Vendettas you have against local businesses

[Jacknapes]

Snackbar near me doesn't like competition, so they buy out anyone who sets up near them. They made an attempt to buy a favourite sandwich place of mine, they declined. So this snackbar filed in a dispute to get them closed down. They didn't win, the council decided to keep them open. Apparently competition is healthy

I don't like the snackbar for their dirty antics

 

[Doggg]

There's this one restaurant that tried to push food on me that I didn't order. Like, it was an absurd amount of food to expect a party of our size, so it was really ridiculous that the manager just wouldn't admit what was obviously a fuck up on their part and was incredibly rude about it. Don't care how good the food is -- you can't treat customers like that.

 

[andymcc]

Chicago. The neighborhood I'm in used to be affordable too then these rich fucks moved in and rent everywhere went up. Over a number of years, the rent went from 875 to 1200. Landlord will bitch at us when we complain about the rising prices.

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there is a currently-being-gentrified area in Columbus that has a newly opened restaurant with the same name and prices lmao

 

[C.Mongler]

This is really dumb, but there's a local gas station near my parent's place that refused to sell me cigarillos on my 18th birthday, telling that I couldn't buy them until the day after my birthday. The guy was super rude about it and seemed to be implying I was trying to pull one over on him when I questioned his refusal to sell me them despite legally being 18 at that point. I went to the gas station literally across the street and the clerk there sold me them with no issues. It's been over 10 years and I've never been back to the gas station that denied me those cheap baby cigars, despite having been there semi regularly for a quick snack and/or soda beforehand.

They're still in business, but whatever man they're not getting any from me!!

 

[Geoff]

This is really dumb, but there's a local gas station near my parent's place that refused to sell me cigarillos on my 18th birthday, telling that I couldn't buy them until the day after my birthday. The guy was super rude about it and seemed to be implying I was trying to pull one over on him by wanting to buy them for a stupid adulthood right-of-passage in the backyard with a couple of my buddies. I went to the gas station literally across the street and the clerk there sold me them with no issues. It's been over 10 years and I've never been back to the gas station that denied me those cheap baby cigars, despite having been there semi regularly for a quick snack and/or soda beforehand.

They're still in business, but whatever man they're not getting any from me!!

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This is the sort of pettiness I understand

 

[LakeEarth]

Like 15 years ago, I went to a place called Jose's Noodle Factory that is still in business. I paid extra to get all you can eat salad, and the girl I was with didn't. When I got the salad, they filled like 1/10th of the bowl, and then refused to give me more because I gave the girl I was with a few croutons to munch on while we waited for our dinner. Technically I'm in the wrong here, but I went in wanting all the salad in the world (cause I love it) and ended up with less than 4 bites worth, so I was unhappy.

After nearly two decades, I've been been back to that place exactly once, and that was only because my work had a party there.

 

[Griselbrand]

There's a wings and ribs joint near me that's been in business forever. Popular hangout spot for high schoolers after school and regularly has full parking lot with people parking their obnoxious trucks on the grass. Food is OK.

Went through the drive through once because I had a hankering and it took about 25 minutes for my order to get to me. No one came to the window in that entire time and I was the only customer in the line for that entire duration. Food was cold when it grabbed it from the kid at the window.

Haven't been back but they're obviously still doing fine.

Oh, and a bar that charged me for ice in my drink. That was years ago and they've since gone out of business.

 

[Vapelord]

There's a In-and-out type burger place near me that has a pretty good burger. Last time I went I got it to go, got home and the bun was hella burt. Like charred BLACK beyond recognition. What type of monster takes that out of the toaster or grill looks at it and goes "ehh not that bad"? and uses it for my burger. Have not been back since... they are dead to me. Even tho they are the best, closest burger place to me. :(

 

[PMS341]

Not really local-only, but I stopped going to any and all Jersey Mike's when I found something similar to a tooth in my sub and the guy behind the counter (who just happened to be missing some teeth, totally irrelevant but given the moment...) just started laughing. Like, actually guffawing. I literally left right then and never went to a single one again and that was almost a decade ago. Fuck Jersey Mike's.

