Chefs de France, thumbs down!!!

[Dreamfinder2]

I'm thinking that with any and all things Disney, it is always possible for us to vote with our feet and our pocketbooks. It seems reasonable to me that if anyone is displeased with service, quality, or anything else, taking away Disney's source of income would be effective. I understand that never patronizing one restaurant ever again is a drop in the corporate bucket to Disney (but it evens out if you eat somewhere else), but it is an option, and perhaps one that gives personal satisfaction.

OP, I'm sorry you've been sorta maligned. You just stated your opinion, which is fair enough.

We've had great experiences at Chefs over the years, but when we're there in a couple of weeks ... who knows?

I'm guessing, too, that out of the millions of folks who visit Disney and know nothing of these boards, a sizeable majority are quite pleased with their vacation and dining experiences, but I guess we don't have any way of knowing that, either.

 

[mmmears]

So now its my fault I received bad service. What a twisted way of looking at things. My answer is simple, I will never eat there again and I post my experience on this board and thats it.

And btw, If I want to see illuminations from the beginning that is my choice, why should I let a bad experience at a restaurant spill into to rest of my night.

Good for you! It is your vacation, and you should choose how you spend your time. I would not have been willing to miss Illuminations, either.

And, no, you didn't deserve the bad service.

And thank you for the review -- even though we had great service at Chefs in April, it was valuable (especially for the reminder as to why I won't be buying the TIW card for our next trip!).

 

[eliza61]

Honestly, if you are too lazy or scared to ask for a manager, you pretty much deserve the bad service as you have now become part of the problem by not correcting the bad service. It takes AT MOST 10 minutes... and I have NEVER had it take that long. Illuminations hasn't changed in 10 years for the most part.... And I'm 100% sure that if you miss the start of it, you'll still be able to catch up to it... I'm also 100% sure, it will be on the next night and the next night, etc.

The ridiculousness of some of the people on this thread really just blows my mind.

I guess you included the bolded in your assessment of ridiculous. That was equally ridiculous. No one deserves bad service.

So now its my fault I received bad service. What a twisted way of looking at things. My answer is simple, I will never eat there again and I post my experience on this board and thats it.

And btw, If I want to see illuminations from the beginning that is my choice, why should I let a bad experience at a restaurant spill into to rest of my night.

No it is not Bsbrady,
Bad service is never, ever ok. I have taken the 18% surcharge off my TIW bill a couple of times now. Bottom line, it is my money. Waiter doesn't like it, tough cookies. If they are getting hosed in a bad economy, look for a salaried job. I owe them nothing and never ever will I accept inferior service. I have left 1 dollar tips a time or two for crappy service.

 

[diavolobella]

I'm sorry you had such a bad experience. I loved Chefs when I was there last May and have ADRs to go again in a couple of weeks. It's a shame that you had an inattentive waiter. Mine was good, but I did notice that some of the surrounding tables did not seem to have waitstaff who was as attentive as our server. I got very tickled and was flattered by one of the waiters who flirted with me throughout the meal as well. I guess at my age I'm easily amused! LOL

I hope some time you'll give it another try though (as long as you liked the food, that is). You may come to love it if you have a better experience next time. I usually will give any place at least a second chance.

 

[BriarRosie]

I see this post as a learning experience for everyone who reads it.

Lots of us have offered some pretty decent advice about how to handle poor service, so that anyone who is going to WDW and dining at full service restaurants can handle the situation in a way that will be more to their satisfaction.

For what it's worth, I didn't think anyone complaining was cheap. I think they were complaining about their level of control over how much tip they personally feel their servers deserve, based on service alone. I addressed that by my earlier comments. You do have control by having a manager adjust it if warranted. Simple enough.

I don't want this to turn into a morality thread about tipping in general, or the moderators will lock this thread quicker than you can say "Jiminy Cricket" and tell us to discuss tipping ethics at the sticky thread at the top of this page.

And lastly... I will report posts if I see any more personal attacks. They aren't welcome here. We all can discuss our opinions without hostility towards others.

 

[kaytieeldr]

So now its my fault I received bad service. What a twisted way of looking at things. My answer is simple, I will never eat there again and I post my experience on this board and thats it.

And btw, If I want to see illuminations from the beginning that is my choice, why should I let a bad experience at a restaurant spill into to rest of my night.

Oh, heavens, no - it is NOT your fault you got bad service. It is your server's fault. I think everyone agrees. I haven't reread the thread, but I don't recall anyone making excuses for your server.

You're as entitled to each other DISer to post your negative experience. And, okay, any of us who didn't before now see how intent you were on seeing ALL of Illuminations rather than spend time tracking down a manager.

But the posters offering opinions, suggestions, etc, that differ from what you did, what you would have done, or what you want to hear are doing simply that - providing what we see as reasonable alternatives, many of which would have resolved ALL issues: bring the service problem to the manager's attention while it was occuring (and thus, get good service), enjoy your meal, and see Illuminations.

You opted to not do anything about the service, and that's fine. DISers responding in this thread are opting to give advice, and that's fine too. It won't help you, but it might help another person at another restaurant - Disney or not.

SHOULD management know about service problems? Sure. Can they be everywhere at once? Nope. Are they all-seeing/all-knowing? Ha!
Is it the customer's duty to bring a problem to management's attention? No. Is it a reasonable response? Absolutely. Wouldn't you want to know, if it was your company?

 

[ShannonMB]

But the posters offering opinions, suggestions, etc, that differ from what you did, what you would have done, or what you want to hear are doing simply that - providing what we see as reasonable alternatives, many of which would have resolved ALL issues: bring the service problem to the manager's attention while it was occuring (and thus, get good service), enjoy your meal, and see Illuminations.

Yes, that's exactly what ALMOST all the posters were doing.

 

[bobbiwoz]

In the very beginning of the automatic gratuity I did complain to Disney regarding hypothetical situations like that. I didn't like the answer, which was to let the manager know immediately if you feel your server is not doing whatever it takes to please you. The Disney response was that everyone wants to do a good job and some need "help." I don't like having to put the training of servers on the customers, but, I know that I would say something while it was happening. That is the only time that there can be recourse, as far as I learned from Disney.

Bobbi

 

[SpecEdismyLife]

We were there in December and it was our worst meal of the week. The server was nice, but more interested in helping the elderly couple next to us (which they were literally 2 feet from us the tables were so close) and the food was horrible. My beef tips were not burnt but tasted like charcoal. We would not return to Les Chefs but I see a lot of people like it so I am glad we gave it a try, but never again.