Why am I not surprised

[Newportnobby]

Let's face it - remove the mobile from some people and they'd just curl up and die

[Brooksy]

Suggest you re-read it, especially the introduction.

Their main beef (or chicken, or pork, or veggie dish  )is not that people are spending more time - it's that people are giving them bad reviews !

They are getting bad reviews because they are not catering (!) to what their customers want. If they provide free wifi then they shouldn't be surprised if a customer wants help to set it up or that it attracts the type of people that would use it.

I would also not discourage people from taking photos of they what are interested in 

Cheers,

Brooksy

[Bealman]

I saw a little incident a couple of weeks ago which was most enjoyable.
I was walking a stretch of the West Highland Way and called into a hotel
bar for a much needed beer. The place was quite busy with people drinking
and having lunch.  A Mr Bean type guy was wandering about clutching
a smartphone or tablet  and went up to a couple dining at a table and asked
if he could use the power point which was under the table ! This would have
meant the couple getting up and moving their stuff . The couple said can't
you wait and Mr Bean started spluttering about his battery was flat and
he couldn't twitter or something. Seconds later a barman or manager
appeared and physically ejected the galoot and told him not to return.

Seeing that was as enjoyable as the magnificent scenery.

Love it! On my recent trip to the UK I witnessed the same thing in the Lake District.

Said he on me phone in Aus 

[Bealman]

Let's face it - remove the mobile from some people and they'd just curl up and die

Wot? Speak up! Can't hear you on this mobile! 

Oh... forgot... I'm texting on free WiFi...

[tutenkhamunsleeping]

YouTube access through WiFi provision in pubs has been a real lifesaver for me.  Prior to that I lived in constant fear of forgetting how to open the box of Hornby's latest A4

[Bealman]

 

[Ian Morton]

YouTube access through WiFi provision in pubs has been a real lifesaver for me.  Prior to that I lived in constant fear of forgetting how to open the box of Hornby's latest A4

Never open a Hornby box in the pub - all the little detail parts that fall off will be lost forever.

[MikeDunn]

They are getting bad reviews because they are not catering (!) to what their customers want. If they provide free wifi then they shouldn't be surprised if a customer wants help to set it up or that it attracts the type of people that would use it.

Let me get this right : you feel it is perfectly acceptable for someone to walk into a restaurant and

• ignore the wait staff until they feel like following them because they're too busy posting the fact they just walked to a restaurant
• ignore the wait staff trying to take their drink order because they're posting the fact they just sat down
• complain to the staff the cold drink is warm because they've messed about for the past 10 minutes posting about the drink they have ordered, before picking up the glass with the result that all the ice has melted away
• ignore the wait staff trying to take their food order because they're taking a photo of the warm drink & complaining on (un)social media
• bother the wait staff to take multiple photos of them sitting at the table while the staff are trying to serve normal customers
• take photos of the food & post to (un)social media, then complain to the staff the food is cold because of all the photos and posting they've done
• complain on social media that the had to send cold food back & it's just not good enough
• ignore the wait staff trying to give & settle the bill because they're answering like-minded jerks who agree that the food & staff are crap despite them not being in the same country let alone actually checking the place out themselves
• walk into other customers & tables because the are now posting they're leaving the worst restaurant they've ever been in
• post a really critical review about the restaurant ignoring the fact that the majority (maybe all) of the problems aren't the fault of the restaurant or the staff, but are because of their anti-social attitude

Yes ? 

Remind me not to go out for a meal with you ... 

Personally - I'd set up a blocker device (if necessary, surreptitiously) & tell anyone who complains about the lack of wifi / phone signal "What provider are you on ?  Oh them ... no, their signal is atrocious, we never get it properly here".  Being constantly on these devices when you have gone into a shop / restaurant / etc and the staff are trying to deal with that kind of customer ignoring them is the height of ignorance and bad manners.

I repeat : Mobile phones are a boon - but the attitudes so many people have about the "need" to be constantly in touch with a world that frankly doesn't care is unbelievable ... 

Never open a Hornby box in the pub - all the little detail parts that fall off will be lost forever.

Ah - that's where I'm going wrong 

[shandy]

Cross Country Trains have just done away with their Quiet Carriages on their "service".

The reason they were getting complaints from passengers that some individuals were just ignoring the fact that they shouldn't be using their mobiles or electronic devices in the quiet carriage.

Time to lease a car.....

[Newportnobby]

My Mum was in a quiet carriage when 4 besuited oiks got in and proceeded to use mobiles etc.
Mum (being Mum) called the train manager and said she didn't want to sit in the oiks office so would the train manager politely tell them to bugger off..........................and he did

[Brooksy]

Yes ? 

There will always be inconsiderate people in the world that spoil it for some with whatever medium they choose to use.

1) I do not totally believe the account of that restaurant because it appears to me that it is trying to make excuses for its poor reviews (why aren't all restaurants getting bad reviews if it's such a big problem?).

2) In my experience you do find an occasional idiot with a phone causing a nuisance but it certainly not anywhere near like you find reported by this restaurant. I think that this place was in the US, I can imagine it's worse there.  I've not lived in the UK for a good while - perhaps it is as bad as this there, but not my experience of short trips. It's not at all a problem in Belgium (don't all rush at once!).

3) I'm not sure where you get all the things on your list but maybe I'll try some next time. So far, I've not advanced past checking the footy/cricket score whilst the wife is in the toilet.

Cheers,

Brooksy

[shandy]

My Mum was in a quiet carriage when 4 besuited oiks got in and proceeded to use mobiles etc.
Mum (being Mum) called the train manager and said she didn't want to sit in the oiks office so would the train manager politely tell them to bugger off..........................and he did

I use the trains a lot for long distance work related travel - always travel in the quiet coach so I can work in peace, several times over the years I've approached these inconsiderate clowns with interesting results - but it seems that cross country trains' attitude is to give in to the oiks rather than sort the problem.

I spend around £900 per month on business travel but will certainly now be considering using that money to lease a comfy exec saloon to  waft from site to site in my own quiet zone.

[Sprintex]

I think that this place was in the US, I can imagine it's worse there.  I've not lived in the UK for a good while - perhaps it is as bad as this there, but not my experience of short trips.

It can be that bad sometimes, depends where you go


Paul

[dodger]

et me get this right : you feel it is perfectly acceptable for someone to walk into a restaurant and

Personally - I'd set up a blocker device (if necessary, surreptitiously) & tell anyone who complains about the lack of wifi / phone signal "What provider are you on ?  Oh them ... no, their signal is atrocious, we never get it properly here".  Being constantly on these devices when you have gone into a shop / restaurant / etc and the staff are trying to deal with that kind of customer ignoring them is the height of ignorance and bad manners.

I repeat : Mobile phones are a boon - but the attitudes so many people have about the "need" to be constantly in touch with a world that frankly doesn't care is unbelievable ... 

Ah - that's where I'm going wrong 

I quite agree with you Mike, but you forgot one other important thing:

Talk loudly on mobile phone annoying other customers who can hear every word they say.

Dodger[/list]

[Bealman]

Seriously, I can sympathise with many of the concerns in this thread, but the ability to be able to check the forum from almost anywhere is great. I'm doing it now over a beer while waiting for Mrs Bealman to arrive. And it ain't bothering anyone into boot.

It is especially good while travelling away from home (as in my recent UK trip), though the other moderators may choose to disagree... they had to put up with my constant rants!!!