 

[Lightus]

Bar I went to gave me a sample of bar line cleaner instead of beer once on accident. I didn't realize it until after I drank it. They went out of business a few weeks later so that made me feel a little bit better.

 

[Kunka Kid]

I also got food poisoning at Subway. So did my wife. I will never eat from that chain again. I'd rather starve than experience what I did for 48 hours.

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Same. I generally think people are exaggerating when they claim they've gotten food poisoning from a particular place (it's usually impossible to tell where you got it exactly, and it might not even be food poisoning at all, just a stomach bug) but last year I got the sickest I've been since I was a kid after eating at Subway and will never eat there again.

 

[Bigwombat]

Willys gym where I live. They forced me to call a second party when I was moving to Texas to cancel my membership after they told me it was a hassle free process to cancel. Had to bring a copy of my new lease.
The owners also screwed their employees out of wages and then locked the doors on everyone when they were getting in trouble in court. Just shut down. They also run another gym in a neighboring town that has one of the only pools open year round for lap swimming. Fuck them.
Totally screwing their employees is what upsets me more than the aggravating mess of canceling my membership.

 

[GK86]

There is this halal stand by me. One night I went to the stand. There was a customer ahead of me. The guy finishes up this customer's order and the same customer goes and orders some more. Ok, whatever. At this point the guy hasn't even taken my order and I have been waiting 10 mins I think. Around this time, I guess a regular customer comes up to the stand. He takes their order before mine. So when that happened, I started to walk away when the guy tried to stop me and take my order. Fuck that, I wasn't waiting around any longer. Haven't been back since then.

 

[shiba5]

My husband and I regularly went to an Irish restaurant. One night we went there for dinner. It was early, like 5pm, and apparently they were having live music at 8pm and they were selling tickets at the door. We didn't want tickets. We were only there to eat and leave. They wouldn't let us in because "we might stay and see the music for free". I'm thinking, even if we were planning to do that, which we weren't, they would have made more money from us sitting there for 3 hours buying food and drinks than the tickets cost. We never went back. They went out of business. I win.

 

[P-MAC]

Hence why they are now out of business

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The vasty majority of newsagents, off licenses and small corner shops in the UK have the £5 minimum for cards. It's generally supermarket chains that don't.

 

[shiba5]

Bar I went to gave me a sample of bar line cleaner instead of beer once on accident. I didn't realize it until after I drank it. They went out of business a few weeks later so that made me feel a little bit better.

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OMG, how does that even happen?? Gross.

Edit: I mean, someone had to have been cleaning the keg, forgot it, hooked it back up to the tap, poured the beer that looks nothing like beer, shrugged, and served it anyway.

 

[Geoff]

The vasty majority of newsagents, off licenses and small corner shops in the UK have the £5 minimum for cards. It's generally supermarket chains that don't.

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Not round me they don't. And whenever I come across this, there is a usually an option of paying a small fee to cover the costs. Which is fine. But I haven't had to do that for years.

 

[Walter White Walker]

This is the sort of pettiness I understand

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My pettiness was revealed at REI. I went in one about 20 years ago and a person at the door rudely told me it was a members-only day. Didn't even ask if I was a member, which I wasn't but whatever. Have never been back.

 

[liquidmetal14]

GREGGS

 

[P-MAC]

Not round me they don't. And whenever I come across this, there is a usually an option of paying a small fee to cover the costs. Which is fine. But I haven't had to do that for years.

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I think it's actually illegal to do that now. Could be why more people near you started to do the minimum

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/card-surcharge-ban-means-no-more-nasty-surprises-for-shoppers

 

[Lexad]

There is this shitty bbq place that my friends all love (mostly because they don't understand bbq and one of the friends brother in law owns it). It was legitimately some awful bbq slathered in awful sauce. I live in Seattle so no one here has any taste for bbq if it isn't drowned in awful sauces.

