Valentines Day rip off?

Norwegian bottled water – you know, the one that has the lovely Chernobyl green after-glow to it, with heavy metals and acid rain from the glaciers leaching into it.

Christ there are some shallow people around…..

Ignoring the comical absurdity of importing water from Norway:

openureyes said :

Canberra needs more restaurants like this one.

More restaurants that, according to the OP, gouge their customers horribly? No, I’m fairly sure we don’t need more of them.

I love it when a newbie leaps to the defence of a business that has been bagged out on the RiotAct – it always looks so genuine.

A couple of tips for younger players.

1) If a business you have been associated with has been bagged, don’t jump to it’s defence nine months later – it only gives the story currency.

2) Don’t defend the indefensible. $9 for a bottle of water is not ‘very reasonabe’.

3) Submit a few other posts first, it looks less suspicious than a glowing review by a newbie.

4) Don’t over do it. I have some favourite places to eat but none of them have ‘the nicest food in Canberra’. Be a little less glowing.

5) Don’t mention the business name in each paragraph – it reads like an advertorial

6) Don’t play the “poor business owner” card – it smacks of a personal interest.

Jim Jones said :

openureyes said :

In regards to the water, we had a BOTTLE of Voss mineral water 800ml and it was $9. That was the charged price and very reasonable for water imported from Norway

Out of interest, how is Norwegian water better than tap water?

Does it make you feel like a Viking?

Yep, makes you horny.

openureyes said :

In regards to the water, we had a BOTTLE of Voss mineral water 800ml and it was $9. That was the charged price and very reasonable for water imported from Norway

Out of interest, how is Norwegian water better than tap water?

Does it make you feel like a Viking?

On a out-of-Canberra note… if you are ever in Brisbane and want an awesome breakfast then check out the buffet at the Sofitel in Anzac Square. The only thing that’s ever come close to it for me was the Renaissance hotel in Hong Kong. I’ve stayed at pretty much every 5-star hotel in the country and that particular sofitel was the ultimate.

I’ll add to this with a recommendation for the breakfast buffet at Lebua in Bangkok. Best breakfast buffet I’ve ever been to, anywhere in the world.

openureyes said :

….. we had a BOTTLE of Voss mineral water 800ml and it was $9. That was the charged price and very reasonable for water imported from Norway…..

Has the world gone completely mad? There is nothing reasonable about importing water from Norway, let alone patying $9.00 for it.

I came across this topic when I wanted to post a comment about how great Sage Restaurant is.

My husband surpised me this year by taking me to Sage for valentines day. We had the $100 five course degustation menu and each dish was fantastic, and it included bread and salad. There was definately enough food for most people’s appetite any more would have been glutenous.

In regards to the water, we had a BOTTLE of Voss mineral water 800ml and it was $9. That was the charged price and very reasonable for water imported from Norway considering a bottle of Mt Franklin can cost around $4 in a sevice station where it is not served at your table like at Sage. The table next to us decided to go with tap water which was free.

If anyone is considering going out for a great meal I recommend trying Sage. There main course price is only $28 and is probably the nicest food in Canberra. It saddens me to think that a mother is writting this damning post because of her son’s complaint and it might damage a fantastic small business. Canberra needs more restaurants like this one.

Great information James.

This is why I like this forum.

The son and girlfriend are going to try some of these places and so am I. We love Jimmy’s in Dickson (live lobster and snow crab) and are regulars there – never been disappointed. Sammy’s is great and serve an excellent San Choy Bow.

I wouldn’t mind knowing if your group have tried breakfast places – ones that can actually produce a good Eggs Benedict instead of a golf ball in watery foam drowning in packet or split hollandaise.

Great info James – especially for those of us who don’t eat out all that often (and therefore aren’t in ‘the know’)and are on the lookout for great places to eat. Thank you!

I found that very helpful, thanks megaJames!

: )

Bah, humbug!

