Manchester restaurateur Gary Usher puts negative reviewer in their place
In a review called: "Excellent food let down by Ryanair-style management," reviewer Rob V wrote: “The good news is that the food here is very, very tasty and deserves a high rating.
It’s been a tough year or two for hospitality staff and restaurant owners across the country.
Closures and lack of foot flow rendered the restaurant industry a desolate place for many months, but with the recent re-openings and return of customers, many businesses have been able to breathe again.
However, with customers comes feedback, and regardless of how long hospitality staff have had to wait to serve their customers and provide them with a service they’ve been without for a long time, negative feedback is certainly back on the menu.
It goes without saying that pubs, clubs, bars and restaurants are stretched at the minute. Lay offs were inevitable during COVID and many of them are understaffed while simultaneously having to deal with a little ring rust after being out of the game for so long.
While we are unsure if this is the case or not at Sticky Walnut in Chester, the team at the award-winning bistro had to deal with some pretty harsh criticism last week – criticism that owner Gary Usher was not going to take on the chin without a counter punch.
ADVERTISEMENT
Gary Usher outside Pinion in Prescot // Image by Natural Selection Design
In a review called: “Excellent food let down by Ryanair-style management,” reviewer Rob V wrote: “The good news is that the food here is very, very tasty and deserves a high rating.
“The bad news is that the restaurant management doesn’t give a toss about customer experience. I ate here on July 9 had a complaint that was dealt with badly enough by the manager that I wrote to the owner.
ADVERTISEMENT
“A restaurant that aspires to offer fine dining experience but has lost the ability to empathise with customers and ignores them when they complain? That really is a shame.”
Gary, who has a solid reputation across the northwest and is the owner of five other restaurants under his Elite Bistros brand, didn’t hold back in his response.
He wrote: “For goodness sake Robert. I’m supposed to be in TwitAdvisor retirement so let’s not waste any time. After all, you’ve waited 11 years since joining Twitadvisor to write your first review.
ADVERTISEMENT
“Rob, you reserved a table on a Friday evening and agreed to a 1 hour 45 minute time slot. A standard practice, particularly on busy periods, that guests and restaurants worldwide agree to.
“After your dessert course, the manager, who you said ‘doesn’t give a toss’, gently reminded you that we would need the table back shortly.
“You ignored the manager and proceeded to order another round of drinks. Perhaps if your party had arrived on time for your reservation this could have been avoided.
“When the manager came back a final time to politely let you know we needed to clear the table for our next guests you got up out of your seat, towering over the manager, pointing in their face.
“The manager’s response was: ‘Sir, please can you stop pointing in my face?’
ADVERTISEMENT
Gary added: “You proceeded to tell the manager that they didn’t deserve to be a manager and weren’t qualified to be in the position.
“Your mother then joined in by adding to the vitriol being directed towards the manager.
“That’s when both you and your mother showed your true colours with the classic: ‘We’ve both worked in restaurants so we know how it works. We should be getting these drinks for free.’
“You, Rob, then threatened the manager by telling them that you would be contacting the owner because you know him, and that Gary, (me) would be appalled to know how you, ‘my friend,’ had been treated.
Kala on King Street in Manchester is part of Gary’s Elite Bistros family // Elite Bistros
“The manager politely pleaded with your whole table to just listen whilst they explained. No one did.
ADVERTISEMENT
“In a strange turn of events you emailed me, your ‘friend’ at Sticky Walnut’s email address. You must have lost my number Rob! Not surprisingly, to either me or the manager, you and I don’t know each other Rob.
“Every few months in a restaurant a rude guest will use the ‘I know the owner!’ line to try and intimidate team members and bully them into thinking that they will get into trouble because they didn’t look after the owner’s ‘friends’ well enough.
“I did read your email. I did ‘give a toss,’ but not about you Rob, but about the way you treated the team. So instead of replying to you, we chose to block your number, and your mum’s, and put a note on our booking system to not accept any future bookings from you.
“With regards to the manager who ‘doesn’t give a toss,’ they have managed Sticky Walnut for the last eight years.
“Coincidentally the same length of time that Sticky Walnut has achieved a top 100 position in the National Restaurant Awards in the UK. I think that makes them both extremely deserving to be the manager and absolutely qualified to hold that position.
ADVERTISEMENT
“Regards, Not your mate, Gary.
“Another owner you don’t actually know.”
Savage. If you’re interested in visiting any of Gary’s restaurants, check out the Elite Bistros website where you can reserve a place at all six – we highly recommend Kala in Manchester city centre.