 

[PlanetSmasher]

I don't have any vendettas against LOCAL businesses but I refuse to give money to Jimmy John's because their CEO is a poacher who hunts endangered animals because he's rich enough to bribe away the fines. I hate poachers.

 

[Pilgrimzero]

Burger King burnt my burger once and it was maybe 20 years before I tried them again. Now I prefer their burgers over other fast food burgers *shrugs*

What-a-burger, about 10 years ago, forgot the meat in the damn burger, how do you do that? I don't go there currently.

 

[Fatoy]

I had my car detailed at a local hand car wash place (near Manchester, UK) and despite specifically asking for a silver-tier clean, and the owner agreeing that that was what I'd asked for, the guys doing the cleaning started doing extra bits and pieces that looked to me very much like part of the gold tier service. I checked with them while they were doing this, and they reassured me that I was only paying for the silver tier.

At the end, the owner comes over and says "I had the guys do some extras, so you owe me an extra £5".

"No I don't," I replied.

"Come on, mate, help me out here - we looked after you." Was his retort.

Long story short, he and I got into a bit of an argument and I, in the most British move ever, capitulated and paid him his full £20... but the moral victory was mine, or something.

Anyway, I can never go back. And I encourage other people never to go there.

 

[Twenty7kvn]

I don't have any vendettas against local business especially the small ones. I believe we should try our best to support them even when they fuck up, unless they're out doing some real crazy shit.

 

[Fatoy]

The vasty majority of newsagents, off licenses and small corner shops in the UK have the £5 minimum for cards. It's generally supermarket chains that don't.

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I don't think this has been the case for a while - since contactless payments became common. Pubs and bars sometimes enforce a minimum card payment, but that's a (dodgy) business move on their part.

 

[Walter White Walker]

I don't have any vendettas against LOCAL businesses but I refuse to give money to Jimmy John's because their CEO is a poacher who hunts endangered animals because he's rich enough to bribe away the fines. I hate poachers.

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He's out as CEO and chairman. He sold most of his interest in Jimmy John's to the company that owns Arby's and other national chains.

 

[Lexad]

Using OP's format:

1. Order huge amount of fried chicken from famous joint in North east Seattle which I won't name here because I don't think being vindictive is healthy. This is a picnic - on a boat rented for that purpose for our friends, family and kids. I am in charge of feeding them. I have made plenty of time, called the order in ahead, brought cash, arrived a little early, you name it, I took care of it. All so I could hop on board and get us onto the water for the day. I am gonna be SUCH a hero.
2. Arrive and announce I called in that big order. "Almost ready now sir, just bagging it up!"
3. Door Dash or whatever delivery company shows up. Speaks to cashier.
4. They start literally unpacking my order and redistributing most of it into now grinning Door Dash guy's bags.
5. I watch for a few seconds to make sure I understand what I'm seeing.
6. "Wait are you giving this guy my order?!"
7. "Um....uh.. ...well... he's... it's.... he's a … regular...and uh...we can start you a new one now..."
8. I then wait 45 minutes while they cook a giant new batch and arrive at picnic almost an hour late to crying kids, stalled boat, angry adults stuck in smelly and noisy dock.



The Chicken place was the "relaunch" of a Seattle fave (Oprah allegedly has it shipped to her) "formerly" called Ezell's after a messy business divorce, when the actual Ezell lost the franchise name, locations and recipe rights to his former business partners -- who continue to thrive -- and reinvented his recipe and store as "Heaven Sent" complete with quite annoying and borderline illiterate Jesus propaganda in a previously secular chicken fantasy. I know I said I wouldn't name them because vendettas are unhealthy, but hey, so is fried chicken.

