Dear Restaurants, I Am A Person Too...

Dear Restaurants, I Am A Person Too...

This is a letter to cafes/restaurants in London (it might be relevant to other locations too), that you don't need to make reservations for; the type you head into hoping for a nice lunch, followed by some tea & cake. Scroll down to see a picture of the pram folded up, in case you wondered what sort of 'animal' we were dealing with here.

Dear Restaurants,

I love food and you might be surprised to hear that I ate out every now again, even before I had a baby, so I know how the welcome and seating routine would work, for most of your clientele.

I have probably eaten out, every so often, since I was a little girl myself.  I have happy and fond memories of these occasions enjoyed in the company of family and friends. I go into a restaurant today and I still get a warm buzz in expectation of the delicious delicacies I am about to tuck into and new memories of conversation and laughter I am about to make. So, when I walk into your fine establishment, and your welcome staff takes one look at me and my pram and I can see her head exploding and her face saying 'oh no', it really dampens those happy fuzzy feelings.

He/she usually goes on to offer me an awkward table, right next to the toilet or right next to the door, not because there are no other tables available, no, this is usually during the day on a week day when you're busy but not packed full, she's offering me this position purely because seeing my pram has thrown her into a 'oh no what do we do' loop.

He/she then goes on to look even more concerned when I politely but firmly refuse said table and suggest a more appropriate option. She tries to tell me that the space they offered me is for people with prams, like I am some sort of special breed that must be dealt with differently.

When I explain that I am happy to fold the buggy, so I can sit in a more comfortable spot, he/she looks even more confused and bewildered. This is usually the time when health & safety standards are spouted and more talk about blocking exits is recited.

I usually then carefully repeat that I have just said I am happy to take the car seat off and fold the pram so that it can be stored at a location of their choice. This sometimes sparks a thought and moves us speedily to the regular welcome treatment, but more often than not, the welcome waiter stands still and scans the room again for a couple of seconds, as if to consider whether my proposal is acceptable, given the number of empty tables in the restaurant.

After some further word exchange, during which I attempt to reassure the waiter that they can just treat me as they would any regular person, that I do not really pose a threat to health & safety, that I am just here to enjoy some food, not to throw a spanner into their usual welcome routine, I am finally seated at a table which is agreed as a compromise.

By this point, I have lost my appetite, and happy feelings...

Here's what you can do differently next time:

• Try not to look terrified by the pram, even if you are.
• Smile and be your usual lovely self.
• Take some time to scan the room and look at options available at that time that may suit us.
• Propose a table and ask me if that's OK.
• If I suggest another one, politely ask if I am willing to fold the buggy and offer to store it away, if you think that is the only way I can be seated there.
• When you take me to my seat ask if I need a high chair and kindly offer to bring me one or tell me where they are so I can get it myself.

I promise I am not trying to make your job difficult, it is just that I get this crazy reaction every time and I am past being sad, irritated and confused, I am now just bored of the bad and borderline-rude treatment.

Signed 
A Mum with a pram
also known as - your welcome team's worst nightmare

I only knew that things didn't have to be this way when I went out to eat at a teeny tiny restaurant in Amsterdam with our pram in tow, and the staff barely sniffed at it. They looked at me strange when I asked if the pram would be a problem. Once we collapsed it at the door, one member of staff took it from us and the other saw us to our table. It was only on my way to the ladies that I noticed that the pram had been neatly tucked into the bottom of the staircase, in what looked like a designated spot but may also have just been a quick thinking decision by one of the staff - see photo on the right! That day I vowed not to accept this lukewarm behaviour from restaurants in London, ever again. You shouldn't either. Gently but firmly voice your views on where you would like to seat and go for comfort. At the en dog the day they want you to be happy and enjoy your time there, so don't hold back, or in the spirit of being polite, accept a table that you're not comfortable with


I am officially allergic to poor customer service. How do you deal with it? Have you gotten better or worse at accepting it?

x

Dear Restaurants, I Am A Person Too...