It used to be pesky salesmen on the phone but now they are pestering you at lunch. I am talking about this new trend in restaurants of collecting feedback from customers. If you haven’t noticed it then look again – it may be that you’ve just been falling in line without even being aware of it.

Of course this is not entirely a new trend. There was always the odd occasion when a waiter sheepishly proffered a printed sheet for you to fill; the sheet with three types of cartoon faces to indicate whether the food and the service was good bad or poor and the mandatory questions regarding contact details and dates of birthdays and anniversaries.

These days however it is not a one-off thing. Anywhere you eat it is likely that you will be handed one of these printed sheets to fill. And likely as not there will be nothing apologetic about the manner in which they are presented; the expectation is that you will fill them out and if you demur, waiters are likely to be aggressively insistent.

It is a baffling phenomenon. There is absolutely no obligation for a customer to provide feedback to a restaurant, particularly after it has just burnt a hole in his or her pocket. At best an establishment can request it as a matter of courtesy or goodwill. I don’t know anyone who likes to sit with a pen in hand filling up a form after he or she has been through a relaxing meal or is in a rush to get somewhere.

... contd.