Awful coffee - Do you tell them ... ?

[AlleyCatt]

I stopped in at Pushka on Saturday as Switchboard was just closing. Ordered a latte for myself and a soy mocha for my girlfriend. Two lattes arrived - weak, milky with barely a hint of froth and hardly a taste of coffee. The worst Ive had since trying a little place in Yarraville last month. My girlfriend said lets just leave it and go, but I thought these guys are supposed to know what theyre doing - lets give them a chance. So I took them back inside and politely asked if they could re-make them as they were not up to standard. Which they did. And the replacements (this time we got the mocha which wed ordered) were fantastic.
I tend to send coffees back at places that should know better, and let it pass at places which seem that they dont give a toss about their coffee, and then I dont return. What would you do? Take them back and give them a chance (and let them know that they can do better), or just leave?

[JohnA]

Re: Awful coffee - Do you tell them ... ?

I usually just leave, but if i am in one of my moods i will tell them its bad, and even if they offer to make me another, i usually say no thanks and then leave never to return

[Gilbert]

Re: Awful coffee - Do you tell them ... ?

I probably wouldnt say anything unless the coffee was cold or if it wasnt what I ordered.  Its hard to say though - some people might really appreciate the feedback if you offer it in a constructive fashion.  When I worked in a cafe I didnt mind so much if people brought their coffee back and asked for a hotter one (not that it happened very often).

[Thundergod]

Re: Awful coffee - Do you tell them ... ?

Sometimes, if Ive popped in for a meal, say brekky, when they ask about coffee I tell them Ill watch and make up my mind.
I might also then have a discussion with the PBTM before finally giving them the go ahead.
No presssure. ;D

[beanflying]

Re: Awful coffee - Do you tell them ... ?

I have a similar quandry in town here. A nice couple run one of the local bakerys and have a nice shiney new Exobar 2 group. They only have a tub instant beside it and only use the exobar to foam the milk to boiling point :P There is 2 shiny unused PFs sitting on top of the machine with a toy metal tamper they must enjoy dusting. They have to have the worst coffee in town but the best bread. In a town of 3000 we have at least 20 others making passable coffee so they need at least a clue :-?

In my limited coffee snobbery fashion I would like to help them out but not sure how to first off let them know or should I ask if I could have a play with there machine one quiet afternoon and bring down my spare DRM and fresh beans? Maybe my excuse could be I am thinking about buying a Minore 2 : (it is on the short list anyway). Maybe if I made them some decent coffees with fresh ground they might just ask a few questions?

Apart from that I have returned politely in the past cold coffees or watery lattes but only when really bad (3 times in 20+ years I think).

[A_M]

Re: Awful coffee - Do you tell them ... ?

I have a similar quandry in town here. A nice couple run one of the local bakerys and have a nice shiney new Exobar 2 group. They only have a tub instant beside it and only use the exobar to foam the milk to boiling point  :P There is 2 shiny unused PFs sitting on top of the machine with a toy metal tamper they must enjoy dusting. They have to have the worst coffee in town but the best bread. In a town of 3000 we have at least 20 others making passable coffee so they need at least a clue  :-?

In my limited coffee snobbery fashion I would like to help them out but not sure how to first off let them know or should I ask if I could have a play with there machine one quiet afternoon and bring down my spare DRM and fresh beans? Maybe my excuse could be I am thinking about buying a Minore 2  : (it is on the short list anyway). Maybe if I made them some decent coffees with fresh ground they might just ask a few questions?

Apart from that I have returned politely in the past cold coffees or watery lattes but only when really bad (3 times in 20+ years I think).

I hate to say it but any excuse would do....

Further more, even with half an effort they will / may be able to make better coffee that with the instant.

In addition are you also then going to do the cleaning and maintenance every so often with a loaf of bread at the bartered outcome....

[_moby_]

Re: Awful coffee - Do you tell them ... ?

