Chris M.
Yelp
So, I just had a strange experience at this Wing Stop restaurant in Mountain View today (January 2, 2021). I was attempting to order the Large Thighs and Group Wings Pack (for $35.99). It's available on the website.
For this group order, I requested no sauce for the bone-in thighs as well as no sauce for the thigh bites. However, the employees said that they couldn't let me order two sauces for the ten wings. This is despite the fact that two sauces is the norm when you order 10 wings any other way.
I understand that this might be a difficult thing when it comes to inputting it on the register. However, I was requesting no sauces for the thighs. So, they are actually saving sauce (and money) by not providing any for the thighs -- despite the fact that it comes with sauces. Plus, their website has no difficulty with two sauces on ten wings any way your order them.
Disappointedly, I asked if the "dips" (three are included as part of this pack) could simply be the same sauces. Obviously, I could easily toss them at home. The response was no. He said that the "dips are different." I don't know if he misunderstood what I was asking, but I was feeling a bit frustrated (and doing my best to simply smile and avoid showing that frustration).
Then, the option to "PAY EXTRA" for a second sauce for the wings was then offered. This was cringeworthy for me (to say the least). After all, I didn't order any sauces for the two sets of thighs. I had also been told that I couldn't choose sauces for the dipping sauces (which has ALWAYS been the norm for Wing Stop).
Now, I get that they cannot provide a second sauce for the wings (if that's the company's policy for this particular meal pack). However, I was confused that they couldn't offer me the dips (part of the pack) but that they were willing to sell me a second sauce.
So, I said, "No thanks. I'll just go."
To be clear: I think that this particular restaurant just lost a customer (permanently). It's all about the principle to me.
After all, I've ordered this same thing at the Redwood City and other locations and never had any problem. Not only does the restaurant menu offer THREE dipping sauces of my choice (which they provide), but (if they aren't busy) they typically just tell the employee in the kitchen to split the ten wings between two sauces (five each).
As the nation is currently experiencing a chicken wing shortage, the price increase has been passed to the customers. To be clear: Wing Stop is PRICEY now. Yet, at a time like this, this becoming an "issue" at Wing Stop is just strange and weird.
I don't blame the employees. This seems like a management issue (either at the local restaurant or at a corporate level). However, I wasn't trying to get something for nothing. Yet, I felt like I was being treated that way -- as if I was trying to "steal" something. This is despite the fact that the store was saving two sauces from the thighs.
It's really no big deal. However, I do feel that the employees should never respond in the way that they did (as if I was trying to "steal" something). I would have been perfectly fine to hear an "unfortunately, we aren't permitted to do this" and leave it at that.
However, there was a difficult and somewhat confusing customer standing in line in front of me (she even took issue that I took a photo of the store for Yelp) and told me to remove her from the photo. I felt like the employee was responding to me with that experience still in mind.
*My two-star review isn't about the food. It's about the service. My last experience was one in which my takeout order was also wrong.