I made a decision several years ago to avoid the overcharging of restaurants on Valentines Day and go out to dinner the day before or day after. I can’t stand the nauseatingly neat rows of tables set for two, and restaurants ready to rip people off for huge numbers of courses at big prices. Why would you be more hungry that night than any other? It’s worth shopping around though and perhaps go to somewhere out in the ‘burbs. Wouldn’t it be sad if one’s birthday fell on Valentines Day; it’d make it very awkward to have a birthday dinner out with friends, surrounded by gooey couples who are forced to buy into the ‘I have to love you extra much on this day’ message.

I do hope your son’s girlfriend paid her share though.

transaustralia said :

Perhaps even better, make your sentiments known when you are served the meal.

But not if until you have received EVERYTHING that you have ordered. I would not recommend eating anything that comes out after you have complained… think Coogee bay hotel.

speaking to gary at indian affair – who doesn’t charge for water regardless….

he went the extra mile for a client in deep tuggeranong, apparently they ordered a mild serving, takeaway, but received a medium instead. he sent one of his staff to personally deliver their correct meal, by way of an apology.

We had indian food for our valentines night meal. It was as good as expected.

Danman said :

I got home from hospital and drank my dinner.

pureed the dinner, or something far worse?

I can’t imagine how anyone can actually find Valentine’s Day romantic. I’m all for a bit of passion and excitement, but Valentine’s Day has to be the plastic cheese of romance.

I got take-away from the fortune cookie at Melba shops. $32 of delightful food. Valentine’s day is another consumeristic scam.

He should clearly stick to all you can eat buffets. So should you.

I got home from hospital and drank my dinner.

Four of us went to the Plaka in Mawson. We all had garlic & herb bread, entree’s, mains + 2 bottles of wine + a couple of gin & tonics and the total a mere $258 :):):):):)

Went to Edgar’s in Ainslie for tea. The place was nearly empty. Had a good meal for 2 which came in under $50.

I won’t be bothering to check out Sage.

Yeah, well I reckon any establishment that think it’s a good idea to charge nine bucks for a glass of water should be known locally as “Shylock” regardless of what they print on their shingle.

It is my understanding that:

Places that serve alcohol have to give water for free.
Places that do not serve alcohol CAN give water for free but they are not legally obliged to.

I’m pretty sure that water must be made available free of charge and easily accessible where alcohol is served. May be this was a case of “would you like water with your meal” and the customer accepted but didn’t specify tap water.
With all respect to Auntyem and her son, it seems like a bit of naivety on their behalf but also poor form on the restaurant’s part for not being upfront.

we were going to go to Sage. But not now.

Snap. People power!

youami said :

The water is poor form. Licensed restaurants I do believe by law must supply tap water for free.

I asked for some water at Mcdonalds Erindale a few months back and was refused. I was told that I’d had to buy a coke, but they could instead fill it with tap water instead.

It wasn’t the principle… When I ordered some dinner, I was simply thirsty and I wanted water, and they had no bottles of water available. I would have happily bought a bottle of water. But to no avail. Next step was for some tap water, but in order to get that, I’d need to pay for a soft drink and they could fill it with tap water.

We had Dominos pizza, haha. It cost us $23 and was just what we expected.

If the restaurant is serving alcohol and your son and prospective daughter in law was also drinking water, they must under the Responsible Service of Alcohol legislation; provide free tap water.

So he could go back, threatening to bring Liquor Licensing down on them and get $9 back.

But yes… big big rip off.

1) Valentine’s Day is a joke, not worth buying cards/meals/flowers unless you’re a sucker.
2) Sage is a herb, that somehow sticks around in Braddon despite being rotten.

Another reason for not doing anything for the stupid day.. do it a week later when everything is normally priced.

I have 11 business associates in town for a gathering next week, and we were going to go to Sage. But not now.

Refuse to pay, explain politely that you are not satisfied with the meal. Perhaps even better, make your sentiments known when you are served the meal. If they make a scene about it with the law, then you can take it up with consumer affairs. I would do the same.

