The good, the bad and the ugly
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And the verdict is . . .
WE spent the last three months in Port Elizabeth on business and thought we would give our top three good and bad experiences of restaurants. Worst three: 1. Memory Lane, a coffee shop near the Oval, Richmond Hill 2. Ocean Basket at Brookes on the Bay 3. Friends in Summerstrand Top three: 1. Coachman’s on the Bay 2. Fresca at The Acres 3. Pescadiya in Stanley Street Thanks for a great time PE and see you in nine months!
GAVIN and LINDA, Johannesburg
Richmond Hill has pull factor
WE do a lot of photography in the Richmond Hill area and have eaten at just about all the restaurants there. We love the vibe, choice and photo opportunities there.
We do, however, have mixed feelings and experiences. For example, we love Fusion, Pescadiya and Posh, but have had terrible service and food at Memory Lane coffee shop and Bain Street Grill. It seems it all starts at the top. Richmond Hill rocks, long live its success!
JIMMY
Seconds are in order
A BIG thank you to the staff at the Blue Orange in Walmer for an unforgettable experience. I’ll be back
AUBREY
Stuff service is made of
THANX-A-TRILLION to Lindy Lombard and her Total Despatch garage staff for going out of their way to activate a R1 000 voucher card I won. They made calls at their expense to get the card working. Now I feel guilty for being loyal to their garage as we have our own Total Ziyabuya in Kwa-Dwesi. Two thumbs-up guys! LUYANDA MARLON KAMA, Kwa-Dwesi,
Port Elizabeth
Smoking gun
I WAS shocked to see a Gardmed ambulance driver get into an ambulance and open a packet of cigarettes in Port Alfred on Saturday August 25 at 9.57am. He then threw the cigarette box and wrapping paper out of the window on to the ground and proceeded to light a cigarette in the ambulance and sat there smoking.
When doctors and medical aids are hypersensitive to smoking and smokers are penalised, it is devastating to see smoking being allowed in an ambulance. Are they subject to different rules?
NAME SUPPLIED
Well-oiled operation
I HAD my Nissan bakkie serviced by Lester’s Service Station of Willow Road, Fairview. When I got in the bakkie back it seemed like a different vehicle. It drives like a dream! Fantastic job and this is not
the first time!
STUART, Lorraine
Pescadiya ahead of the pack
A WELCOME change to see a restaurant take its destiny in its own hands. We got a very nice surprise when a research company, acting on behalf of Pescadiya, came to see us to ask how it could improve and how we felt about its present service and menu – friendly and not intrusive, but to the point. Good luck and let it be a lesson to other restaurants, keep it up Pescadiya in Richmond Hill!
JAMES DRAVID, Walmer
Eatery has chutzpah
WANT to congratulate Pescadiya for having the balls and insight to send a research company to gather information from the public. In today’s business world you have to take the bull by the horns and shake it.
A very professional man came to see us and asked us relevant questions about what we thought of Pescadiya’s menu and service and how it could improve.
This is the way to go about a business: good or bad, just deal with it and improve. I wish others would do the same. GLENDA DAWIS and REBECA SYMONS,
Mill Park
Some biscuits would do too
HOW about coffee shops offering a plate of a few homemade biscuits, rusks or shortbread as an option to cake on menus? Some of us can’t (or shouldn’t!) manage a piece of cake, but would like a little sweet indulgence with our coffee.
My aunt, who was visiting from Durban, and I had great coffee and anchovy toast at the newly opened Fresco in Perridgevale – and though it was near to closing time, and there was no move to hustle us out as we chatted on and on . . .
SJG, Mount Croix
Adios Game
SO here’s the deal: I am finally ready to treat myself to a TV, home theatre, HDPVR et cetera, total bill R14 569.
Armed with my TV licence and off to Game at 17th Quarter.
Helpful salesman and he starts to process all the paperwork. Now to the tills. About 20 tills, but only two cashiers.
