Chorlton bar and restaurant The Laundrette has hit out at a customer who left it a 1-star review on TripAdvisor, despite not turning up for her booking.
The customer, who was unhappy at being charged a £60 ‘no-show’ fee after she ‘forgot’ to cancel her booking at the busy eatery over Christmas, made her feelings known on the public review site in a long rant.
Revealing that she also works in the hospitality industry and ‘understand it’s their policy to debit a table that hasn’t shown up, and they were just following procedure’, she went on to say that she still felt she should be issued a refund.
After her card was debited, she had emailed the restaurant to ‘explain the circumstances’ and after twelve days had still not heard back on her request – leading her to take to TripAdvisor to make her feelings known more publicly.
Image: The Laundrette, Chorlton
The customer, going under the name Lauren B, said that she works in an independent restaurant in Chorlton and had booked a family meal at The Laundrette on 30 December 2021 in advance.
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On the day, however, she says a couple of her family members were taken ill with Covid and she herself was being asked to go into work to cover for her head chef, who had also tested positive with the virus.
Saying that she ‘may have forgotten to cancel’, she goes on to appeal for some sort of solidarity in her bid for a refund, making comparisons with her own workplace saying: “At my restaurant we wouldn’t just bill the card payer and not display any sympathy to the circumstances.
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“It’s unprecedented times for everyone at the moment, but especially the hospitality industry, and I know that we have barely made it through this festive period due to staff constantly isolating, tables no-showing, bringing front of house staff into the kitchen to cover in emergency circumstances.
“But I would like to think that despite these uncertain times, local businesses still appreciate human error and genuine mistakes.”
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She also implied that the Laundrette didn’t need to charge her for the no-show as she ‘can see out my window [they] are constantly flipping tables.’
The restaurant has since replied, saying: “Your table sat completely empty for 2 hours on a day we were fully booked.
“This is why you were charged.”
Taking aim at the unhappy customer, it went on to say that as a hospitality worker herself she ‘should know way more than most how detrimental tables not showing up is for a small businesses.’
The post continued: “And on top of that you then seem to think it’s acceptable to leave a bad review on trip advisor despite knowing you are 100% in the wrong.
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Image: The Laundrette, Chorlton
“We make it extreamly easy to cancel bookings. You can do it online yourself. You can message us on any social media platform. You can call us.
“As you live on the road you could have easily just mentioned it to any of our staff while walking past.
“Unfortunately you didn’t bother doing any of these.”
Adding that ‘we hate charging no shows but it’s the only way to protect ourselves’ the restaurant’s public relations manager finished by inviting her to give him a call, but not before delivering one more blow.
“Normally we are absolutely demoralised by negative reviews but… I’m more than happy for this to stay up and be public so everyone can see.
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“Not showing up for restaurant bookings is an extremely rude and disgusting practice.
“It’s the only reason we have put our charging system in place.”
Bolton man, 22, jailed after his ‘dangerous driving’ kills motorbike rider just days before Christmas
Emily Sergeant
A man from Bolton has been sentenced to more than a decade in jail after causing death by dangerous driving.
Cormac Sale, 22-years-old of Ina Avenue in Bolton, has been sentenced at Bolton Crown Court after pleading guilty to causing death by dangerous driving following a collision between a car and motorbike in Horwich, which saw another young man lose his life just days before Christmas (Saturday 14 December 2024).
At around 9:40pm that evening, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) were called out to an incident on Chorley Old Road in Bolton.
When they arrived, they found that a Skoda Fabia – belonging to Sale – had collided with a motorbike. Spencer Rothwell-Poole, also 22 and from Horwich, was riding the motorbike at the time and sadly died at the scene.
Following Sale’s arrest at the scene, further testing was conducted and he was found to be almost 10 times over the legal limit for ketamine whilst driving when the incident occurred.
Investigations by GMP’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit led to ‘significant evidence’ being obtained of Sale ‘driving erratically’ throughout the evening, as spotted by multiple other drivers and CCTV footage, and he was also driving on the opposite side of the road when the collision took place.
Sale has been sentenced to 10 years and eight months in prison, as well as being banned from driving for 12 years.
“This sentencing reflects the devastating consequences of choosing to drive recklessly and whilst under the influence,” commented Detective Constable James Maskrey, who is GMP’s Roads Police Lead Investigator.
“Nothing can undo the loss suffered by Spencer’s family, but it is our hope that this outcome offers some measure of justice.
“When someone gets behind the wheel under the influence of ketamine, they have no control of their own judgement or body, and even a moment where drivers are dissociated or unaware on the road can be fatal.
“This case is a stark reminder that dangerous driving destroys lives, and I want to reassure the public that our officers remain absolutely committed to tackling dangerous driving and removing those who pose a risk to our roads.”
Featured Image – GMP
News
Brewdog’s beer hotel in Manchester has closed with immediate effect
Daisy Jackson
The ‘beer hotel’ operated by Brewdog in Manchester has closed with immediate effect, as part of the Scottish brewery’s £33m sale.
A whopping 38 Brewdog bars around the UK have closed, resulting in hundreds of job losses.
As well as the beer hotel known as DogHouse in Manchester, which was home to a large bar and rooftop terrace, the Oxford Road brewpub known as the OutPost has also closed.
The DogHouse Hotel on Fountain Street had a range of boutique bedrooms, fitted with features like beer fridges in the shower, beer taps in the room, guitars, record players, and pet beds.
Just 11 pubs have been retained in the rescue deal, including the Brewdog bar on Peter Street in Manchester city centre.
The brewery has been bought by US beverage and medical cannabis company Tilray for £33m, a sale which includes its UK brewery operations, brand, and a handful of pubs.
Yesterday, Brewdog announced all of its bars would be closed for the day to enable staff to attend staff meetings.
Administrators confirmed yesterday that 484 jobs had been lost in the sale, with 38 bars closing.
Unite, the union which represents thousands of hospitality workers, said it is ‘appalled’ at how Brewdog staff have been treated during the sale.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “This is a devastating day for Brewdog workers. Nearly 500 lost livelihoods while yet another corporate deal is stitched together behind closed doors.
“Brewdog workers built this brand. They deserved respect. Instead, they were treated as disposable pawns. Unite will not rest until our members have legal and financial justice.”
Unite national lead for hospitality Bryan Simpson said: “The way in which senior management have conducted themselves throughout this sales process has been nothing short of a national disgrace – with workers being given no information about the company’s plans or their futures.
“For the CEO to tell workers that they were redundant with immediate effect, on a conference call with only 25 minutes notice, has echoes of P&O and is deplorable. Unite will be ensuring that our members receive everything they are legally entitled to.”
Brewdog was founded in 2007 by friends James Watt and Martin Dickie.
Georgina Pellant -
18th January 2022 
