My lunch companion and I are both regular customers of the Junction and the Dupont location.
Today, we stopped in at the Junction for a lunch. I entered with a coffee cup in hand, having stopped at a neighbouring coffeehouse beforehand.
We were greeted and very curtly told that I was not allowed to bring in an outside drink. This would not have been an issue if the message had been delivered more politely. I would have respected the policy and would either have tossed the coffee, or stepped back outside to finish my drink leisurely.
Personally, I think it's a small concession to let a customer bring in the dregs of a coffee to finish while perusing the menu, particularly if he or she is a regular customer who will willingly spend $50-60 at a time. I've been at other restaurants that don't even bat an eyelash under the same circumstances, but I respect that a restaurant may have its own set of policies.
My companion pointed out that he was a regular customer and expressed surprise that the server was going to turn away a good customer for such a small thing. The server very rudely said that they served coffee there, to which my companion replied that the Playa family had now lost his patronage forever.
I used to bring clients regularly to Playa, but will unfortunately.now be entertaining them elsewhere.
Whatever happened to treating customers with respect?