Case Study

Mr and Mrs Jones were looking forward to celebrating their 5^thwedding anniversary in style and had great plans for their special evening. Mr Jones decided to book a table for two for dinner at the recently refurbished "Cape Lighthouse", a restaurant with commanding views over the Coral Sea. To ensure a nice table with views for this occasion, Mr Jones had contacted the restaurant 2 months prior to make a reservation with a male staff member who appeared to be very professional. The booking was then confirmed by telephone with Alex, a waitress, 1 week prior to the booked date.

On their anniversary Mr and Mrs Jones arrived at the restaurant; however they found there was no booking in their name. Staff were unable to locate any booking information. Mr Jones was asked whom he had spoken to, to make the reservation and provided the details of staff; however this was somehow shrugged off and they were asked to wait at the entry to "see whether a table could be arranged".

As it was a Friday night the restaurant was very busy. Mr and Mrs Jones had to wait 15 minutes before they finally were led to a small table the back of the restaurant near the kitchen doors.

After a further 15 minutes they were attended to by a drink waiter who took their order for an aperitif. The Joneses placed their food and wine order and their entrees arrived after 30 minutes.The white wine to go with the entrees did not arrive and the drinks waiter seemed to ignore their eye contact.

The main course for Mr Jones arrived within 5 minutes after the entrees had been cleared, however Mrs Jones' meal did not arrive for another 20 minutes.

Mrs Jones was very upset with the service and was almost on the verge of leaving.

When Mr and Mrs Jones went to pay the cheque on their way out, Mrs Jones was expecting an apology from the restaurant staff with regards to their booking and the delay in the service, unfortunately no one was around even to talk about it.

Mr and Mrs Jones decided that this was the last visit ever at this establishment. They definitely would tell their family and friends about their dining experience at "Cape Lighthouse".

1.Identify Mr and Mrs Jones' customer needs and expectations in this case study. What would a customer expect not only on an important occasion like the mentioned anniversary but on each occasion when visiting an establishment?

2.What could be the likely effects of this incident for the business and custom down the track if the customer service issues are not addressed?