54th Street Grill & Bar

The cards referenced are not gift cards that were purchased by a customer. They are what we call “54 Funds Cards”, which are given to guests as a form of compensation for a mistake we have made. I looked up both funds cards and discovered that they were issued within one month of one another by two different managers.

On both previous visits, the complainant offered fairly suspicious complaints about food quality. In both circumstances, the food items in question were removed from the bill, leaving zero balance for the guest, in addition to the extra $16 in 54 funds cards.

The complainant ordered nachos but did not specify initially that she wanted everything separate. She later asked the bartender if it was too late to get everything on the side, to which the bartender replied, “they have already finished making them.

The complainant waited over 24 hours to bring the food back to the restaurant. She complained to the manager that the nachos were soggy to which he replied he could not guarantee the quality of the nachos for over a day. He further explained that nachos are freshly made will only be of superior quality for about 10-15 minutes.

At that point the complainant said her wings weren’t cooked the way she wanted, and the bartender had a nasty attitude.

We reviewed video footage of the complainant’s visit from the previous day. She was seated at the bar for over 45 minutes. She ate several chicken wings while she was in the building, then boxed up the rest when her nachos were finished being made. During her visit, she is laughing and joking with the bartender, and gave her a big smile and wave on her way out the door. A manager also stopped by as she was eating her wings to ask how her meal was. She did not complain about anything.

I did tell the complainant that I was removing the remaining funds from the 54 Funds Card and that she was not allowed back in the restaurant. I also explained that we are a for-profit organization and we are not in the business of giving people free food on every single visit.

The odd nature of her refund request over 24 hours after receiving her food items prompted me to investigate further. I took a look at the complainant previous visits. Of the 9 visits associated with the loyalty account, all 9 had at least one item comped (removed from the bill) and any remaining balances were always satisfied with the 54 funds cards, or other rewards associated with her loyalty card.

That means the complainant has not paid one penny on her at 9 visits to our business. A customer is one who pays for services rendered. The complainant is not a paying customer, therefore is not entitled to a refund.