porterwj Wrote:
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> A Closer Look has a nice restaurant shop that can
> be done with one person. With one person you might
> be able to break even. They allow two or three
> diners for this particular restaurant chain.

That just reminded me that Kelsey's allows 1 person shops as well and I think they may be in the USA. Since Montana's is owned by the same company, I suspect they would as well.

SUSANSDCA Wrote:
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> Dear porter wj,
> I WOULD not come out of pocket for any restaurant
> shop. I need full reimbursement plus a fee or I do
> not go.

I don't mind doing a nice restaurant sometimes even if it comes out of my pocket. If I'm paying the tax and tips only for a classy meal, why not. For maybe $10-15 we end up with wine, drinks, appetizer, entrees and dessert. To me it is worth it. We'd be hard pressed to eat at McDonald's for that price.

I am poor. Every penny counts.

I groan (out loud) when reading through reports where it is obvious that a guest messed up the shop. LOL . . . with good writers, I can literally feel you wanting to kick your guest under the table! Sadly, a guest can ruin a shop since there are requirements that each client has. You can only tell your guest so much . . . or they're sure to say something to give away your identity.

Our shops all have the requirement that you cannot order two of the same item. I get it. Your guest probably said something like, "Oh, I changed my mind, I'll have that too!" KICK! Unfortunately, most fine dining shops do require you to have a guest. If a client can verify that you went alone, you won't be reimbursed for your shop, your scheduler doesn't get paid, your editor doesn't get paid . . . :-( Sadness for everyone!

My partner has been on many shops with me and he still makes me cringe when he does something that will get one of my shops invalidated . . . KICK! (Softly, of course.)

Fine Dining/Bar Editor

I am so jealous of those of you who take your mom and your mum (so cute, that word!). My mpm/mum was so appreciative of everything I did or wherever i took her. I was able in this small way to repay her for all the years she took care of me. She was able to afford good food but it gets difficult to find someone to go with when you are up there in age. At older ages there is sometimes not much else exciting to do but eat and little social interaction for hours and sometimes days at a time. My mom always enjoyed getting dressed up and going somewhere, anywhere with me. I encourage those of you who have elderly moms (or dads) close by to take them along if they have the ability to be a good co-shopper. You will remember those nice meals together long after they are gone.

I recently decided to do a fine dining shop with my best friend because we hadn't seen each other in a long time. I briefed her on the instructions a few days before but she still messed up my evaluation. First of all, she decided to bring her teenage daughter at the last minute and claimed, "You never said I wasn't allowed to bring another person." When it was time for us to order, my friend asked our server dumb questions like, "Is the mustard chicken good? What does it taste like?" Our server looked at her like she was an idiot. She ordered the most expensive thing on the menu so our bill ended up exceeding the price limit I was given. She became tipsy from her wine and flirted excessively with the bartender and our server and asked for their names. Afterwards, I noticed their demeanors changed and we got exceptionally good service. The wait staff kept fawning over us and asking if we were satisfied with the service. Even the manager stopped by our table to chat with us. I'm pretty sure they thought my friend was the mystery shopper. When our bill came, our server gave us one bill with all our orders on it even though we specifically told him in the beginning my friend and I would be on one bill and her daughter would be on another bill. My friend got upset and told our server off for his mistake, making herself memorable. Right then I decided I was going to cancel the evaluation. Fortunately the MSC gave me an extension and I was able to go back to the restaurant the following week with another friend, who I usually do restaurant evaluations with. I love my best friend and she's fun to be around with but I would never do a mystery shop with her again. Because of her mistakes, it cost me over $200.

P.S. For those wanting to know MSCs who have single fine dining shops, I've done lunchtime evaluations by myself for SQM at a restaurant owned by a big name hotel chain.

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/31/2012 03:26AM by HeatherC.

You all have had some nightmare stories on restaurant shops with friends. I always let me friend know what the limit is and tell them that I will pick up the tab as my treat but if we go over (because of their order)then that part will be their responsibility. I check out the menu online first to make sure there are adequate offering at my price point for the shop. If I am treating them for an occasion where I don't mind spending a bit more I will tell them that too....but will ask them not to spend more than x on their meal as I have a budget. My friends are all aware of budgets and they are happy to get the meal for free or perhaps pay the tip only if that is the amount of overage we have. Since I need to tell them the mystery shop rules of the road, that just becomes one of the rules for the shop. I have never had a problem.

