Southern Fires

I was a patron at Southern Fires on (3/29/09) and had the WORST dining experience. Our servers name was Christian. The service was for a table of eleven guests (five of which were children) which meant that his gratuity was automatically included in the bill. When this is the case, it does not mean that the Server is allowed the opportunity to ignore customers, serve poorly and delay service. Below is a list of occurrences during my visit:

1) I asked for an extra chair and it was sat at the opposite end the table, not where I was standing;
2) One guest requested extra gravy and had to wait 25 minutes just to ask again for extra gravy;
3) I asked for an extra glass of sweet tea and was told "OK" by Christian as he proceeded to pick up a broom and dust pan to begin sweeping a station across from my table;
4) Christian then put the broom and dust pan down and walked away returning with gravy for the guest, but did not bring my tea;
5) After giving the guest her gravy, Christian then proceeded sweeping the section across from us. When asked about the tea he responded, "OK", but did not refrain from sweeping;
6) I located a Manager to express my displeasure, the Manager assured me he would bring my tea, but Christian approached my table holding the glass at rim level with his fingers touching the rim and ice in the cup, this is just after he completed sweeping the section in front of my table;
7) After waiting 30-35 minutes to pay the bill, my party walked to the front of the restaurant to locate someone to take the money only to find Christian aimlessly wondering around the kitchen and beverage area doing nothing.

The reason I visit Southern Fires once a year is because I know the service will be lacking in personal attention and graciousness. The idea that this Server was rewarded for unsatisfactory work is not only insulting for customers, but it reassures my decision not to return to your restaurant. I also intend to express my feelings to colleagues and family.

I believe in supporting small businesses and encouraging the upholding and promotion of black owned businesses in Detroit particularly in today's economy. I am also a believer in expressing my dissatisfaction with the same measure. Paying for rudeness is not tolerable and should not be standard practice. T.I.P.S are: To Insure Prompt (or Proper) Service and until Southern Fires can guarantee this level of excellence, they should reconsider the automatic gratuity until your Service is up to the standards that deserves this option.