Attempted to pay by debit card and was declined. I was expecting that, so had pre-emted it and upped my EAP limits at the bank to avoid that. Question: Do you accept cheques? Yes we do. They then phone a verification company and some idiot needs to verify who I am, but also needs two friends or family telephone numbers. How would that help with the cheque process?
He then phones my mate and my dad and proceeds to ask them if they know me, but gets my Christian name all wrong.
I leave the store and go back to Standard Bank and get a bank-guaranteed cheque made out in favour of Game.
Back to the tills, and the same process. The lady says it is standard as Game banks with Absa.
She phones the cheque verification company and I land up with the same idiot who says that he has already verified my first cheque and cannot do this one. I explain that no first cheque was issued.
At this stage the queue is backed up behind me and there is no sign of a manager or supervisor who can help.
So I leave with my bank-guaranteed cheque and return it to the bank to enjoy my small screen for the weekend.
I am done with Game for life!
SLATS
Gentle touch in sad time
IN June this year we sadly said goodbye to our beloved brother.
We phoned Doves to attend to our late brother’s body. This was after 10pm. Two calls and a waiting period of over an hour, they finally arrived.
The following day we had the misfortune of dealing with an unsympathetic woman. At this point we decided to try another funeral home.
We contacted Kevin from Figtree Funeral Home, who offered to come out to see us and was most sympathetic.
To Kevin, thank you, you made a very difficult time much easier for us as a family. May your business grow from strength to strength. We as a family highly recommend your services.
THE LEAT FAMILY
Beware of product quality
I BOUGHT a Ryobi drill and grinder kit from Builders Rip-off Artists and the first time I used the drill for a light job with a new 6mm drill bit it started smoking.
I returned the complete kit to the shop, where a sign against the wall claims if you are not satisfied with goods, you can return them for a full refund.
What a joke. After standing at the returns for about 20 minutes, they called the manager to tell me they have to send the drill for repairs.
I am not impressed with a drill that can’t even drill two holes, so obviously I am not happy with the goods and want to buy a better quality drill.
Builders Warehouse is a shop that has pathetic so-called service and sells inferior products, so be warned.
MARK GROBELNY, Willow Road
Thank you Joyce
AFTER searching for tiles at many companies, we landed at Trend Tap and Tile opposite Makro, where we found exactly what we wanted.
Joyce was knowledgeable and nothing was too much for her. She even mixed samples of grouting to show us the match.
We asked for delivery and our contractor needed things that had not been ordered, but that was no trouble to Joyce. The order came when we needed it.
D F LEWIS, Cape Road
Fed up, so I’m done
MANY people deserve a chance; a few deserve a second, but nobody deserves a third chance.
Generally, I’ve lived by that principle except when Fiveways Spar and First National Bank (FNB) are concerned. In their case, I’ve put up with years of shelf price differing from till price, expired goods (got food poisoning once), introduction and removal of items on a willy-nilly basis (250g Parmalat cheddar spread for one), staff talking loudly to one another (cashiers and floor), unstaffed departments – that had me running around to get help – apathetic managers, prices oscillating by as much as 30% on a weekly basis, confused application of security policy and beggars in the parking lot.
But, by far, my biggest peeve was the manner in which Fiveways Spar managers would turn on the FNB ATM late or leave it without cash for long periods of time (sometimes days) and the money it cost me in Saswitch charges.
As for FNB, its polite attempts at shirking responsibility for and unwillingness to take charge of the badly designed and barely working ATM (it says FNB on it, not Spar!) have forced me to use other banks’ ATMs – in July, August and September – incurring those cursed Saswitch charges.
Dear Fiveways Spar and FNB, by the time this is published you’ll have lost a customer you had since January 1999 and September 2007 respectively.
You have nobody to blame except yourselves and although it will be a huge inconvenience and an increased security risk, I’ll be giving my peanuts to other squirrels. It will impact your bottom lines about as much as a mosquito trying to stop a mile-long train.
But what will be worse is how I’ll go out of my way to tell others about your contempt for customers and encourage them to boycott your businesses until you remember that millions of rands are made from lots of small coins paid to you by real people who work for a living.
NAME SUPPLIED