An interview question

m.d.hughes · #1 08-04-2008, 10:52 PM

Here is a question I always ask prospective chefs during interviews

"It's 8pm on a busy Saturday night and a server brings a plate back saying that this tastes like merde, what is the 1st thing you do?"

Remember that this is during an interview so I would expect an answer quickly and I am only interested in the 1st reaction.

You can tell a lot about a person by the way that they answer and there is only 1 right answer what is it?

Greg · #2 08-04-2008, 11:28 PM

If that was the only information I was given, the only thing to do is ask what needs to be done to correct the situation to the guest's satisfaction.

tessa · #3 08-05-2008, 12:16 AM

i would offer to redo the dish and send my apologies to the customer

foodpump · #4 08-05-2008, 09:00 AM

"Tastes like merde" is NOT very specific. My first reaction would be to tell the waiter to tell the customer to brush their teeth twice a day.

No honestly. If the complaint would be "too salty", "not salty enough", "raw", or "overcooked" , I would immediatly do my best- and with out any attitude-to remedy the situation.

But "tastes like merde" gives me no information about what the customer doesn't like about the dish, the only information it gives me is that the customer is a schmuck who doesn't want to pay.

Complaints, for me, anyways, are only legitimate when they are specific....

chef.ESG.73 · #5 08-05-2008, 09:09 AM

I'm assuming merde is something that does not taste good.(no idea what merde is)

The very first thing I would do is taste it, to see if the guest is right. To have an understanding of what the guest is talking about.

If the guest were right. I would have the dining room manager, ( not the server ) ask if they would like another one or a different selection off the menu and let the them know its on the house.

If the dish was good, my opinion the guest is wrong 93% of the time ( ya, I said it) even though we don't let them know it. I would offer them another one or different selection not on the house and only offer them a dessert on the house. Why, just because it is all about guest satisfaction whether their right or wrong, I would want them to leave happy.

Just Jim · #6 08-05-2008, 09:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by m.d.hughes

Here is a question I always ask prospective chefs during interviews

"It's 8pm on a busy Saturday night and a server brings a plate back saying that this tastes like merde, what is the 1st thing you do?"

Remember that this is during an interview so I would expect an answer quickly and I am only interested in the 1st reaction.

You can tell a lot about a person by the way that they answer and there is only 1 right answer what is it?

The first thing?
Ask the server what we can do to make the customer happy.

The last thing I would do (and hopefully not do)?
Cause the machine to come to a standstill while trying to determine what's wrong, go on a tirade, hit the server, etc.

Blueicus · #7 08-05-2008, 03:00 PM

Only 1 right answer? Seems a little wrong to me

. To be honest, the first thing I'd say is "What's wrong with it?"

If it's a trick question then I'd say, "What are you doing eating the customer's food?"

Bazza · #8 08-05-2008, 06:13 PM

Taste it.

rat · #9 08-05-2008, 06:51 PM

I'm suprised only 1 person thought to taste the dish. I would taste it to see if it is in fact bad, then regardless get a FOH manager involved to see what I could do to make the customer happy.

So what is the only correct answer here anyway.

longfellow · #10 08-05-2008, 08:51 PM

Go out tell the customer the mob owns the restaurant, is he current on his health insurance payment lol
did i get the job lol

iconoclast · #11 08-05-2008, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by m.d.hughes

"It's 8pm on a busy Saturday night and a server brings a plate back saying that this tastes like merde, what is the 1st thing you do?"

ask whats wrong, taste it, and make a new one to the customers specifications...

Greg · #12 08-05-2008, 10:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rat

I'm suprised only 1 person thought to taste the dish. I would taste it to see if it is in fact bad, then regardless get a FOH manager involved to see what I could do to make the customer happy.

So what is the only correct answer here anyway.

My reasoning is to go directly to finding out how to solve the problem, not finding out what went wrong. Unless the customer wants the same dish again, it's an unnecessary step. Finding out what went wrong does need to be done, just not while a customer is waiting.

kuan · #13 08-06-2008, 08:05 AM

Cripes, I saw this on ****'s Kitchen... let's see. Taste it, yell obscenities at the person who made it, dump the plate on their workstation, demand another in 2 minutes.

AllanMcPherson · #14 08-06-2008, 08:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Greg

My reasoning is to go directly to finding out how to solve the problem, not finding out what went wrong. Unless the customer wants the same dish again, it's an unnecessary step. Finding out what went wrong does need to be done, just not while a customer is waiting.

The problem there is that sometimes the two are linked at the hip. I agree with your proviso about the customer order the same dish but even if they want to sub something else out you should do a little checking. I'll give an example from the other night:

Customer orders a grapefruit / Campari sorbet. A couple of minutes latter the server runs it back down, apparently it tastes freezer burned. I'm in charge of deserts that night so I'm personally going to wear this if we sent out stale food. We also had an apricot/ riesling sorbet in stock so the customer requested that. While I'm getting that together Chef comes by to see what's going on. We bother agree the Campari was fine, sharp and lively in fact. I'm just about to hand off the comp'd replacement when it hits me. I ask the server what the customer is drinking and it turns out she's just polishing off a super-Tuscan. Chef and I put the apricot back in the freezer and offer the customer a nice piece of chocolate cake, on the house.

My long winded point is that we could have rushed in to "make the customer happy" and given her a second choice that would have seemed even more dire to her palate. Then we wind up looking mighty stupid.

--Al

Blueicus · #15 08-06-2008, 03:04 PM

I would have to say that with regards to tasting that I would only do it after it's been told to me what the customer says is wrong with the dish. If it's simply a matter of under/overcooking then tasting it is a waste of time but if it's a matter of salt then tasting provides a good baseline of how much to add if I opt to replace the dish with a new one.