there - VERY slow service, and to make matters worse they add a service charge of I think 12.5% to the bill (you did spot that, right?).
We underpaid the service and the dozy waitress had the temerity to point out that we hadn't paid it all!
Stick with Nandos, Waggamamas or for proper meal Strada
We underpaid the service and the dozy waitress had the temerity to point out that we hadn't paid it all!
Stick with Nandos, Waggamamas or for proper meal Strada
There are much better eating establishments in Reading town centre than the Oracle. Most of the Riverside restaurants seem to serve up the same greasy, fatty, overpriced, American style food. 
Wagamamas gets the
from me. Similar, but slightly better food than Yellow River, and no 10% service charge added on.
Wagamamas gets the
from me. Similar, but slightly better food than Yellow River, and no 10% service charge added on.Gassing Station | The Pie & Piston Archive | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff