Available upon request - fee or no fee that is the question...

I agree and disagree, but probably because I expect things to cost
extra. Plus I work with food, and I'm not surprised, nuts ALWAYS cost
extra. :\ I however think if the voice in the box said it was $5.94
then it should have stayed that price, and they should have double
checked if you still wanted the nuts at the window and said "I'm
sorry, we failed to say that the nuts cost extra, did you still want
them?" Then if not, they were already ready, and if so, then add the
nuts for an extra 10 seconds of wait time and everyone's happy. They
should have told you when you mentioned the nuts, though, that they
cost extra, if the company isn't smart enough to have the sign
manufactured to say that. The "cashiers" or servers or whatever should
be smart enough to catch on after the first incident and accomodate
the flaw in the signage. Again, it was their fault for rushing the
sundaes and not informing the extra cost, so they should have given
them to you. At my store (grocery store in the southeast) they would
have given them to you at the original price quoted, if not for FREE.
We give free stuff away all the time to reconcile our mistakes (and
then some). People take advantage of us, but atleast the ones that
deserve our kindness get it. Sonic is usually good, too. I hope you
called and complained to a manager of the problem AND rudeness.

I used to have this same problem at the sonic by my house. ABout once
a month I could get a craving for one of the sundays there, well
sometimes I would get charged for nuts, sometimes I wouldnt get
charged for nuts. I always chalked up the "free" nuts to an oversite.

Go to McDonald's. The nuts there, as you pointed out, are free.

It's funny. On the burger part of the menu it says
Add cheese - .50
Add bacon - .75

On the hot dog
Add cheese - .50
Onions available upon request (and those are free)

My Sonic doesn't charge extra for nuts. They're free but 'available
upon request'.

It doesn't say the nuts are free either so why do you expect them to
be?

Perhaps you should have just gone home and cut up some fruit, that
would have been a more nutritious snack without the hassle.



Good Day

I'm wondering....

you're upset that they threw out the sundaes you said you didn't want
to pay for.


what were you expecting them to do with the sundaes then?

I think that the main issue here is that the sign in ambiguous.

It does not say "FREE Nuts Available Upon Request", and it does not
say "Nuts Available Upon Request for 25 Cents". It simply establishes
that they are available. One reason I can think of that it might be
done this way is that each location sets its own price for nuts.
Whatever the reason, I think it could have been designed better. The
way it is right now, it leaves the customer to assume, which just
causes more confusion. I think it would be better to make everything
clear and not leave anything up to the customer's assumptions.

You are exactly right and make several good points. If it's noted on
the menu and carries an extra charge then that extra charge should be
noted on the menu also.

And if nuts are available but not mentioned on the menu and there is
an extra charge to order them, then the cashier should tell you about
the extra charge before you pay.

The whole idea of throwing away six sundaes because of this issue is
ridiculous. Nuts to that!

Wow, they just threw them away? How wasteful. I think the menu board
should say that the nuts cost extra, or when you order, you should be
informed. I'm not a fan of surprise costs.

Nuts are expensive. I don't care if McDonalds charges for them or
not.

If the sign says "Nuts are available on request," I would expect to
pay for them.

However, you can't pay for them if they don't charge you.

Perhaps the employee was dealing with more important tasks, such as
serving sugar-free beverages to diabetics. That might explain missing
the fact that you should have been charged for them. You can fully
expect Sonic employees to walk and chew gum at the same time, but you
better be prepared if they trip when they blow bubbles.

The budding brain surgeon at the window should have just given them to
you at the quoted price, in my opinion, and then have walked over and
smacked the person up the side of the head who rang them up wrong.
Even if they were occupied making sure a person got the right drink,
that is no excuse for anything less than perfection.

The price quoted should have included the nuts.

I disagree about the sign though. Even those few of us responding to
this letter don't agree if "available on request" means it will cost
more. Seems like good customer service to post that there is as
additional charge. Make it easier on the employees and customers
both.

I would have assumed the nuts were free, but the sign was there to let
you know that you could have them if you asked for them...In today's
world, where everyone's mother is deathly allergic to peanuts or nuts,
that's just how I would have interpreted the sign, *shrug*