News
Local music student issues appeal over stolen saxophones just months after graduation
Danny Jones
A local music student has issued a heartbreaking appeal after two of his saxophones, one of which possessed a deep sentimental attachment, were stolen in Manchester not long after graduating from his degree.
Conor Parker-Delves, who only recently finished his undergrad degree at the Royal Northern College of Music, has dreams of performing professionally, but a sad twist of fate now means that he’s currently without the key tool he needs to make a living.
Having worked so hard up to this point in completing his studies, the 22-year-old was left gutted when the pair of extremely valuable instruments were stolen from his car after parking it in the Longsight area.
The still green graduate believes the items were originally kept at an address just south of Whitworth Park, along with some of his other stolen belongings, which he says were nearly resold on the high street in Moss Side.
Credit: Handouts (via Conor Parker-Delves)
What’s more is that one of these saxes belonged to his late granddad on his mother’s side, who sadly died when he was very young, and he’s been proudly playing it throughout his childhood. A gut-wrenching loss not just for him but for his family.
Speaking to The Manc, he said: “I have played on that sax ever since his passing and have kept the legacy alive. Losing this sax means losing him, and I am going to fight against this as hard as I can for as long as I can.”
A worn silver Selmer Mark VI alto saxophone (serial number: 240580) and a tenor sax of the same brand (SN: 91928) are estimated to be worth a combined £12,000 – funds a fresh graduate like Conor simply doesn’t have.
Given the connection to his grandad, it’s safe to say that he’s not ready to give up and say goodbye to the priceless heirloom, and being stuck without any means of playing is just cruel.
Unfortunately, Greater Manchester Police have already closed the case despite a “promising lead” that looks to have been exhausted, and now he’s been left with no other option than to issue a renewed appeal to the public.
It may only be a slim chance, but the London-born aspiring musician is hoping that the woodwind duo can be recovered, acknowledging that it is “much easier for the saxes to be handed in if they are come across” rather than be replaced.
Things are hard enough for artists these days as it is, especially those who have already spent their time and money uprooting their lives and moving to a big new city like Manchester.
We encourage anyone with any potentially useful information to get in touch and/or report to GMP online, via the non-emergency 101 number, or get in touch with Crimestoppers anonymously.
Fingers crossed we can get the tools of Conor’s craft and his grandfather’s before him back safe and sound – can you help?
England given potential advantage against Norway after reports of illness in World Cup camp
Danny Jones
England may have just been given a potential advantage ahead of the 2026 World Cup quarter-final against Norway, as it’s said that multiple players have been feeling sick of late.
Now, we’d never wish illness upon anyone… BUT, you certainly won’t hear us complaining about this one.
Yes, according to head coach Ståle Solbakken, some of his teammates haven’t been at their best over the last few days, but he has assured supporters that everyone is recovering well.
Speaking to the media before the upcoming clash, the manager said: “We’ve really only had Jorgen [Strand Larsen of Crystal Palace] who has had a fever, but then there’s been a bit of coughing and rasping scattered throughout [the national squad].”
He’s also admitted the Three Lions will be a tough challenge.
However, the initially reported ‘sickness bug’ is now being played down, with Solbakken noting that with his wider travelling camp having to contend with temperatures, altitude, air conditioning, flights, “changing rooms and all that […] it would be strange if something or other didn’t crop up.”
So, while it may have been exaggerated to a degree, they’ve certainly not been 100%.
The Scandinavian outfit are based at a training complex in Greensboro, North Carolina for this year’s World Cup – their first in nearly three decades – and have had to fly all across the United States for their matches in Boston, New York and Dallas thus far.
Once again, though, even the team doctor has told Norwegian press that the claims have been blown out of proportion, citing “very little fuss considering that we have been close together for almost six weeks”, and insisting that “all players are healthy now”.
Even James Corden was quizzing the opposition on the claims ahead of the fixture:
When asked about the truth in the headlines by domestic news outlet Nettavisen, he even went on to add: “So great that they believe this. We are in control.”
So perhaps there is a bit of sensationalism and/or gamesmanship at work, but that won’t stop us from hoping for a second that there’s even a shred of weakness to be capitalised on.
It remains to be seen just what condition both teams are in after the respective round of 16 thrillers – especially Thomas Tuchel’s side, who had to do it the hard way with 10 men against Mexico in that exhausting first knockout tie – but we’ll take whatever glimmer of hope we can that luck is on our side.
And regardless, it’s given England fans online plenty of material to have some fun with ahead of what is no doubt set to be another very long and stressful night this weekend.
The Manc -
23rd August 2021 
