At the Service Magazine cocktail party at Kigali Serena Hotel recently, Patrick Mazimpaka talked about how people tend to edit hotels and restaurant menus. They see garlic-lemon stuffed chicken on the menu, but they want garlic lemon stuffed chicken with spices that they had in some unknown city and expect the restaurant to make that for them just because they ordered it. Well, yes can order for what you feel like eating but don’t shout at the staff if they don’t have it. There is a guy that went to a restaurant and asked the waitress if they had chicken and she said yes. He asked if it was fried or boiled and she confirmed both options. Then he went on to ask if they slaughter the fattest chicken and if the thighs are big enough. With a polite smile, she nodded her head in agreement. As if these were not enough questions, he then went on to ask if the spices they put are healthy and with now an irritated look, the waitress she said yes. He then concluded, “Okay, can you give me a chapatti with milk tea?” Sometimes people just attack restaurant staff members when they are the ones with the problem. You sit in a restaurant and wait to be attended to only to find a customer who can’t stop complaining yet it’s almost certain he is complaining over nothing. Some time back I was at a service centre of one of the telecom companies and a man stormed in complaining about how his line was blocked. Before he even stated his case fully, he said the network was useless and that he would soon change to another. He barely gave the workers time to attend to his matter, not with the way he complained and uttered despicable words. Customer care is for humans, not animals. If you act like an animal then you’re no longer entitled to this care. Yes the customer is king but it doesn’t justify acting like an untamed beast. Then there those peoples that feel like they are more equal than others. They always want to be served first. When told to wait, they quickly raise their voices and inform everyone of the posts they hold and how they don’t have time to waste. I was thrilled recently when a top official came to the bank and sat on the bench and waited his turn. He greeted and interacted with the people that patiently waited with him. Now that’s how it’s done!
