The group buying phenomenon has truly taken the world by storm. Whether it is a bane or boon to businesses is debatable. One thing is clear though, the consumer is the winner. (so long as one doesn't suffer from impulse buying. Then it's just the group buying site that wins.)
As with any purchase, online or not, there's a saying that goes caveat emptor. Buyer beware. The same applies to group deals. The consumer must practice caution when buying these online deals.
Although details and descriptions of the deals may take up an entire page, that doesn't make them complete or clear. I've come across angry comments accusing certain group buying sites and/or merchants of deliberately using misleading titles and ambiguous details. To give them the benefit of the doubt, there probably is no bad intent, just negligence in details. But when numerous questions arise and still no effort is made by either the site or the merchant to clarify, it becomes really frustrating and annoying.
I blogged about a recent dining experience at Secret Recipe using vouchers bought from Ensogo without going into the details of the deal so as not to digress from the topic. I was terribly disappointed at how Ensogo handled questions. I don't know if it happens on a regular basis due to the number of simultaneous active deals it has but that's still not an excuse.
How exactly did Ensogo answer questions? Here is the discussions page of the Secret Recipe deal. The question of the number of vouchers that may be shared was asked several times, owing to the fact that the deal only indicated that "Unlimited voucher purchase per person" is allowed and that "vouchers may be combined for group use". As the questions multiplied, answers from Ensogo got more confusing.
To highlight some questions from potential buyers and responses from Ensogo Team: (Q - Question, E - Answer from Ensogo Team, S - Answer from Secret Recipe)
Q: hi. i would like to ask. if i buy 4 vouchers, that means 2400php worth of food at secret recipe?
E: Hi Catherine :) You may use the voucher to any dish from Secret Recipe’s Western and Asian selections that is worth P600 which you can only pay as low as P280 by presenting the voucher. ! voucher is for 1 dish.
Q: if 1 voucher is only for 1 dish, and I ordered a dish worth 280 only, how will my voucher use the excess amount? say 600 is voucher minus 280 worth of dish, then where can i use the 320 worth excess in voucher?
E: Hi Julie Ann :) The dish in Secret Recipe that is worth P600 you will only get as low as P280
At this point, Secret Recipe made some clarifications:
S: Hi Joana, it does not limit to 1 Asian and 1 Western only but until you reach P600 or less. Thank you and see you in the outlets! To see our complete menu, http://www.secretrecipe.com.ph/manila.html
S: Hi Catherine, that is correct! Your 4 vouchers will give you P2400 worth of food! Please don't forget to call ahead and confirm your visit dates. Thank you and see you in the outlets!
Q: hello, to clarify PHP600 is consummable right (I can order a meal, a drink, a dessert, etc. as long as it will total to PHP600)? Can more than 1 person use 1 voucher (as long as the orders are equivalent to PHP600)? Can I use unlimited number of vouchers per visit at Secret Recipe? thanks!
E: Hi Denise :) Yes there is no number of voucher that can be used per visit. Just contact Secret Recipe for reservation and advise them on how many are you. 1 voucher is for 1 person only you can order meal, drinks or dessert as long as you consume the P600.
I have highlighted the questionable reply from Ensogo above, which raised even more questions and inquiries about refund. It is interesting to note that the Ensogo Team gave conflicting answers, and obviously incorrect ones despite a clarification already made by Secret Recipe. I've included the timeline available from the discussions page to illustrate my point.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Secret Recipe for a Disappointing Dining Experience
I only have a vague memory of Secret Recipe when I dined at the newly opened Fort Bonifacio branch with friends several years back. The food was unremarkable, disappointing in fact, given the hype of its entry in the Philippine market.
Fast forward to present time. Ensogo, one of the leading group buying sites in the country, had a deal featuring Secret Recipe - Only P280 for Western and Asian Cuisine at Secret Recipe, Metro Manila Branches (valued at P600). See the closed deal here.
I had not given Secret Recipe another thought over the years, even when branches opened at malls I frequent. But discounts have a way of making one take a second look, especially when it's at the 50% range. After looking at Secret Recipe's menu, I decided to give it another try.
