Anyone else been refused tap water in restaurant

belfastgirl23

I've had this in The Other Place too so I refuse to go there. I really object to the environmental implications of bottled water so it galls me.

Pizza express used to do a link up with the charity water aid where they asked you to make a donation to them if you took tapwater - I thought that was great! Obviously it was your own choice whether to do so or not....

belfastgirl23

pgilc1 wrote: »

Because they make a fortune on bottled water / drinks...

Except where they lose the custom of people who refuse to go there of course

HeadAboveWater

willow29 wrote: »

To put things in context it was one of those hot (for here) days,

:rotfl:

Personally I'd either write a complaint or else tell everyone you know. Actually, you'll probably get more satisfaction out of telling everyone you know

Ex friend of mine is forever writing reviews on various places here. Also an option!

McKneff

Ive just looked at the reviews and one person said they got some tap water and they were charged £1.75 for it:eek:

Mistral001

This is controversal I am afraid. I do not see any problem charging for tap water. It is a comodity like anything else which costs money and it costs the cafe money as they have to pay water rates. Many people accept a charge for getting water in a bottle in a restaurant, yet most bottled water is just tap water. I cannot see the difference other than the plastic waste and transport fuel etc. to get the bottle water from the tap to the table. Seems very sensible to just charge for home produced tap water here and not let all the profit go to some bottler hundreds of miles away.

poet123

Mistral001 wrote: »

I do not see any problem charging for tap water. It is a comodity like anything else and it costs the cafe money as they have to pay water rates. Many people accept a charge for getting water in a bottle in a restaurant, yet most bottled water is just tap water.

If it is not metered though they will pay a flat rate, and as they need water for cooking it is not actually costing them any more is it?

Poor customer service and very petty imo for such an insignificant thing.

Artofdookie

Lol, theres always someone loves to gurn about nothing

Mistral001

I think there is a problem with the bistros where people order just one course. In the big restaurants where most diners will get three or four course meals, there is usually a jug of water on every table and since the table is booked maybe all night or for a couple of hours it is not a problem for the restaurant to do this. It is the way it is done the world over.

But expecting the same service for a bowl of chile or a lasagne in a bistro or cafe perhaps is asking too much. Starbucks and MacDonalds and the greasy spoon down the road would probably complain if you requested tap water there.

Mr_Bun

In the cafe I used to own we always had jugs of water complete with lemons/limes sitting beside the cutlery and napkins so customers could help themselves.I didn't see it as a problem,lots of people really appreciated it.We also sold loads of bottled water too.:)

leftieM

I think that, as water rates are a flat rate for any business that they must pay whether customers drink the water or not, they can give glasses of water for nothing as there is no added cost.
If they wished to factor in the cost of the glass/ice/water then 20p added to the bill for each glass would more than cover their costs. To refuse to give a glass of water or charge an exorbitant amount is poor business in my opinion. I would be turned off by a place that tried to deny me tap water. It's a policy of short term gain for long term pain in my opinion.
What next? Charging per sheet of bog roll?