Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Restaurant Scams- Interesting Article

This is one article I found on the net. We all like go out, dine at nice places and in all, have a good time. But, what can really ruin it is to know if you have been cheated. So, beware..and read through the list. Some of the tactics you have already come across and if some of them not. So, try to remember these. It may come handy.

Scam 1: For banquet parties, the guest is billed as per empty bottles of wine, beer and alcohol; as it is presumed that they were emptied / consumed during the party. But unknown to the guests, empties are sneaked in during the party and full ones are smuggled away.

Scam 2: In pubs and bars for beer on tap, the pitcher / mug is topped with soda, low priced spirits replace high priced sisters, and pegs are diluted with water. Being smart, the staff wait until the second/ third round or till the guest is high. Later, they adjust the bill (ref Scam 5) assisted by the dim lighting, ambience and the guest’s liquid state.

Scam 3: The organisation’s storekeeper is a key point in a larger scam. He signs as having received a larger order of bottles than is actually delivered by suppliers. The shortfall already exists in the bar as explained above. The supplier pays cash to staff as per the value of the short supply.

Scam 4: Smaller portions… Waiters regularly keep a bowl and plate at the sideboard (their work station). This bowl and plate is topped up with small helpings from your order. End of the day, the waiter gets a good helping to eat.

Scam 5: Overcharging — Groups of guests or inebriated guests are charged more than due. The excess is not entered in the duplicate bill. So the guests pay, but the owner does not receive it.

Icing on the cake...

If it is any consolation to the guests, the owners / shareholders are taken for bigger rides. Check this out…

Scam 6: No bill — QFS staffers pocket your bill amount by not printing a bill. Some outlets have woken up to this and have notices requesting you to inform them on ‘X’ telephone number if you don’t get a bill. As motivation, they promise to clear your bill.

Scam 7: Repeat bills — If you leave your bill behind, it may be presented to another customer. Naturally the bill may not be exactly the same — so if you’re billed for an additional item and notice it, they apologise and waive the excess charge. If you’re billed for less, you will happily pay. Normally this happens in QFS outlets as there is no KOT (Kitchen Order Tickets) system and a limited inventory (items being sold). So quite commonly, your bill of items is repeated.

Scam 8: Delayed service — QFS outlets conscious about service delays take up challenges to deliver in 30 minutes. If not, the tab is on them, or you get a free pack of fries. Despite the delivery being on time and the customer paying up, staff claims the customer did not pay as service was delayed.

Scam 9: Delete bills — Computerized billing is faster and reliable, but has drawbacks. Supervisors or managers are authorised (based on passwords) to delete or discount bills. So a bill is printed, paid and deleted. The next bill generated has the same number.

Scam 10: Change of containers —To tally billing and consumption of liquids or products served from dispensers like softies is virtually impossible. So containers (read cups / cones) are counted. Smart cookies that staffers are, they will serve you a higher priced product in a lower priced container — a milkshake served in a cola container. Here, the customer does not suffer as the volume is the same.

Scam 11: Propriety products replaced — In printed bills, you may find a last minute addition of soft drinks in pen. You presume the cashier forgot to punch it in. But the fact is, it has not been logged on the systems. The shortfall will be replaced from the market. You have paid for what you got, the owner does not lose inventory, but he loses profits. In handwritten bills, they remove the carbon before adding the cold drink price. The difference is pocketed. The owner has no idea.

Scam 12: For banquets, plates placed at the counter are the yardstick for billing. As per the number of guests guaranteed by the host, plates are counted and placed on the counter. Let’s presume the party is for 500 persons at Rs 600 per head. So, 500 plates are placed on the counter. During the party, staff surreptitiously removes about a hundred unused plates. The host is informed that the number of guests exceeds guaranteed numbers and a (supposed) fresh stack of plates (same 100) are placed on the counter. Now, the host owes the organisation for 600 plates and pays Rs 60,000 excess. Hosts don’t require / want a bill to avoid taxes (unless the company is picking up the bill) and pay in cash. This excess money is pocketed by the staff.

