Debbie Davies left a two-star review, which praised the food and team members at the Oxton Bar and Restaurant in Birkenhead but hit out at the cost of her meal.
Davies’s review said: “Lovely food and staff are amazing but I can not see how you justify your prices. Small fish and chips £8, and it was small?”
The bar defended its costing and outlined exactly where the money the venues makes from the dish goes.
Dish deconstructed
It replied: “OK Debbie. Where do I begin? Out of that £8, our nasty Government is charging you 20% VAT, which we collect by law on their behalf, so we’re left with £6.66.
“Out of this we need to buy the fresh ingredients, one haddock fillet, get a chef to make everything from scratch, a delicious beer batter, home-made tartare sauce, mushy peas and chunky chips (the whole cost of ingredients for this plate comes to roughly £2.70).
“This leaves us with £3.94 for, which alas our pesky chef expects remuneration!”
The bar then went on to explain how the rest of the money made from the dish goes to paying team members and utilities.
Staff and bills
It added: “Then we realised the ‘lovely’ food doesn’t float to you, so we have to pay ‘amazing’ staff to serve you and clear up after you?!
“Pay utility bills (we need gas to cook, you need lights to see the food). And don’t get me started on business rates.
“So if £3.94 is not justifiable for creating and affording this whole experience with us, you’re welcome to recreate it in the comfort of your own home. I doubt it’ll be long before the Government find a tax for that too.”
The bar’s response had 356 likes on Facebook, 75 people ‘loved’ it, 70 people responded to it with a laughing emoji, four with a shocked face emoji and three put an angry face.
Facebook users hailed the bar's reply. One said: "I think this response is spot on. Well played Oxton!"
Another said :"What a spoilt ungrateful little thing you are did you really pay for this or did you husband is the real question? How about go to a five-star restaurant if you where expecting something five- star class. I would eat this you think your posh? Well your not. Go have a whinge somewhere else you snobby person."
But some users have claimed the venue's comments were "bullying".
One said: "Being a smart mouth does not make you look better, regardless of how popular this rude comment will become. I'd say you deserve a few honest and factual reviews on Yelp and TripAdvisor, so that everyone would know what kind of bullies run this establishment. Oh, and next time you want to appear "smart", have someone look over your hilarious punctuation and run-on sentences."