Wine connection has gone downhill

[eezergood]

If mediocrity and low quality is acceptable you can get all you need here. I worked on the Apollo Program from it's beginning to the last mission. Could we get the moon with this attitude. If you don't have the balls to do your job right and don't care about customers then stay out of business. I think farangs are happier if they don't get into business in Thailand to pay for the wife and her family. I paid for many staff member to go to high school and college to give them an opportunity in life. They had no obligation to return to work for me when finished but had to work part time while going to school. However, an education gives you the tools to make a good living if you are willing to use them. I might add that none of them used their education to get better jobs other than knowing English better and marrying a farang.

A farang husband or boyfriend is a golden rice bowl that is never empty and a wide screen TV that always works.

In the USA I had a lot of low class stealing, doped up semi-professional employes so these problems are not unique to Thailand. I changed my pay day until each Wed. from Friday. If I paid them on Friday they got drunk all weekend and would not come to work on Monday. More of this information in Merchant of the Orient.

I always thought that in business if you are not growing you are dying. And like most people discover when they follow this philosophy you continue to grow until you kill yourself because you can manage the situation. Asia is a different world and the business rules in the west do not apply to here.

I won't bore you anymore with my philosophy of operating a business in Thailand. Better for you to enjoy your self and stay out of business here. Remember what Kipling said!

Go with the flow, you (the farang) are few they are many! You think here is a challenge, try China

All part of the journey..........

[Pinot]

try the one in Bang Tao, usually empty, so the service so good and the food quality is better than Junk Ceylon ( where i wont eat anymore)

Been there, not going back. I think we came in a half hour before closing time. Things we tried to order conflicted with closing. What we got was of poor quality and over priced. I drive by it frequently and keep driving. The concept should be a slam dunk but it doesn't work. The staff simply doesn't have a clue.

Edited September 9, 2013 by Pinot

[eezergood]

try the one in Bang Tao, usually empty, so the service so good and the food quality is better than Junk Ceylon ( where i wont eat anymore)

Been there, not going back. I think we came in a half hour before closing time. Things we tried to order conflicted with closing. What we got was of poor quality and over priced. I drive by it frequently and keep driving. The concept should be a slam dunk but it doesn't work. The staff simply doesn't have a clue.

More to the point dont care!

[xylophone]

I have know Michael the owner of all the Wine Connections in Thailand and also in Singapore for many years. He is a good Frenchman and a likable person. He is experiencing the same situation that I did. You can't be in 10 places at one time. When you hire new staff they seem to work OK for 4-6 months and then they start to slack off and act like they own the place. The business starts to suffer.

For restaurant owners they should always keep the following in mind for their staff, "If you have time to lean, you have time to clean" and "If you are not walking you are not working". It is hard to enforce these two principals in restaurants in Thailand unless you are standing over the staff. Don't be afraid of pissing your Thai wife's relatives off by insisting that they work. Three in a corner talking are hard to separate to go wait on tables.

Michael probably has the largest wine and distribution business in Thailand and it has grown well from one location. When he decided to put the bistros in his wine store he expected that the increased floor traffic from the bistros would increase the sale of wine. Unfortunately these are two totally different businesses. His wholesale business was really good. He stocked most of my wine store at Don's Mall in Phuket with quality wines. His best employee, Paul in Phuket has done a great job in Phuket for years taking care of the hotel and restaurant wine business. He is one of the best in the industry but only one man.

For those who are dissatisfied leave a small note in the cafe for Michael and am sure he will do his best to correct the situation. Give him another chance. Michael is not the only farang in Thailand that has this kind of problem

Not sure that I could blame my last experience in the Jungceylon branch on staff not working............a small overcooked grisly steak, soggy french fries, lukewarm and small ratatouille.

Just poor quality food with a formulaic approach. Won't go there to eat again.

[Jimi007]

The last time I ate at Wine Connection was at least five years ago. It was pretty good back when they had their BBQ specials, but haven't bothered to eat there in many years now. This thread to me is really old news...

[emubob]

Had an interesting experience in WC Central Festival around 6 months ago. I had been given a fabulous wine book by a friend and went there to do a bit of wine study whilst enjoying a bottle of red and some food. I ordered a Thai dish from the menu and when it arrived it was inedible. The potatoes were purple and rock hard and the chicken was rancid. I complained and the food was taken away and I was given a new dish which was better. However, I asked the waitress if the Thai food was cooked fresh. She went away to the kitchen to ask and came back and told me that the Thai food is precooked and then reheated. My first dish could well have been up to a week old sitting in the fridges. I have not and will not eat Thai food at WC ever again.

