We recently bought a new car from Carmax and because we ended up having to visit the dealership a few times, I noticed a new Japanese steakhouse where the old Benihana used to be. I was thrilled because future husband had never been to a place like that before and I wanted to take him since I knew he’d enjoy it. Imagine my delight when I saw an email from Groupon a few days later with a deal on a teppanyaki-style dinner for 2 for the crazy price of only $35.00. Earlier this evening I decided that it would be fun to go and try it out with the family.
When we arrived at Sumo San Antonio, we were warmly greeted by the hostess and were seated at a table with a younger couple. They didn’t seem to mind at all that we were there with 3 of our children (ages 12, 10, and 4 months). It wasn’t too long before our server (Zachary) came to take our drink orders. He asked upfront if any of use were using any coupons and as it turns out, the couple seated at our table was also redeeming a Groupon voucher. It took a little while for our drinks to arrive. I ordered a Dr. Pepper, the two eldest children ordered root beer, and future husband ordered a pint of Sapporo. After our drinks arrived, our server took our order. I decided on the steak and chicken combo, future husband got the steak and shrimp, the boy child didn’t want anything from the grill and opted for a salmon (sushi) roll, and girl child ordered the kid’s terriyaki chicken. Dinner was pretty typical. Our chef was this Peruvian gal who interacted with all of us in a lighthearted and charming way. The kids really enjoyed her but since I’ve been to places like this before, I wasn’t completely blown away. Still, the children and future husband thought it was neat. At some point during our meal, my drink (remember – a Dr. Pepper) was refilled and our server finally came back after our dinner was almost over with a second beer for future husband. Not long after, he brought us our bill.
Now here’s where a relatively nice dinner starts to go downhill. I glanced over it and saw that our Groupon voucher had been applied to our total (an automatic discount of $81.00) so I was immediately puzzled as to why our final total was still over $53.00. Then I saw it.
A gratuity of 18% had automatically been applied to our bill. Thinking that our server had made a simple mistake, I waved him over to explain the issue. To my surprise and dismay, he stated that an 18% gratuity was automatically applied since we were redeeming a Groupon voucher but that this gratuity amount would have automatically been applied to our bill anyway since we were a “party of 4 or more.” I let him know that tipping wasn’t the issue. In fact, because I know that servers don’t even make minimum wage, I regularly tip around 20% anyway (and truthfully I’ll tip more than that if the service is better than “good”). Further, I would have at least tipped 20% on the amount of our total bill (before the voucher had been applied) because it’s just the right thing to do. He wasn’t going to budge though and because our youngest was starting to get really fussy because she was tired, I wasn’t going to argue. I simply handed over my card so we could go ahead and get out of there. Personally, I was insulted because he knew full well that we were using a Groupon voucher (even going so far as to explain before we even placed our drink orders that anything alcoholic would not be discounted), yet blatantly failed to mention that a required gratuity amount would be applied to our final bill. I was floored. Then, as if adding a mandatory gratuity to our bill wasn’t enough, the merchant copy of our receipt was delivered, complete with a neat little space to add an (optional) tip:
To make matters worse it was only after we arrived home that I realized we were charged for an item that the other couple ordered (a spicy tuna roll), AND that parties of 4 or more obviously weren’t “automatically” charged an 18% gratuity because our server had to input into the system that we were a party of 8 in order for the gratuity to even appear on the bill. Even if parties of 4 or more were charged an additional 18%, the boy child didn’t even order from the grill. He only wanted a sushi roll. Oh, and that Dr. Pepper refill that he so graciously brought me? Yeah, I was charged for that too. Not that I wouldn’t have paid for a refill, but if I had known that each glass was going to cost an additional $2.50, I would have simply finished my first glass and been fine.
Also, while we were there, future husband took Coraline so he could change her diaper while I finished eating. Since I didn’t witness the event, I’ll let him explain that little fiasco:
The diaper changing facilities at Sumo were the second-worst I’ve ever encountered (the worst being an airplane bathroom without a changing table).
Your standard changing platform will unfold from the wall and sit at a level 90-degree angle, often supported by at least one strap. The platform in the men’s room at Sumo, however, sits between 100 and 110 degrees, which is decidedly unsafe given the fact that you’re supposed to put an infant on there.
Baby C sensed there was something wrong with the platform and got upset the moment I laid her down. I had to change her one-handed, as I was using the other hand and my knee to attempt to hold the platform up.
I think the only more hazardous place to change a baby’s diaper in the whole restaurant would have been on the grill itself. And at least the grill was level.
Needless to say, we will not be going back. Next time we’re in the mood for teppanyaki, we’ll just drive across the street to Osaka. In addition, I’m sending this review to Groupon so hopefully anyone else who has purchase this “deal” will at least be forewarned.
