Coffee grinder-gate: Will the Union please give us our due?
But is she a regular customer?
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After spending far too much time on toaster-gate, I figured I could thwart a potential grinder-gate with this post last week that stated the weekend brunch at Union Bar & Grille includes bottomless coffee.
Nope.
On Saturday, as I enjoyed my second brunch (the eggs with the first were barely cooked) the waitress told my two acquaintances they would get free coffee with their brunch because they were with me. What!?
This annoyed me because 1) I know the main consultant behind the project and told him that my policy is to be treated like any other customer, and 2) as mentioned above, last week I was told that coffee is free with brunch. Given the misinformation surrounding the toast at Union, I thought something of the same might be going on with the coffee.
First, I found out that two readers who regularly go to Union receive free coffee and that two readers do not. Second, I called someone at Union and learned the free coffee is for “regular customers.” Thus, it seems that the coffee policy is simply bad.
For example, if someone reads here that coffee is included with brunch and goes to Union only to find out is not, it both damages the potential for return business for the restaurant and makes me look stupid. The policy also depends on the staff remembering who is a regular. What if one employee thinks I’m a regular and gives me free coffee, then on my next visit a different employee doesn’t recognize me and charges an extra RMB20 (this is especially relevant given there is new staff on board)? I find it surprising that Union has such a confusing policy given that the group behind the place, Windy City, has more than a decade of experience in the restaurant game.
My suggestions: 1) Include coffee for free with all brunch orders, or 2) do not include it with brunch, or 3) make a special deal, such as allowing customers to add bottomless coffee for RMB10. But whatever the policy, make it clear.
In any case, given I am not sure of the “official” policy of the Union, I retroactively paid for the coffees I have received and am downgrading the brunch from the “best” in town to “good.”
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