There is no excuse at all for serving this kind of food whether the management at the store is Thai or a foreigner. This is just wrong and should not need top level management to be there in person to check. The systems should already be in place to ensure that food is freshly cooked upon order. I do understand that certain elements of a dish are sometimes prepared in advance but meat should always be freshly cooked. Thai dishes are generally very quick and easy to make so it is quite sad that a business like this is unable to offer quality fresh Thai food.

I quite enjoy the platters they do and one of the pros of WC is being able to enjoy a nice bottle of wine from the shop and drink it in the restaurant without a huge mark up.

Agree with a lot of the comments made and it is interesting to see the differing viewpoints of business owners v customers.

[Ping]

^ 'Thai dishes are generally very quick and easy to make so it is quite sad that a business like this is unable to offer quality fresh Thai food.'

- I think I'd better send the missus (Thai) off to Wince Collection to learn food preparation - she typically spends at least an hour in the kitchen when preparing Thai meals.

[wtk]

Stopped going there a couple of years ago when I found out that the owner(s) keeps the 10% service charge that should be going to the staff.

Ate there frequently since 2009 before that

[jdean]

Are you sure that the service charge does not go to the staff? I never tipped because I assumed that the staff got it.

I tried WC Central recently and found it fine. I too enjoy the chance to buy a bottle of wine there to have with dinner, without having to pay the inflated price most restaurants charge. I had the spicy seafood black fettuccine and it was good, also filling. I also had the bread basket, which was fresh. I enjoyed it because I seldom eat bread otherwise..

[emubob]

^ 'Thai dishes are generally very quick and easy to make so it is quite sad that a business like this is unable to offer quality fresh Thai food.'

- I think I'd better send the missus (Thai) off to Wince Collection to learn food preparation - she typically spends at least an hour in the kitchen when preparing Thai meals.

We are not talking about home cooking Ping. This is a 'professional' kitchen where staff are paid to prep food in advance so that when orders are received the chefs can cook the dishes straight away. Many Thai dishes, freshly cooked, are on the table within 10 minutes. The fact that a large establishment such as WC, with likely a very high quality of kitchen compared to most Thai restaurants, is unable to serve good quality, fresh Thai cuisine is quite ridiculous.

[JetsetBkk]

Haven't been there for about 3 or 4 years, when it started to go 'downhill'.

[bearpolar]

Is the one at central still good though?

[stevenl]

Is the one at central still good though?

Did you read posts # 36 and 39?

[Totster]

I have know Michael the owner of all the Wine Connections in Thailand and also in Singapore for many years. He is a good Frenchman and a likable person. He is experiencing the same situation that I did. You can't be in 10 places at one time. When you hire new staff they seem to work OK for 4-6 months and then they start to slack off and act like they own the place. The business starts to suffer.

For restaurant owners they should always keep the following in mind for their staff, "If you have time to lean, you have time to clean" and "If you are not walking you are not working". It is hard to enforce these two principals in restaurants in Thailand unless you are standing over the staff. Don't be afraid of pissing your Thai wife's relatives off by insisting that they work. Three in a corner talking are hard to separate to go wait on tables.

Michael probably has the largest wine and distribution business in Thailand and it has grown well from one location. When he decided to put the bistros in his wine store he expected that the increased floor traffic from the bistros would increase the sale of wine. Unfortunately these are two totally different businesses. His wholesale business was really good. He stocked most of my wine store at Don's Mall in Phuket with quality wines. His best employee, Paul in Phuket has done a great job in Phuket for years taking care of the hotel and restaurant wine business. He is one of the best in the industry but only one man.

For those who are dissatisfied leave a small note in the cafe for Michael and am sure he will do his best to correct the situation. Give him another chance. Michael is not the only farang in Thailand that has this kind of problem

In this day and age it is easy to spot check the staff from the comfort of your desk - install IP cameras throughout and keep an eye on things, a couple of calls to the manager of a particular restaurant when something amiss is seen will soon let the staff know they can't become sloppy.

totster

[DonaldBattles]

I had 8 security cameras in all strategic locations. The problem is that you can't watch the cameras all day nor do you have the time to replay the recordings. They can be used for spot checking or in case there is an know incident. The did work good when 7 thieves broke into my supermarket in Phuket. Daytime thieves are hard to catch.

[bunta71]

As a former truck driver I am an expert on restaurants... I have a theory about the pitfalls of the tip jar being evenly divided among the staff. To me, this is an open invitation for mediocrity at it's best. I think of it as a parallel to communism. It takes away the incentive for personal excellence. If the staff understood that by improving their performance, they could make far more money with their own tips when deserved. With a staff driven to improve and do their best, the business thrives. Pay the cooks a little more to make up for their loss of their easy slice of the tip jar. If a cook does an exemplary job they also gain in occasional tips to the cooks. The wait staff are at the forefront of the customers view and has a direct impact on return business. If a waitress/ waiter is very friendly and attentive they can make loads of tips and the business, as I said,... thrives...