Friday, August 24, 2007

OFFBEAT- Fine Dining Lounge - Opp Karishma Hsg. Soc., Kothrud

Ph : 25454772/66201022
Work Pressure. Thats one reason I can point out for the delay again. Instead of weekly updates, my blog is becoming a monthly update. Also, have not been able to venture out much during this season. But, enough talk. Back to business.

If you pick-up Pune Westside Plus on Friday, you will usually see the advt of this place. Google it and you will find an article mentioning that the owner of this place is a Sandeep Lele, an ex- Infy employee.
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=240211

So, this really had me ticking to visit the place since I kindda share the same background.
It is located at Kothrud, Opp Karsishma Housing Soc., on 1st Floor, above a shoe store. You cannot miss the decoration lights.

As usual, on a weekend, I decided to move in early than the ususal dinner time to avoid the rush. The place is smallish, with Japanese sitting blocks and the usual Table chairs as well. Different and definetly pleasant. Now, this is not usual Punjabi/Chinese/Italian joint. The menu card holds a variety of options including Lebanese, Italian, Thai, French and Malayasian in addition to Indian and Chinese. But remember, firstly, the options are limited from each cuisine and secondly, they are unique. I mean, even from Indian and Chinese cuisine, some dishes I had never heard off, let alone tasted.

So, for starters, I ordered Falafel in Pita Bread (Rs. 140) and went ahead with studying the menu and ambience of the restaurant.The menu has been selected carefully and the restaurant interiors tastefully done. There is also a projector for viewing cricket matches if any going on. By now, the place was getting almost full and I could see people who were there before us fretting that their order has not arrived. So, taking precautions, I decided to go ahead with ordering the main course. So. ordered Veg Lasagne Verdure (Rs.170), came along with Garlic Bread and Chicken Calabrese (Rs. 190), chicken breast stuffed with spinach in white sauce, along with rice and Garlic bread.

By now, the restaurant was packed and the usual weekend waiting queue begining to form.Thankfully, the starters arrived. Round tikkis of Falafels resting in a white casing of Pita bread. Now, I know Falafel is made of channa, but since I had never tasted it and hence ordered it, I did not know what to expect. But, the first bite itself took by surprise. It was as if I was munching overnight soaked chana. It was served with curd, but it made no difference. The taste remained rather bland. Added some salt and pepper to get some taste. No spice at all. (Later, i googled for the recipe, and as it turns out from the ingredients, it needs to be bland). Not sure if i will like to try again. Somehow, finished the Falafels and then waited patiently for the main course.

The Lasagne arrived first. A quarter of a circle with many layers of lasagne sheets, vegetables, cheese and tomato sauce along with 3 pieces of garlic bread. It was beautifully presented and the very soft and chunky in texture. Colorful, subtle in taste and it literally melted in mouth.The vegetables were relatively well done and the flavour not overpowered by herbs, sauce or cheese.

Soon after, the Chicken Calabrese arrived as well. As mentioned, chicken breast stuffed with spinach and herbs in white sauce. Again, presented in a charming manner. The chicken was well done, soft and tender, white sauce providing contrasting flavour to the chicken filling. Went well with the garlic bread although I found the rice unneccesary. The chicken in itself was satisfying and the sauce not sufficient for the rice.

So, overall, the only disappointing factor I found was the service. The attendants and servers were well dressed and courteous, decor and sitting arrangement elegant, food is fine and presentation is top class. I mean, when the lasagne arrived, we discussed whether to eat and spoil its presentation or just admire. !! The only problem was the delay in service. It is a smallish place and perhaps the kitchen is spread too thin with the variety of cuisine offered. So, time your visit carefully, especially on a weekend.

Dent to the wallet : Most of the dishes are in range Rs. 150-250. So a decent meal for 2 should be in achievable in Rs. 500-600.