I am a bit shy about telling friends they cannot go over the limit. I invited a male out to a shop where reimbursement was low (how low can you go), low.
we order and he says, that was good, whats the entree, I'm starving, I say, we'll go to Ben&Jerrys and get dessert, your buy. We left with my owing another 22.00 (he ordered so much), I was full, but he was not. Lessson earned, when doing a Japanese BBQ, with potions teeny tiny, eat alone if possible.

Irene_L.A. Wrote:
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Lessson earned, when
> doing a Japanese BBQ, with potions teeny tiny, eat
> alone if possible.

We did one the other day like that. My partner ordered the spaghetti and it was about 1/4 of what you get at Boston Pizza. After we left the restaurant we stopped by Burger King so he could get something to eat.

I think the portions are sometimes geared to have you order appetizer, entree and dessert. A person would probably be full then but with just an entree, there isn't enough.

I have a ton of crazy dinner guest stories, but wanted to share a wonderful one I just had that makes me feel good about being a shopper:

I had an extremely nice dinner assignment at the hotel I was shopping last week. My travel partner asked me if I would be willing to take along another friend to the dinner, whom we had met up with on our travels. This friend lives in a rural area, has a modest lifestyle and had never been to, much less heard of, a Michelin starred restaurant.

I was nervous, but my friend pressed hard for the favor and would not explain why. After we spent time with his friend going over etiquette, ordering guidelines, and which fork is used for what, I agreed. I could tell my dinner guest was nervous about embarrassing me or messing up, but she relaxed after a glass of wine and I we had a fantastic meal, and some great conversation.

Just as I finished turning in the hotel report this week, I got an email from my dinner guest. She had gotten my email address from my friend and send me an amazing thank you. She explained that a month after she had booked the trip we met up with her on, she had lost her son. Since the trip was non-refundable and she had saved almost 2 years for it, she went anyway, but was not sure that she could enjoy herself.

Apparently the meal experience was so amazing for her, she had an epiphany and felt her son would want her to go on with life and have wonderful experiences like that. She's back home now and told me that for the first time in months, she has started to enjoy her life again.

So....don't give up on dinner guests. Behind every over-ordering, unappreciative, name asking, martini ordering guest hides a deserving one, who may really need someone to take take them out for a nice meal.

.........Hi LAfeet, I was wondering if the la part meant THE LA...could be Louisiana or just a spanish pronoun......

sandyf,
The LA part only stands for Los Angeles. It was just part of a business name that never really took off.

Dec. when my daughter was visiting, I did a really nice lunch that was a test, being able to eat in 45 minutes. having to get the age of the Server, he looked around 30...my daughter says no, he's younger, he was flirting with her, maybe she knows something. She asks his age, and he says, "Oh, I'm 21",
I was way off, but glad she was along, she has a great instinct for detail.

Answering above post, when I invite someone, I pay...just too embarrased to "ask" for money, so I lost on that one, but dinner got repayed and all
is equal...

SteveSoCal Wrote:
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> I have a ton of crazy dinner guest stories, but
> wanted to share a wonderful one I just had that
> makes me feel good about being a shopper:
...
>
> So....don't give up on dinner guests. Behind
> every over-ordering, unappreciative, name asking,
> martini ordering guest hides a deserving one, who
> may really need someone to take take them out for
> a nice meal.

Thanks for sharing that story. I appreciated the time you took to share it.

lafeet Wrote:
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> .........Hi LAfeet, I was wondering if the la part
> meant THE LA...could be Louisiana or just a
> spanish pronoun......
>
> sandyf,
> The LA part only stands for Los Angeles. It was
> just part of a business name that never really
> took off.


And I thought I was LA feet....just spent another few hours today shopping for a shoe I can wear in my size. My feet could almost have been used by the king in the olden days as the standard for measuring.