At Cornell University, The Center for Hospitality Research has released a study on communicating complaints, showing that the severity of complaints at restaurants often corresponds with the way in which people give the complaints. The study confirms what you probably guessed -- that the harshest complaints are frequently given face-to-face, though some people offer such complaints via written letters as well.

Additionally, study respondents reported that issues relating to food and food service were the "worst failures" that a restaurant could have. Researchers therefore found it "puzzling" that respondents also said that complaints about factors that unrelated related to food or service (such as atmosphere) were the main factors in determining whether a customer would choose to never return to a certain establishment. Though I might not speak up about it, I think a hair in my food or something is the number one thing that would prevent me from returning somewhere, you?

Starbucks is making inroads into France, one of the two countries in the world most famous for its cafe culture, but the process is a long and slow one. In France, operating costs are extremely high and the competition is stiff; the long standing national past time of lounging in cafes has produced very high quality coffees and loyal patrons that are formidable competition for the American chain. And though Starbucks is slowly gaining acceptance from its French consumers, the mainstay of its clientele is foreign, which is why Starbucks has chosen to in tourist heavy areas and branch outwards.

Lines form out the doors at Paris locations, mostly of Asian and American tourists. The tourists are likely to order more traditional drinks, like espressos, but come for the familiar feel of the large, comfortable cafe, not to mention the smoke-free atmosphere that they maintain. More and more frequently there are French university students and young professions joining the queue, looking for something over-the-top that they can only find at the American cafe. Starbucks is finding its new niche in the country, despite the fact that there are only 23 outlets in France, compared to more than 55,000 traditional cafes there. Will Starbucks' popularity prove to be real competition for the other cafes? Unlikely, and certainly not in the near future, but it will probably be able to hold its own, even if it operates on a limited scale.

Is grocery shopping the new national past time? Sometimes, it can certainly seem that way. With lines around the block at store openings for Trader Joe's and Whole Foods markets, one would think that the customers were lining up to see a Broadway show or a blockbuster movie, not to pick up a quart of milk and some specialty produce. Shoppers drive for hours to visit a Wegman's grocery in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland or Virginia - not only to get all the goodies they need to stock their kitchens, but for the fun of it. Cheese tasting, gourmet and artisan prepared goods and other foods, like sushi, prepared on the spot by skilled chefs are all draws of markets like these, whether their prices are high, low or midrange.

Why is shopping becoming entertainment, though? USA Today tried to answer that very question and found that the answer lay in a combination of factors. Americans are more interested in new and quality foods than ever before. They want healthier foods, international flavors and they want to find it all in one store because the long-standing tradition of one-stop shopping is the only kind that fits into a busy schedule. Consequently, the stores that offer everything do well, so well that people want to visit them more than other stores. "Nothing compares with it," a customer said of Wegman's. "You can spend an entire day there."

The executives at Dunkin' Donuts are considering dropping the word "Donuts" from their sign, rechristening the popular chain "Dunkin'" to reflect their expanded offerings. They seem to feel that potential customers might be confused by the name, thinking that the shop offers only donuts.

Personally, I think that this would be a huge mistake on the part of the company. Over the years, they have built a successful brand that has a tremendous amount of name recognition. Not only does such a move reflect poorly on the perception of the intelligence of the customers, but it is just plain silly. Burger King has not dropped the "burger" from its name, despite the fact that it offers sandwiches and salads. And why not? Because they are most famous for their burgers, just like Dunkin' Donuts is most famous for their donuts.

Their new "America runs on Dunkin'" ad campaign might be a first attempt to see how people will respond to a shortened name.

On those days where you are simply so frustrated you want to throw something, all you need to do is hop on a plane and fly to the Philippines. There is a restaurant just outside of Manila where, for a small fee, you can hurl plates at a wall to relieve stress. The wall is covered in writing with common aggravations, like "ex-boyfriend", "boss" and "perennially complaining customers." According to the owners of the restaurant, the three most popular targets are "boss", "wine, women and gambling" and "loan sharks." A plate costs about $0.30 and, for a mere $25 more, patrons can toss an old TV set at the wall, too. It's a small price to pay for the privilege of smashing up someone else's stuff, rather than your own.

[Image via Reuters]

 

The singleton's hatred of Valentine's Day is only outweighed by that of chefs, apparently. As the Guardian discovered, chefs do not look forward to what is one of the busiest nights of the year. Special menus cause irritation, as do heart-shaped cutters and moulds for shaping the food. Some chefs and restaurant staff expressed equal exasperation over the doe-eyed couples and the couples for whom the honeymoon has long been over, though Sally Clarke, who runs Clarke's, in London, said she enjoyed seeing the looks of delight on the faces of customers who find a pink ring box passed over the table at the end of the evening.

The chefs and staff would probably feel more warmly towards the holiday in future if they had to suffer through one with no customers, since the only thing worse than a customer who is so lovestruck they neglect to tip, is a customer who doesn't come at all.

Frank Bruni, a New York Times restaurant critic, just spent a week working as a waiter in a restaurant to see how the other half lives. Though he still experienced the difficulties and irritations of the job after only a few days, he was at an excellent restaurant and he got to leave after only a week. Maki Itoh, whose food blog is the oft-mentioned i was just really very hungry, has written her own account of what it is like to work in a restaurant. She worked as a host in one of New York's most popular sushi restaurants back in 1998 and covers more than a week's worth of celebrities, regulars and why the job isn't as easy as it looks.

And for a truly entertaining, ongoing account of waiting tables, be sure to check out Waiter Rant, the blog of an anonymous waiter, who tells tales of everything from tipping, both good and bad, to the people who sniff rubber wine corks. He is also nominated as the Best American Blog in the 2006 Bloggies.

1. Customers not putting their carriage in the corral: Seriously. Talk about lazy. Instead of taking another 9 or 10 steps to put the carriage where it belongs, they just leave it in the middle of a parking space. This is so irritating. Things like theft and violence and embezzlement seem minor in compared to this.

2. Customers who leave their carriage in an aisle: What's up with that? I've seen people leave their carriage at the end of an aisle (not even inside the aisle, but at the end) and walk down an aisle to get an item, and other shoppers have to move it out of the way. I've always been tempted to push their cart to the other end of the store and watch their expression when they come back and find it gone.