Do restaurants charge you when you flush their toilets? No. I hope what he got was bottled water.

You can’t picket from home. That’s merely a boycott. Boycotts are nowhere near as effective as pickets.

Isn’t Benchmark famous for not paying its suppliers?

oh and Auntyem, if you really want to give them a serve, get your son to rate them at:

http://www.yourrestaurants.com.au/guide/?action=venue&venue_url=sage_restaurant
and maybe even talk to SMH who had given them a Chef’s Hat.

[Note: this is for Auntyem as the ratings *should* be legitimate] 🙂

The water is poor form. Licensed restaurants I do believe by law must supply tap water for free. And the best advertising is a post on RiotACT to suggest that Sage is a rip-off! Looks like they will lose some business. I agree with others, try Benchmark and also give Ginger Room a shot.

Go see Tasso at Benchmark for sure, .. probably the nicest food i’ve had in Canberra before, and a wine list to die for.

Best bet is to choose your food, and get the staff to match the wines for you

i wondered why i was getting no traction: is the sign that wrong? 😉

may be i’ll just picket it from home…

You’re standing out front with a “prepare to be ripped off” / “Eating here? Find a good bankruptcy agent first!” type sign?

4pm Sunday doesn’t sound like an ideal time to picket a restaurant though. Friday or Saturday night would be better.

lanterne rooms was excellent; mrs astro and i enjoyed a shared entree, two mains, a shared dessert and a few glasses of delightful wine for a smidge over a hundred bucks and left with full bellies, memories of great friendly competent service and delicious fare.

again.

sound like sage sucks – i’m picketing it right now (sage advice, pc)

Why not picket the place a few times a month for the rest of the year..

Some great recommendations here.

I’ll tell him to try Benchmark next time.

Thanks all.

Benchmark was good when we went there about 3 months ago. You could go nuts on the wine menu there.

We hit Tongue and Groove, in the City, although didnt go the set menu as seafood tends to have me projectile vomit (thought I’d share). $90 had us stuffed, 3 courses, no wine though.

La Pasa in Civic had a Valentine’s Day dinner deal – I think it was a couple of entrees (one of them was duck pancakes), a Singapore Sling or glass of house wine, two mains, three sides and dessert – $99 for 2.

There is a law on charging for water. Tap water has to be free. Bottle water can be charged, but if they didn’t actually show the water coming from an unopened bottle, he should have questioned the $9.

Bah. I was at the Pot Belly, then the Basement. It was fairly quiet, leading me to believe many people go out to restaurants etc on Valentine’s Day. Given the demand, it’s no wonder prices are higher. But that’s no excuse for a blatant rip-off.

This is one of the reasons I find RiotAct so useful, local reviews and recommendations.

Caf – Sage had different owners on Feb 14 last year.

We were invited to Sage late last year by some friends.
It was shocking. Poor rookie service and the wine list was not stocked (pet hate).
We tried this Flavours thing, which was marketed as a DIY degustation $12 per dish; ended up being 2 mouthfuls of food per course – we had 5 – and paid $60 each + wine to leave hungry and feeling duped. They were also pitching Wagyu beef which Im sure was rump steak. To their credit, the creme brulee dessert was nice.

Wonder what Consumer Affairs would think of all this? $100 per head to leave hungry – $9 for water…

Next time, tell your son to try Benchmark. I haven’t been there in a while but they are usually very good and do nice special occasion dinners for around $100 with wine.

I did the Valentine’s Day degustation menu at Sage last year (I was told when I booked that that’s what they were doing, though). I found it excellent – from memory I think it was about $120 for 7 courses with a matched glass of wine with each one, or $90ish without the wine. I’m sure it helps if you know what you’re getting into beforehand though.

Prices are always up on Valentine’s Day.

Next year, have him celebrate it either the day before or the day after – it’s really not an event that deserves a ‘day’ anyway. You should show the person that you love that you love them everyday.

$9.00 for a glass of water? There oughta be a law ….