Status: LOSE/LOSE -FOR ME-- PERMANENT WIN FOR EZELL STEPHENS I had my day ruined, he continues to pay credulous staffers (I unfairly assume) minimum wage and sell chicken.

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That sucks I love heaven sent. Wasn't a fan of the "original Ezells."

 

[Hasseigaku]

I have a grudge against the two local barber shops near work.

1. Like a week after a big mass shooting (not sure if it was Parkland or Las Vegas) they had a new big sign that said something like "Guns welcome here." Fuck them for doing that shit right after a ton of people died.

2. Around the inauguration in 2017, I went to the other barber shop and heard someone (not sure if it was an employee or a customer) say something to the effect of "When he said 'God Bless America' I just thought it was nice to hear someone say it that actually meant it." I don't give a shit if it was a customer if I'm going to hear old ladies say dumb shit like that I'm not going to darken your door.

So I go to the local GreatClips near the Walmart. I prefer to give money to businesses that are local and are in walking distance from work but fuck dealing with that dumb shit.

 

[Teh_Lurv]

5...
5 Dollar...
5 Dollar FOOD POISONING!

That subway location was soon shut down afterwards

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I got food poisoning after eating at Subway first night of my 2016 vacation to MAGFest. I spent the entire con in my hotel room feeling like I was about to die.

There was a Sam Goody at a local mall I refused to shop at after one of the employees walked up to 12 year old me, snatched a shopping bag out of my hand, and rifled through it looking for CDs he apparently thought I had stolen. When he didn't find anything, he gave me back the bag and walked off without saying a word. I was speechless and walked out of the store in shock.

There's a burger place near me that I used to go to up until about a year ago when they tweeted #MAGA on their business twitter account. It's still up too. Instantly made me want to stop going there and I haven't been back since.

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Yeah, I never really understood the logic of using your business to promote your personal political beliefs. All it does is alienate a portion of your customer-base. There is a horse ranch I occasionally drive by that I assume is/was run by a Tea Party type. Between 2009-2012, the letter billboard out in front had anti-Obamacare slogans and in the run up to the 2012 election read "Keep America Free, Vote Republican". I haven't seen such signage in a long time, so I wonder if the ranch is under new ownership. On the other end of the political spectrum, there is a vintage shop I occasionally shop at where the owner is big supporter of Bernie Sanders. He posts progressive and pro-Bernie messages on his store's Facebook page, which occasionally results in back-in-forth arguments between him and alt-right trolls in the comments. IMO it's unprofessional and doesn't benefit the business at all. All you wind up doing in the end is giving potential customers a reason to shop elsewhere.

 

[shiba5]

I don't have any vendettas against LOCAL businesses but I refuse to give money to Jimmy John's because their CEO is a poacher who hunts endangered animals because he's rich enough to bribe away the fines. I hate poachers.

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Oh yeah, we have one of those too. I won't go near it.

He's out as CEO and chairman. He sold most of his interest in Jimmy John's to the company that owns Arby's and other national chains.

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Oh well, who doesn't love Arby's?
I haven't been to an Arby's in 15 years even though I love those triangle potato things that always give me heartburn.

 

[P-MAC]

I don't think this has been the case for a while - since contactless payments became common. Pubs and bars sometimes enforce a minimum card payment, but that's a (dodgy) business move on their part.

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Ok, put it this way then, in Bristol and South Wales it's absolutely the case. Haven't seen it in pubs and bars though but then maybe I've just been too drunk to remember haha.

 

[AndyD]

I dislike a whole town!

There's this little middle of nowhere town on the way we drive to see our family and for a while (couple of years) they had a devious speed trap. The town is only 1 exit on the highway. About 100 feet before the exit, the speed limit dropped from 70 to 55, and went back up to 70 about a 100 feet after the exit. Cops sat just past the bridge and pulled people over left and right. I got a speeding ticket there (74 in a 55, a whopping $285) alongide two other cars pulled over and ever since I have a symbolic grudge against the little town. We've traveled that highway dozens of times, stopped at nearly every exit for food or gas except never there. We even joke that we have to slow down, cops will be waiting, and until the changed the speed limit it was a guarantee the cope were there. 5+ hour drive, and it would be the only spot we reliably saw cops.

