How to Respond to Bad Restaurant Reviews

You might have heard about the significance of customer reviews for exceptional business growth, but little did you know that it takes only positive reviews into account. Although no business likes to receive negative reviews, they are nearly inevitable.

Negative reviews can affect food businesses, especially restaurants, significantly. People like to check out customer reviews before visiting a restaurant or ordering food online. With 94% of consumers stating bad reviews are a reason for avoiding a business, it is important to know how to respond to bad restaurant reviews.

Let’s dig further to find practical tips to respond to lousy restaurant reviews efficiently.

Should Restaurants Respond to Bad Reviews?

Before diving into the tips, let’s understand if responding to bad reviews is worth it. Negative reviews can affect your business’s revenue by preventing customers from visiting your restaurant. You must respond to them effectively or else suffer the consequences.

Bad reviews indicate a lack of service that you need to work on. For instance, if a customer posts a negative review about your unorganized menu, you must acknowledge it and work on it. After politely replying to the review, you can use a reliable free menu maker to design a better menu.

If you do not respond to a bad review, it shows your lack of attention towards customers’ needs. Other customers may never know if you have resolved the issue or not and use the bad review as a criterion to judge your services.

How do you Deal with Bad Food Reviews?

Do you want to learn how to respond to bad restaurant reviews effectively? Follow these tried and tested tips.

Thank the Customer

Consider each bad review an opportunity to know your customers better and improve your services. Whether you respond to verbal or written reviews, begin with thanking the customer. Show gratitude for visiting your restaurant and taking the time to give feedback.

You may also thank the reviewer for anything positive they have mentioned in their review. Address the reviewer by their name to personalize your response.

Apologize for the Mistake

Now you must show your sympathies for the customers by apologizing for whatever went wrong. You must use a polite tone to show that you mean your words. Even if you don’t find you’re at fault, you simply apologize for the inconvenience caused.

Explain the Mistake

This is the opportunity to clear your image. If your business caused the inconvenience, readily accept your mistake. Then politely explain the reason behind it without sounding arrogant. If the fault is not yours, politely explain to the reviewer your policies.

Offer a Solution

You must fix the mistake to improve the situation for your customers and your business. Ensure the reviewer that you will take corrective measures and do so. Was the customer upset about the outdated menu? Fix it by redesigning it using a free menu template. Was the food not up to the mark? Train your staff to be more careful of the orders.

Every problem has a solution that you must implement to avoid future inconvenience. You may also offer some incentive to compensate for the compromising customer experience. A complimentary drink, discount, or special deal can be good ideas to show you care.

Invite them

Once you have cleared your position, you must then ensure that you get a good food review the next time. What do you need to do about this? Offer a better customer experience on the next visit. Don’t forget to invite them back and make your invitation tempting by mentioning some special deal or discount.

Bottom line

Responding to bad restaurant reviews is not as difficult as you may think. Instead of getting offended, welcome the reviews openly and use them to improve your business. In addition, offer the best customer experience to avoid bad reviews in the first place.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can restaurants remove bad reviews?

No, a restaurant cannot remove bad reviews unless it includes some inappropriate content. Instead, they can turn it into a positive review by improving their services.

How do you leave a negative review politely?

You can leave a negative review politely by respectfully addressing the concerned individual or business. Highlight some positives before describing the issue.

How do you respond to bad service?

You must respond to bad service politely and confidently. Instead of anger, show compassion and care.

What do you say when food is not delicious?

When the food is not delicious, you can say that “ the food was not according to my expectations” or something like “there’s room for improvement”.

What to say to negative reviews?

You must address negative reviews by politely greeting and thanking the customer and offering a solution to their problem. You must show compassion in your words.