Worst experience ever

Just a little note - I am mad about my experience tonight and wanted to let it out. Just fair warning if you don't want to read all of my complaining. Although, I think it is justified.

We went to a certain fast food place in a certain mall tonight (both shall remain nameless for now) and wanted to get dinner. I had a coupon for this place as well as a gift certificate. The coupon was for a buy 1 get 1 free food item. The gift certificate was for $5. I show the coupon to the guy working at the counter just to make sure we could use it. He looks at it and says sure, we can use it. So, we order our food, make small talk and go to pay. The guy tries to tell me that we can't use both the coupon and gift certificate. When he said that, I just said "Well, the coupon is a coupon, the gift certificate is like me handing you cash - it is a form of payment". He still refused and I tried again to explain to him the difference and there is no reason he should not be able to accept both. He kept refusing so I asked if I could speak to a manager. He said he was the manager. I asked if he was the owner and he said no. Instead of calling the owner, he gave me her phone number and made me call. That was pretty rude. Anyway, he kept arguing with me and finally asked if I wanted my food or not. I said, not until there is a resolution. My husband was waiting at a table with our baby so he didn't really know what was going on other than the fact that we weren't getting dinner. In the mean time, I had to call the owner, and of course, she didn't answer. I asked for a corporate phone number and he told me he didn't have one. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? You don't have a corporate phone number? That is a joke. He was just being very rude at that point and was clearly on a power trip. He then tells me he will try to call the manager - goes in the back and comes out and claims he called her and now, not only do they not take the gift certificate, but they won't take the coupon either. WHAT???? This is clearly out of hand now. I asked if I could speak to her so she could tell me that and he said he was already off the phone with her and I thought - oh, how convenient. She tells you what you are telling me but I can't hear it from her. Who doesn't take gift certificates to their own store???? Ahhhhhhh!!!!! So annoying. Anyway, he took the tray of our food away and wouldn't help me anymore. That. Was. The. Worst. Customer. Experience. Of. My. Life.

As I walked away, I said 'thanks for the free drinks'. He had given us the cups for our drinks already and we both had filled them already. I am actually glad they had to waste the food - it hurts their bottom line and if they are going to hire ridiculous rude people like that then they deserve that. I can't even explain how upset I am over this. It literally made me cry because he was so, so rude. I have never been treated so rudely in my life. Also, I was sure at the beginning of the conversation to be kind about it and talk normally as to not be rude to the guy. I am not going to say I was sweet as pie towards the end, but he was absolutely the jerk in this situation. Let's review why you don't do this to customers.

- Customers are how you make money - duh!
- Alienate customers and they won't come back.
- Alienate customers and they will tell other people about how bad their experience was.
- Make a customer mad and they will complain to corporate and get a lot more from them than the stupid coupon would have cost you.
- It is not worth alienating a customer over $5! Is it really that big of a deal to just take care of a customer? No way!


So anyway, I did leave a message for the owner and she called me back and left me a message so we will have to see how this is all resolved tomorrow. I wish that guy would just be fired - that is just not acceptable and I cannot believe an owner would put up with an employee like that. I know that I don't have the power to make sure the guy is fired, but I sure wish I did. Ok, I am done, sorry for the rant. I just needed to get if off my chest. Hope everyone else's day was better!