Then take it OFF THE BOARD!

I think this is an important enough lapse in proper restaurant management that some serious action needed to be taken. Contacting the management and corporate office aren't serious enough responses. I think OP should have returned to the restaurant (NOT as a customer, but investigating) numerous times with witnesses to see how long the serious situation continued, then contacted a lawyer and filed a civil suit alleging false advertising resulting in severe emotional damage. I don't think asking for a million+ plus would be out of line for the degree of damages inflicted by such inexcusable behavior.

 

Sure, it's not a big deal when you compare it to actual problems. But isn't it ok to ask that someone there take a little pride in their job, chain restaurant job notwithstanding? If one beer in the flight had kicked and they hadn't gotten around to changing the board that's one thing, but three unavailable beers still on the chalkboard? That's half-assed.

 

There are two missing bits of information.

How busy was the place during the OPs visit and were they understaffed or had someone unexpectedly called in sick.

Expecting “instant” updates to a chalk board during peak workload times can be unrealistic sometimes.

 

At a "stand-alone" place, sure, that's reasonable.

At a chain, where everything is micro-managed, planned, thought through, market anylisys driven, focus group tested, everything proscribed to a T? Some lazy bastard is slacking, and he better get his shit together before the corporate secret shoppers come through to do a report.

 

I take it you’re not in the habit of going out to eat at a chain restaurant on nights of peak busyness.

 

I’ve never heard of a chain restaurant doing a flight of beers.

I’d just let it go.

 

Or ever. I have, of course, over the years gone to chains, but, there's always an extenuating circumstance.

My point was more to the fact that corporate has every detail so controlled, that I find it hard to believe that the manager at TGIFaBeesGardenWings, doesn't have, somewhere in the 3 ring binder of policies, the information needed. As pointed out upthread, if ya can't tell us what ya don't have on, how can you tell us what you do?

 

Absolutely. If you go to a place where you are in the minority, e.g., wanting a non-frosted glass, don’t be irritated if they have trouble accommodating your unusual or strange requests.

 

In the book, probably, but as a friend of mine likes to point out, “In theory there’s no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is.”

 

I can think of twenty possible reasons why the chalkboard wasn't immediately taken care of, and zero difference to the customer resulting from such lapse.

 

Not to mention, what chain was this? There are all kinds of chain restaurants.

Many of us are visualizing a chain like Applebees, Buffalo Wild Wings, and the like.

If that (or similar) is what chain this was, and they are offering sufficient craft beers on the menu to have a flight on offer, then I say good for them, even if they did not execute it perfectly.

 

Haha! These days you just might get that$$

 

Not all privately owned 4 and 5 star restaurants have great beer either. Just saying. Do y'all complain and walk out of these places too? Or get a diet Coke or water?

 

In my experience maybe not on tap, but wise enough to have good bottled beer given today's interest in craft beer and great quality food at 4 and 5 star places.

 

In the scheme of things is this really up there with how much 'flair' the servers are wearing?

 

Thankfully even the chains around here seem to always have at least Fiddlehead on draft. Many members of my family default to chain restaurants and I'm never left thirsty.

 

@19etz55 Like others above, I'm curious what this chain restaurant is and I think it could be relevant to the responses. In my experience it's unusual for a chain to offer beer flights, and they may be trying to make craft beer a significant part of their business. If it is a more beer-centered chain (like Yard House) then I think it's fair to expect a little more from them than a more traditional food-centered chain (like Chiles or Applebees). If you are concerned about hurting anyone by complaining on a public forum, then leave out the location, but if the larger corporate business can't take some beer geeks grumbling online they have bigger problems.


Relatedly, there's a medium-sized chain restaurant near me (Bar Louie) who tries really hard to be a craft beer place. But their lovely pre-printed draft beer list reads like this:

"<Insert Brewery> Seasonal"
...Repeat for ~15 lines down the page.

Totally worthless. The servers clearly get frustrated too, because they don't know what is actually pouring when a customer asks for specifics, which makes them run back and forth between the bar and tables, or they have to make their own handwritten notes of the drafts. It's a managerial/systemic problem above any of the servers. Personally, I try to avoid the place but sometimes the choice is made for me by friends or co-workers I want to meet up with. #firstworldproblems

 

I have a Bar Louis not terribly far from me, and they will actually print out themselves the brewery and name, plus style (if applicable) and abv. just a sheet of regular printer paper, taped into the beer menu.
not just, Sam Adams Seasonal, but Sam Adams Winterfest, spiced lager, x.x%

 

If I go to Red-Chili-Bee's-Wings I don't expect to find anything worth drinking, so I don't even bother to look. Not to knock the OP as I have no clue where he was, but I definitely would not consider ordering a flight either. I don't need to have a beer when out to eat to enjoy my meal, like a lot of folks I'm sure. That's why the "just pucker up and order a Bud" responses are ridiculous. No I will not order a beer just to have one. No I did not settle since I am at one of these places; I have kids, and as much as I would love to drag them to Hopcat every time we eat out, my wallet (and waistline) will not accommodate for that.

 

Not getting into the chain restaurant battle here, simple replying to the title of the thread. It should have been removed from the board. There is a beer garden in Midtown Houston called Holman Draft Hall that is right next to my daughters apartment. When they first opened we went there a good bit. Then there was that tapped keg creep where when someone went to get the next round, we would give our top 2, then it became our top 3 choices, then we just quit going. Quit printing a menu if you are going to let things tap out and not have a replacement, get a board and mark it out. Sound nice to advertise 100 taps when actually only 80/85 are flowing. Also it drives me batshit if I drive somewhere based on your untappd/taphunter listing to find out you aren't keeping it updated. I just simply won't drive to your establishment anymore.