Two fairly recent experiences:

I had a shocker at a place in Brunswick Street.  Ordered a double espresso – they obviously just ran twice as much water through a single dose.  It was horrid.  Alerted a waiter (not the person who made it) and he immediately agreed it was terrible and got me what I ordered which still wasn’t great but OK.

Had possibly the worst espresso ever at a place in Smith St and just didn’t bother to send it back because they clearly weren’t focussed on producing great coffee and I’m sure the waitress who made it had no idea what to do anyway.

[CarrieK]

Re: Awful coffee - Do you tell them ... ?

My shocker was in Greymouth, a little town on the West Coast of New Zealands South Island (they have a Wild Food Festival there and are pretty good at food & wine)  

We went to a great looking cafe and ordered breakfast & coffees (mine was a double shot latte) from the friendly staff.   The coffees came out first, yay!  But mine smelt kinda odd, Phil sipped his short black & pronounced it good so I thought, what the hell & had a slug... thunder clapped, lightening forked through the sky, I grasped my throat & wondered if my previously loving husband had bribed the waitress to poison me!    

I managed to (bravely) stagger to the counter where I gasped out the words "Im not sure what that is, but I dont think its coffee!".  Much apologies & it turned out someone had misread my order & made me a Chai Latte.
Breakfast was delicious as was the replacement coffee but the scars still remain  

I learned a invaluable lesson though and now take care when ordering coffee, to remember what my elocution teacher taught me and enunciate clearly  ;D
- Carrie

[Thundergod]

Re: Awful coffee - Do you tell them ... ?

A Chai Latte?

You poor thing.
Im glad youre OK.

[summercrema]

Re: Awful coffee - Do you tell them ... ?

By all means tell them there is plenty of room for improving their coffee but I would only do that after I left the room, places that employ teen baristers generally not into good coffee making practice.

[b]

Re: Awful coffee - Do you tell them ... ?

Picked up a couple of take out FW coffees from a place down the Fleurieu on the way camping. Slightly hippy looking, blackboard advertising Beans from Kenya and Guatemala. Started drinking once wed pulled away - Mrs Baldryk declared hers to be the worst coffee she has ever had, and it literally was the second worst that Id ever had. Tasted like the previous used puck had been used for our coffees, topped with scaled milk.

That is the first time I can think Id have told them, and demanded a refund, but we werent going to turn the trailer around and drive back. They were closed on the return trip. Seems a bit after the fact, a week later, but if I lived closer I would.

[Ben_C]

Re: Awful coffee - Do you tell them ... ?

I normally wont say anything, although I almost did when I had a take away coffee while traveling on the Hume hwy at Christmas.  

The only reason I stopped at this place was they claimed they served the Best coffee on the Hume ... well ... the Hume must have some pretty rancid coffee because this was horrid.

... I guess I should have been concerned when I overheard the person making the coffee ask a fellow staff member what a double meant.

By the time a walked back to the shop with the coffee, they had closed so I was stuck with it.

Ben.

[luca]

Re: Awful coffee - Do you tell them ... ?

I have what might seem like a bit of an odd approach to sending coffee back; Ill only do it if the place is good.  

Places that have invested in fresh coffee, decent equipment and that show a bit of interest are likely to be interested in producing the best quality product that they can and, IMHO, have earned the right to feedback, which will help them to maintain a high standard and, hopefully, to get repeat custom.  Bad coffee slips through at even the best cafes, but the best cafes are always very happy to be given a second chance.  

Places that arent interested in serving good coffee dont deserve feedback, nor do they deserve a second chance.  If Im at a place that is obviously run by an owner who regards coffee as nothing more than a way to turn a buck, perhaps by cynically trying to leverage of a roasters brand, I would much rather let them serve poor coffee and lose customers - and, besides, the replacement isnt likely to be any good, anyway.  This is what I did at the last place that waxed lyrical about their coffee from behind their synesso and showed how hip they were by talking about the clover before serving me a cup of ash. A friend of mine has a great way of describing this behaviour; he simply calls it lying.

Cheers,

Luca