Employee attitudes at beer stores

I find that it is more " not being knowledgeable enough" that being rude or crass

 

as in every other walk of life, you're gonna have your assholes. but generally the decent people will shine through.

 

This is spot on. It cracks me up, to be honest. The amount of times I've been called a minimum wage lackey is great.

 

Maybe it's because you are only going there on the day they are getting a specific shipment, asking only about that specific beer which, in your own words, is very sought after? I could see this rubbing some establishments the wrong way. Especially because I have to assume you are referring to zombie dust based on your location. I know a lot of places in Illinois hate the Three Floyds chasers.

 

Wow....just wow...

 

If why we're here and why we drink what we do is about enjoying and sharing the love for great beer - and I'd argue those are the reasons - then literally share your beer with the guys/gals who go to bat for you. Nothing wrong with bringing a fresh out-of-distro DIPA from your last trade to your local proprietor...in fact, it might even bring a smile to your face!

I'd argue that the customer service and beer knowledge here in CHI is among the best in the country (maybe I just frequent the right places), which meshes very nicely with the spectacular brewing that is happening here. I can't remember ever really getting attitude at shops in other parts of the country...in fact, most experiences have guided me to beers I wasn't even looking for that I now seek out regularly. Guess I'm just lucky.

 

I can live with a certain amount of ignorance about the product. I don't expect a 20 year old kid Making eight bucks an hour to be as knowledgeable and passionate as the BA's on here. All I ask is the basic amount of respect and customer service I would expect if I was buying anything. The guy described in the post is just a douchebag in general. I'm not sure why there seems to be more of them when it comes to beer.

 

Unfortunately I don't remember which location I visited in Mass but I had insanely good customer service at this place as well. They had a Rep from Wachusett in house doing tastings, we got a bunch of free brewery stuff and my GF and I spent well over $100. I was happy to spend the money in this place, more than I know I would have spent if the service hadn't have been so good.

 

Doesn't surprise me, they have their act together. I just haven't been to any of their other stores, so I can't speak from first hand experience as I can at the Belmont location (aka The Mothership)

 

I joined in an August a while back and only then did I begin reading about this "KBS" thing that was apparently really good, but I failed to learn in my reading that this was in fact not only a limited release but one that happened on March. So I went down the local TW and inquired about it. Fellow could have treated me with similar face palming and blow me off, but he didn't. He explained in a very polite manner when that particular beer is released and how quickly it moves. He then showed me to a few RIS selections that I may enjoy. That's how the particular TW I go to has always been - very good at customer service. Some of the associates may not have vast knowledge, turnover being what it is, but it is obvious that they stress to all associates how important it is to treat customers with respect.

 

You are wrong sir. A barrel aged thermostat almost always tastes like crap.

 

Is the joint in question in Park Slope?

 

Maybe you could operate like this in NYC, though it would be pretty damn inconvenient once you'd exhausted your local options. But does anywhere in AZ have enough restaurants to truly operate in this manner without severely hamstringing yourself?

And I'm curious - what constitutes an "I'm never coming back" level of error? Are we talking something legitimately horrendous, or would, say, a very slightly overcooked piece of fish (with appropriate action taken by the staff to correct) be enough to warrant this reaction? Do you have any real-life examples that you could share?

If I have had 19 truly excellent meals at a restaurant, then it's going to have to be a monumental f**k up at meal 20 that would stop me ever returning.

 

Love the guys in my two favourite beer shops in Edinburgh. Friendly, helpful and they know their stuff. A pleasure to be in their shops.

 

Sounds like the hoarders found jobs

 

I'll preface my comment by saying that in general, I've found some people in the northeast and florida to be some of the least personal people I've ever come across. I know this isn't the case all around, but I can see why this may be a little biased overall.
That said, I've noticed the same thing recently in NC. Its caused me to stop going to about half the bottle shops I used to. I think the sheer growth of the market is partially to blame, but when it comes down to it, it could be a combo of several things. The first that come to mind are competition among bottle shops for allocations, and the attitude of some beer hunters that owners just get fed up with. I had to convince a guy to give me a sample of prairie Elizabeth the other day, and he was saying that the keg was too expensive to give samples of, but poured me one anyway. They turned down my buddies for the samples. The guy was pretty much just rude overall. I think a lot of this comes down to uneducated employees as well. Now that I think about it, it could be that no one was buying the beer after they try it, as there are zero apricot notes in this last batch. Either way, I think they just get stressed out and annoyed and end up taking it out on the next person to walk in the door.

Also, OP, there was no excuse for what happened to you. Its one thing to try to change a customers mind and have them buy something else, its another to lie about it entirely. I see people lying about their allocations here as well and its frustrating.

 

I have a similar response for the local beer store I visit. I walk in, the owner greets me by name. The selection is great and the staff is courteous. If there's something I'm looking for that they don't have, they gladly will order it if they can get it. Sometimes I'll ask for a recommendation when I'm looking for something new. They will also let me know when there's a limited amount of something special. I frequent this place several times a week and have for years. This isn't the same for all beer stores in MA, but when you find a good one, it's worth coming back and bringing repeated business.

 

I was being facetious about finding a place you like and then don't go there (because you don't want to spoil a good thing).

Never coming back... Recent case - not too busy, placed order, several people arrived after that point, placed their orders, then got their food, and yet our server and are food are nowhere to be found. Finally get another server to say hey what's up and then told it's no big deal, probably be out any second. Good ten minutes later nothing. Those other tables I mentioned finished eating and were paying. And then our server says he forgot to enter our order and it would be rushed. Food came out under cooked, some cool to the touch. Only received a very quick and disingenuous sounding apology as he dropped check on table and walked away. This wasn't some leisurely steakhouse either. Found out he never notified management about his error, and management didn't comp it or anything when I brought it to their attention. Didn't care. I was civil about the complaining too. For me this is one strike you're out, given that it was both server and mgmt.

Another example. German themed place had 1L steins. In the past I had ordered and received doppelbocks in 1L steins. On current visit I ordered a Salvator in the 1L and out of nowhere I was sort of lectured that they're not some drunkfest beer place where you can just go to get hammered. First I was shocked, as German places with 1L steins routinely serve 6-7% beers in those steins if they have them. Second I politely explained I received them before and in fact the other doppelbocks in the past were actually higher alcohol. Third, I asked if I could order two consecutive .5L steins (answer was yes). No matter how polite I was the bartender remained snooty and defensive. I actually gave them a couple more tries after that and received varying degrees of bad service (empty glass for a long time, server disappearing for long periods of time, etc.) Cumulatively that's it. I'm done with them.

One more. Ordered pizza to go from pizza/beer place. Told 45 mins. Showed up about 50 mins. Staff spoke among each other for a few moments. Then I was told that my pizza was never made. I asked how long to make it. Then told "well, the people who just sat down and ordering will have their pizzas made first". I had to actually explain that I was a customer 50 minutes ago, and yet the staff defended what was just said. There was a queue of pizzas to be made and mine was to be placed at the end of that list. Manager too. It was as if they were stuck in this "back up your staff no matter what" policy.

 

oh - haha - yeah the humour completely flew over my head. I'll have to chalk that down to it being the day after memorial day

Yeah in all those examples I'd be very unlikely to go back for a repeat visit as well. But for a place to behave like that would mean they couldn't have been that great to begin with

 

in touristy areas you don't necessarily need as many repeat customers. You can get away with a lot more. Location accounts for a lot.