[salavan]

WINE LOVERS JUST PAST CHALONG CIRCLE

[wtk]

Are you sure that the service charge does not go to the staff? I never tipped because I assumed that the staff got it.

I tried WC Central recently and found it fine. I too enjoy the chance to buy a bottle of wine there to have with dinner, without having to pay the inflated price most restaurants charge. I had the spicy seafood black fettuccine and it was good, also filling. I also had the bread basket, which was fresh. I enjoyed it because I seldom eat bread otherwise..

Well, the info came from the staff itself. Specifically from one waitress who had served us multiple times and worked there the whole time we had eaten there. We asked her about it after a friend brought it up. She said the staff who have been there longer get 5% but ones that haven't worked there long don't get any part of it.

In 2010 the Chalong Wine Connection on Chao Fa East changed almost all their staff. Could've been related to this as well.

I liked the big wine collection, good food and atmosphere there but I can't support a place whose owners abuse their staff like this so I stopped going.

[hansgruber]

I bet when McDonalds first opened. The burgers were tasty and thick.

As you expand and become a chain, you tend to buy bulk and quality takes a back seat.

I can't think of a restaurant that's improved once they had a few locations.

[MichaelWine]

A friend of mine sent me the link to this thread. I am sorry if some of you feel disappointed. Wine Connection has indeed become a wine shop and a Wine themed restaurant chain. We are not pretending providing a fine dining experience. We serve casual food and wine at affordable prices. Frankly we are trying our best to do so and yes there are challenges. I just wanted to rectify a few facts from various comments above. Food is Fresh (the only frozen items are French fries, salmon fillet, tuna Fillet and shrimps). Microwave is hardly used as this would be the worse way to cook. All our kitchens are open so you can have a look at the equipment and how the food is cooked. Service charge is shared 50% to ALL employees and 50% to the company to support items such as breakage, uniforms, food allowance to staff and 2 different kinds of bonus to staff. Tips go 100% to staff. We treat our staff fairly. If you don't then you just do not have staff as there is no unemployment in Thailand. Many staff in Chalong were changed in 2010 following a massive corruption case that was recognized by the court (and not because of service charge reasons as assumed above). We will keep trying hard to get better at what we do. We will also continue our expansion where we feel a positive response (Bangkok and Singapore for example). I'd like to remind you have a customer form in each bill folder so you can express your satisfaction (or dissatisfaction) this way. I also want to take the opportunity to thank our supporters. We'll keep trying hard ! Michael- CEO.

[nedkellylives]

A service charge is just a compulsory tip as far i an concerned and you have to pay it if the food and sevice is good or bad

Compulsory- forced or required

Tax should be included in the price of the item the same as supermarkets, not a add on

[simon43]

I agree that it's very difficult to find (and keep) competent Thai staff.

I used to employ non-family staff at my small hotels and the customer service was - quite frankly - 'absolutely appalling'!

So I cut back and only use Thai family staff and the service level has clearly improved from 'absolutely appalling' to 'marginally terrible'

Simon

[wtk]

A friend of mine sent me the link to this thread. I am sorry if some of you feel disappointed. Wine Connection has indeed become a wine shop and a Wine themed restaurant chain. We are not pretending providing a fine dining experience. We serve casual food and wine at affordable prices. Frankly we are trying our best to do so and yes there are challenges. I just wanted to rectify a few facts from various comments above. Food is Fresh (the only frozen items are French fries, salmon fillet, tuna Fillet and shrimps). Microwave is hardly used as this would be the worse way to cook. All our kitchens are open so you can have a look at the equipment and how the food is cooked. Service charge is shared 50% to ALL employees and 50% to the company to support items such as breakage, uniforms, food allowance to staff and 2 different kinds of bonus to staff. Tips go 100% to staff. We treat our staff fairly. If you don't then you just do not have staff as there is no unemployment in Thailand. Many staff in Chalong were changed in 2010 following a massive corruption case that was recognized by the court (and not because of service charge reasons as assumed above). We will keep trying hard to get better at what we do. We will also continue our expansion where we feel a positive response (Bangkok and Singapore for example). I'd like to remind you have a customer form in each bill folder so you can express your satisfaction (or dissatisfaction) this way. I also want to take the opportunity to thank our supporters. We'll keep trying hard ! Michael- CEO.

Hey Michael,

Thanks for clarifying the service charge and 2010 staff change topics.