 

[sixteen-bit]

there's a thai place near my girlfirends office that i refuse to go to.

they brought over my food one day, i asked if i could have some chop sticks, they said yes, then proceeded to walk across the room, sit down and stare at me. after a few minutes of waiting i just started eating w/ a fork. they didn't come back over until we were both done and they brought over the check.

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I remember reading that people don't eat with chopsticks in Thailand (unless you're like, specifically eating Chinese food at a Chinese restaurant). Maybe they thought you were joking.

 

[The Albatross]

There's a local wood fired pizza place that is really, really good, but the owner is such a fucking sexist transphobic asshole piece of shit that I refuse to eat there. I used to go regularly before finding that out. Although, their service was also terrible so that's another reason. Food is legit good. I assume they're still doing well because the food is good and most people don't know the guy is an asshole.

Had a bad experience at a local restaurant about 10+ years ago involving mice, which didn't really bother me that much, disgusting but w/e, it's a restaurant in a city. But the way they handled the mouse problem was much worse than themselves. I wrote to the manager explaining my experience, and the manager wrote back snarkily saying they've never had mice in the restaurant and if I didn't like my experience then I shouldn't come back. And I was like well, fuck it, I'm not going back there, and I haven't. It's a popular restaurant, I've been on the premises a few times since but haven't bought anything.

Those are probably the only two places I think I have a vendetta against them. There's dozen sI don't like and won't really ever eat/drink there, but I don't have strict vendettas against them like those two.

 

[bossmonkey]

I dislike a whole town!

There's this little middle of nowhere town on the way we drive to see our family and for a while (couple of years) they had a devious speed trap. The town is only 1 exit on the highway. About 100 feet before the exit, the speed limit dropped from 70 to 55, and went back up to 70 about a 100 feet after the exit. Cops sat just past the bridge and pulled people over left and right. I got a speeding ticket there (74 in a 55, a whopping $285) alongide two other cars pulled over and ever since I have a symbolic grudge against the little town. We've traveled that highway dozens of times, stopped at nearly every exit for food or gas except never there. We even joke that we have to slow down, cops will be waiting, and until the changed the speed limit it was a guarantee the cope were there. 5+ hour drive, and it would be the only spot we reliably saw cops.

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There's a town near where i grew up that was doing that on I-95. The city limits just barely touch 95 at an overpass and the cop would sit there looking for people to pull. They ended up getting in a lot of trouble but i don't remember what specifically they were dinged for. I was coming home for Christmas a couple of weeks ago and saw another city cop out there so i guess it's worth it to the city to go through whatever trouble they went through.

 

[bossmonkey]

Not a local chain but a brand new Taco Bell near my apartment took 45 minutes to get me through the drive through. There may have been 4 people in line total. It's only one lane so i was stuck. I paid after 30 minutes and had enough time to find the survey website on the receipt, give them a blistering review, and wait another few minutes before i got my damn tacos.

 

[Eros]

I boo everytime I pass by the Golden Road brewery

 

[ThatRebel]

There's two restaurants in town that I avoid due to the same situation. A close friends son who was 17 at the time applied, started working and then never got paid. Apparently they off x amount per hour, never put you on the payroll and then just throw a little cash your way hoping you won't complain. One of them got shut down but the lady that owned it has several different names and tons of law suits against her.

 

[Sunster]

A small computer shop called Computer Qwerx basically stole $50 from me. They are now out of business >:) that location is now closed

 

[ChrisR]

A few years back a local grocery store took out the self checkout lines.

I stopped shopping there and drove a mile further away to a place that actually went and ADDED lines.