Checking out the deal's discussions page, I saw some confusing and contradicting responses to posted inquiries. One recurring question was the number of vouchers that can be shared by a group. The issue of ambiguous details in online deals deserves a separate post, which I blogged about here. To be on the safe side, I purchased 3 vouchers since there would be 3 of us dining.
My sisters were pretty excited about the Secret Recipe dinner. We should know better than to trust photos but they looked really enticing. We had above average expectations despite my past experience.
Having watched a movie first, it was already 9pm when we arrived at Secret Recipe Megamall branch. We ordered soups first while deciding on the main dish to order. The waiter requested for our vouchers, which we found odd since we had not finished ordering yet. We explained this to him but also informed him that we would be using at least 2 vouchers. Although he did not offer any explanation, I guess it was for the free mocktail.
Shortly after, we ordered Penang Fried Kuey Teow to be shared, Pan-grilled Dory in Lobster Sauce for me, Grilled Black Pepper Chicken for my sister S, and Irish Lamb Shank for my sister J. It was a toss-up between the kuey teow or pad thai, but we went with the former as it came highly recommended by the waiter. Sister J's first option was NZ Stewed Lamb but it was unavailable so she chose the waiter's recommendation of Irish Lamb Shank.
Our food total amounted to P1,355 by this time. We told the waiter we would be using only 2 vouchers and pay the excess P155 in cash. But apparently that wasn't how it worked. According to him, only P100 in excess of the voucher value was allowed. If the excess was more than 100, we need to pay the whole amount of the least-priced item in the bill. Hearing this did not surprise me because I remembered reading someone report a similar situation in Ensogo's discussions page. It was really absurd. I recalled another reply from the Ensogo Team clarifying this and I quote, "If ever you exceed the P600 that will be the time that you will pay an additonal." The waiter insisted that it was the head office's directive. We argued that what he's claiming isn't consistent with what Ensogo said. He finally relented and said they would allow it and just note that the customer insisted. It was just the beginning of our annoyances.
Our food arrived, the kuey teow first, followed by the other dishes soon after. Our soups were absent. And to think that we ordered the soups first. We did not realize when we were shown the running total that they were not included. Here was the exchange between the waiter and us.
Us: Hindi ba sabi pa namin unahin nalang order-in yung soup?
Waiter: Hindi po pala na-punch.
No apology was given. And when we said never mind the soup, he even seemed relieved. When this sort of thing happens at a place like Secret Recipe, one would think that the proper response would be to apologize first, ask the customers if they still want to push through with the order and maybe say that it would be served asap, unless of course, it was impossible, which should not have been the case since soups don't normally take too long.
The kuey teow, to the waiter's credit (because he recommended it), was actually good - flavorful and not oily. Unfortunately, I can not say the same for my pan-grilled dory, nor can sister J about her lamb. The lobster sauce was bland and doesn't seem to add anything to the dory, except make it nakakaumay. Sister J regretted ordering the lamb shank and did not even finish it. To quote her words, "Nabusog sa walang katuturan." Sister S, on the other hand, seemed satisfied with her order. I had a taste of the chicken, it was just okay in my opinion.
As we were finishing our food, I declared that I didn't want to come back to use my last voucher so we might as well use up the remaining P445 ( 3 vouchers worth P1,800 less our running bill P1,355). We settled on cakes for dessert.
Sister J had the carrot slice, sister S had the caramel cream cheese, I chose chocolate fudge and cappuccino cheese. We requested that the slices be put in takeout containers, in case we couldn't finish everything. True enough, only sister S polished off her cake. The chocolate fudge was a bit dry, but it seemed less so the following day, after taking it out of the fridge and letting it sit. The cappuccino cheese was the best of the 4. Then again, I never did like carrot cake. Not a fan of caramel either. My preference for plain chocolate, no nuts, no frills, translates to the kind of cakes I like.
Upon paying the P50 excess in our bill, we waited for the receipt to be returned. Minutes went by, none came. We followed it up with a waitress. She returned to get the signature of the voucher owner, with the receipt stapled to the vouchers. But we still didn't get a copy. Some more time passed, we repeated our request for the receipt. The same waitress who just asked for the signature turned to the waitress manning the cash register to check if we had settled our bill, which we already did. I told her we were just waiting for our receipt. The answer we got was just incredulous. We were told that we wouldn't be given a receipt because it has to be turned over to the head office, that if we wanted a copy, we would have to request directly from Ensogo. It was clear that arguing would get us nowhere. No manager was in sight from the moment we entered the restaurant. We left the restaurant in utter disbelief of what we just experienced at Secret Recipe, wishing we had eaten somewhere else.
