Sourpuss' Rants: Praising Good Customer Service

It is too easy to get hung up on the negative experiences we have as a customer. We forget to let people know when we receive excellent customer service. One company that can be proud of their customer service is Olive Garden. I have eaten at several Olive Gardens in Colorado, Wyoming, Utah and Texas. The service and food has always been outstanding.

It is normal to leave a nice tip if you like the service when dining out. That is as far as most people go towards acknowledging good customer service. Last week my husband and I had lunch at an Olive Garden in Humble, TX. It is a great experience from the time we walked in the door. We were seated quickly. Our waitress, Ashley, was friendly and attentive. The food was exquisite. Just leaving a tip did not seem to be enough.

As we were leaving, I asked speak with the manager. You should have seen the looks between the employees. The thoughts of "What did we do wrong?", "Was something wrong with the food?" and "Who messed up?" could easily be seen on their faces. I patiently waited for the manager to appear. Even the manager was apprehensive as to what form of complaint I was going to have. Instead of a complaint, I shook her hand and congratulated her on the awesome service and food we had received. You could have knocked her and the employees over with a feather. A customer had taken the time to personally thank them for an excellent dining experience.

Remember when you are dining out to not get trapped in the tunnel view of what was wrong. Take the time to find the good things that occur during your experience. Inform the manager when you have a good experience.