Can you give me/us more details about the "massive corruption case" ?

[IrishIvan]

Yeah thanks for clarifying the service charge. I wont be going back there. Its not a 5 star hotel. The service charge is just another rip off. And youre only paying 50 percent to the staff

[bearpolar]

Yeah thanks for clarifying the service charge. I wont be going back there. Its not a 5 star hotel. The service charge is just another rip off. And youre only paying 50 percent to the staff

I dont see why some of you are getting your panties up in a bunch over some small things.

He probably has a good reason for a service charge. Thai staff are EXTREMELY nonchalant and will break stuff all the time. The service charge is a way to keep prices down on the menu/overall.

Where else in Thailand can you get a pretty decent pizza for 160b-200b in 5mins? Where can you get a great salmon stuffed pasta plate with free bread for 200b with a good selection of cheaply price imported beer or wine?

fk seriously in the west for 200b you barely get 4 snails in 2 ml of cheese in a cheap chain restaurant.

WC isnt a 60$/plate restaurant and it isnt trying to be. For their prices its QUITE amazing the quality you get. At least at central.

If this was in the west i'd also get mad at a 10% service charge but the bills are always small at this restaurant so 10% isnt massive and even if the staff only gets 50% of it they still get more than if they worked solely on tips. People dont tip much here unless they are trying to bang the waitress.

[macahoom]

Yeah thanks for clarifying the service charge. I wont be going back there. Its not a 5 star hotel. The service charge is just another rip off. And youre only paying 50 percent to the staff

I dont see why some of you are getting your panties up in a bunch over some small things.

He probably has a good reason for a service charge. Thai staff are EXTREMELY nonchalant and will break stuff all the time. The service charge is a way to keep prices down on the menu/overall.

Where else in Thailand can you get a pretty decent pizza for 160b-200b in 5mins? Where can you get a great salmon stuffed pasta plate with free bread for 200b with a good selection of cheaply price imported beer or wine?

fk seriously in the west for 200b you barely get 4 snails in 2 ml of cheese in a cheap chain restaurant.

WC isnt a 60$/plate restaurant and it isnt trying to be. For their prices its QUITE amazing the quality you get. At least at central.

If this was in the west i'd also get mad at a 10% service charge but the bills are always small at this restaurant so 10% isnt massive and even if the staff only gets 50% of it they still get more than if they worked solely on tips. People dont tip much here unless they are trying to bang the waitress.

I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure the bread is not free.

Edited September 14, 2013 by macahoom

[hansgruber]

Even my Thai friends think the Thai food there is garbage.

If your Thai staff can't put simple local food together, you have a serious problem.

Never mind the expat whingers like me, by nature we are fussy because we compare things to back home but serving rubbish Thai food in Thailand is no excuse.

[Somtamnication]

A pizza in 5 minutes? No thanks. The industry standard is, I am repeating myself, 70% for staff, 30% for business to cover breakage and "loss". 50% is inexcusable.

WC better watch out. More wine shops, more farang restaurants are on the island. This ain't 2001!!!! More choices.

[gfunk1]

A Service Charge should go towards the Service. Breakage, uniforms, etc. are the costs of doing business. Essentially, W.C. is misleading the public in to supplementing the wages of the kitchen staff and to apparrently ensuring that they will never have to replace any plates or glasses. It is simply a well considered, dishonest practice. An honest approach ( and used the world over ) would be to include all business costs in the menu prices, and to allow all service charges to go to those to whom they were intended. Not very admirable to take advantage of those earning 300 Baht per day, or to mislead your clients.

[MichaelWine]

For those who think we are not being fair to staff, you are mistaken. You have to look at the whole package we are offering. Starting with a pretty high fix salary. We also offer a service charge guarantee to make sure staff gets enough income even in low season. We offer provident fund to all of our staff. Also full private insurance for staff staying with us over 1 year, this means they can go to any international hospital even outpatient treatment will be free. Many foreigners on the island do not have this kind of insurance. In high season the lowest level staff in our restaurants will get around 18 000 THB at the bottom of his pay slip. A simple wait staff would have more than that.

Anyways I guess the title of this thread will mostly attract negative comments. I see many foreigners giving moral lessons and explaining how it should be done in Thailand. My question to those is what have you achieved in this country and what qualifies you to judge our practices ? This business is a Thai business with over 1000 people and 48 outlets who are actually trying hard every day. Our shops and restaurants are busy in Phuket, Bangkok and Singapore. I am proud of what we are achieving. I am proud of our dedicated staff members. Personally I will unsubscribe from this thread as I want to keep being positive and enthusiastic about what we are achieving. I thank our numerous patrons, we will keep trying hard for you !