Shortly after, we ordered Penang Fried Kuey Teow to be shared, Pan-grilled Dory in Lobster Sauce for me, Grilled Black Pepper Chicken for my sister S, and Irish Lamb Shank for my sister J. It was a toss-up between the kuey teow or pad thai, but we went with the former as it came highly recommended by the waiter. Sister J's first option was NZ Stewed Lamb but it was unavailable so she chose the waiter's recommendation of Irish Lamb Shank.
Our food total amounted to P1,355 by this time. We told the waiter we would be using only 2 vouchers and pay the excess P155 in cash. But apparently that wasn't how it worked. According to him, only P100 in excess of the voucher value was allowed. If the excess was more than 100, we need to pay the whole amount of the least-priced item in the bill. Hearing this did not surprise me because I remembered reading someone report a similar situation in Ensogo's discussions page. It was really absurd. I recalled another reply from the Ensogo Team clarifying this and I quote, "If ever you exceed the P600 that will be the time that you will pay an additonal." The waiter insisted that it was the head office's directive. We argued that what he's claiming isn't consistent with what Ensogo said. He finally relented and said they would allow it and just note that the customer insisted. It was just the beginning of our annoyances.
Our food arrived, the kuey teow first, followed by the other dishes soon after. Our soups were absent. And to think that we ordered the soups first. We did not realize when we were shown the running total that they were not included. Here was the exchange between the waiter and us.
Us: Hindi ba sabi pa namin unahin nalang order-in yung soup?
Waiter: Hindi po pala na-punch.
No apology was given. And when we said never mind the soup, he even seemed relieved. When this sort of thing happens at a place like Secret Recipe, one would think that the proper response would be to apologize first, ask the customers if they still want to push through with the order and maybe say that it would be served asap, unless of course, it was impossible, which should not have been the case since soups don't normally take too long.
The kuey teow, to the waiter's credit (because he recommended it), was actually good - flavorful and not oily. Unfortunately, I can not say the same for my pan-grilled dory, nor can sister J about her lamb. The lobster sauce was bland and doesn't seem to add anything to the dory, except make it nakakaumay. Sister J regretted ordering the lamb shank and did not even finish it. To quote her words, "Nabusog sa walang katuturan." Sister S, on the other hand, seemed satisfied with her order. I had a taste of the chicken, it was just okay in my opinion.
As we were finishing our food, I declared that I didn't want to come back to use my last voucher so we might as well use up the remaining P445 ( 3 vouchers worth P1,800 less our running bill P1,355). We settled on cakes for dessert.
Sister J had the carrot slice, sister S had the caramel cream cheese, I chose chocolate fudge and cappuccino cheese. We requested that the slices be put in takeout containers, in case we couldn't finish everything. True enough, only sister S polished off her cake. The chocolate fudge was a bit dry, but it seemed less so the following day, after taking it out of the fridge and letting it sit. The cappuccino cheese was the best of the 4. Then again, I never did like carrot cake. Not a fan of caramel either. My preference for plain chocolate, no nuts, no frills, translates to the kind of cakes I like.
Upon paying the P50 excess in our bill, we waited for the receipt to be returned. Minutes went by, none came. We followed it up with a waitress. She returned to get the signature of the voucher owner, with the receipt stapled to the vouchers. But we still didn't get a copy. Some more time passed, we repeated our request for the receipt. The same waitress who just asked for the signature turned to the waitress manning the cash register to check if we had settled our bill, which we already did. I told her we were just waiting for our receipt. The answer we got was just incredulous. We were told that we wouldn't be given a receipt because it has to be turned over to the head office, that if we wanted a copy, we would have to request directly from Ensogo. It was clear that arguing would get us nowhere. No manager was in sight from the moment we entered the restaurant. We left the restaurant in utter disbelief of what we just experienced at Secret Recipe, wishing we had eaten somewhere else.
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