The first place realized their mistake and added the lines back eventually, but I still wouldn't shop there unless I had to.

 

[PoppaBK]

I also got food poisoning at Subway. So did my wife. I will never eat from that chain again. I'd rather starve than experience what I did for 48 hours.

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Oh yeah reminded me of something, there was a Subway I used to go to fairly often, when they first introduced breakfast items decided I would try them. The person behind the counter clearly was pissed at corporate or whatever for extending the hours and acted like I had asked her to eat a shit sandwich. Not just bad service but outright hostile, like I personally fucked up her day.
To top it off the breakfast sandwich was indeed shit. Barely ate at Subway since and definitely not at that location.

 

[Slayven]

I also got food poisoning at Subway. So did my wife. I will never eat from that chain again. I'd rather starve than experience what I did for 48 hours.

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At my old job they use to have vendors come in sell hot lunches. One dude came in and got half the building sick. The head of the security company for the building had to come in in fill in for their guy, the bathrooms were useable . The vendor did not come back, imagine my surprise to see the same dude among the shops in Doordash, I had a good 5 minute laugh at that.

 

[Lightus]

OMG, how does that even happen?? Gross.

Edit: I mean, someone had to have been cleaning the keg, forgot it, hooked it back up to the tap, poured the beer that looks nothing like beer, shrugged, and served it anyway.

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Yup pretty much. The bar had a third party clean the lines and apparently they didn't flush that one after. It's bright green to make it obvious but the beer I was sampling was a green apple flavored so I thought the coloring was intentional. I took it like a shot cause I'm dumb and immediately started to feel burning. The bartender noticed when they saw my face and felt awful. The bar's owner was sitting right next to me and didn't say anything at all. He even charged me for the first beer I had. I went to the ER and didn't get home until 4am that night.

Thankfully I didn't have any issues aside from a sore throat but I was really nervous about it for awhile.

 

[Slayven]

My local comicbook store table top stuff is way overpriced.

 

[badatorigami]

I order takeout for a single dish with a single appetizer at a pretty good Chinese place near my house; they tell me 25 minutes and I get there 40 minutes later. I wait inside the restaurant for 20 minutes, and all the while other people who got there after me order and leave with their takeout. They finally check the kitchen for me, and tell me 10 more minutes. I then receive my order 20 minutes later. They obviously forgot about my order, but didn't admit to it.
Honest mistake and i'm being extremely petty, but I just can't bring myself to go back.

 

[Deleted member 10629]

I refuse to go to a local restaurant because the only time I went, we had to wait a lot of time, food wasnt that great and the staff was disrespectful to my mother when she was asking a simple question.

 

[nsilvias]

there's a local family barbershop i go to every once in a while when im broke that i hate because when ever i get my hair cut they always fuck it up. i always make sure to never say it looks good if they ask me when they finish and i never give tip. the shop i usually go to does an amazing job even if the dude cutting my hair smells like weed and is high out of his mind.

 

[Supa Necta]

My wife and I usually order a large sub at Wegmans and split it. We order half turkey and half roast beef. About 2 years ago I was told that they'd do it but charge me for 2 small subs (about $4 more). I fought it for a few minutes and just ended up walking out. Have only been in there 3 times since as I'm too lazy to switch pharmacies. I figure they've lost out on about $5,000 in grocery sales.

 

[Skiptastic]

A bar near me called Nippers. One of the few places left in my city where you can smoke indoors, so I'm not going back regardless, but I'm not going back for a different reason.

I met up with some friends there once and, because I was driving, I ordered a Pepsi for $2. Waitress came by, I gave her a $5 and expected that she'd come back around a lot due to the nice tip (not huge but nice for a $2 drink). Drank it up quick then she came back. I asked for a refill and she said, "Sorry, we don't do free refills." It's not like I ordered the glass bottle Coke, this is pop from the damned wand. I've been given soft drinks at bars for free and they're trying to get another $2?

Haven't been back since and never will.