A terrible person did a terrible thing in a lovely restaurant, and I want to know what our lovely readers think about it. We’re in Runiccini, a gem of an Italian restaurant in Kilkenny (full review to follow). The service is impeccable and professional: white tablecloths, waiting staff in black and white uniforms. The restaurant [...]

Smell this, he said, shoving a rancid dessert at my face. No doubt about it: the cake was gone off. The best before date, however, told a different story: it should be good for at least another week. Euro signs flashed in his eyes as he imagined a haul of desserts and treats being delivered [...]

Just a quick note to say that, following a spectacularly poor performance from Diep’s Blackrock branch, they have redeemed themselves. Last week, Jean and I had a very enjoyable meal from the Ranelagh branch. The manager was genuinely apologetic about the poor customer service I’d previously received, and generously provided two mains and two starters. [...]

A mad lady who was overcharged for her M&S sandwich gets the best compensation I can think of. Have a good weekend!

Our pal Rosemary MacCabe, Irish Times journalist and fashion blogger, is looking for your advice. Thanks for the post Rosemary! Hi there! Seeing as I’ve stopped writing my own blog, I thought I’d send you a wee rant from an experience I had recently, because I genuinely want to know what people would think. So what [...]

During the last Dine In for Two for €12.50, I picked up a bottle of a good bottle of red, paella with delicious prawns, and a completely and utterly ridiculously delicious lemon drizzle traybake cake. I grabbed another bottle of wine on the way out, absent-mindedly forgetting about the dine-in deal. The friendly man on [...]

Bad service is endemic in Ireland, and there’s little or no agreed base line standards – until now. We’ve taken the best and most popular of your suggestions and used them to compile the CheapEats Customer Service Charter. We hope it will be a handy guide when you’re eating out. We also hope that it [...]

We’ve been writing about customer service all week. I neglected to mention a gastropub where receiving any attention from the staff – to get menus, order, ask for water, or pay – was a real struggle. In one Dublin pub, the barman grunted at me when I asked if he’d exchange an unopened packet of [...]

We’re joined today by Dermot Jewell of the Consumers Association of Ireland, who has kindly agreed to answer some questions on the rights and responsibilities of restaurant customers. Founded in 1966, the CAI is an independent, self-funded and non-profit organisation which works to protect and strengthen the rights of all Irish consumers. Q. If the [...]

Mistakes happen. Human beings behave unpleasantly, and sometimes decent businesses have very off days. It’s how they deal with the fallout that determines whether or not the customer returns. Over a week ago, the local manager of a Diep takeaway branch put me off ever returning again. Here’s what happened.