Sainsburys. poor cafe

[Dusty2000]

As I have now pointed out several times the fact I injected first was not the issue I wanted to discuss. Secondly people keep talking about a la carte. It was a cafe menu with about 8 meals on it. All high carb.the cafe was not busy and the assistant was rude. I am not using my diabetes or griping. Recently I am not dealing with carb even with insulin as well as I used to and so an trying to reduce carb as much as possible. I have seen seen people ask to swap items for all sorts of reasons. Even just because they don't like the food and I have never seen such requests denied. I guess I was commenting on that and the rigidity etc. My original post asked if anyone had had similar problems so it would be great if people could answer that. Not really interested in whether you think I was right or wrong just whether people experience problems managing a low carb diet.

 

[Sid Bonkers]

Sorry dusty but the bottom line is if you dont like their menu then dont eat there, simple. Personally I would just eat what I wanted to and left the rest but you seem unable to do that and feel the need to educate every one as to your personal diet. The truth is there are very very few low carbers in this world and those who do follow this route make allowances for this when they eat out, they do not expect every cafe to cater personally for them. Should all restaurants and cafes also sell meal replacement drinks for those on the Newcastle study type diet? No, of course not and there not going to cater for a very small percentage of low carbers either.

As for my suggesting you had a "rant" by your own admission you asked to speak to at least two superiors and now you say it was the assistant who was rude!!

Your diabetic, deal with it, just eat what you want to eat of your chosen meal and leave the rest just as I and every other diabetic does, its not that hard and TBH is the least of a diabetics problems.

 

[angieG]

Sorry to see this is going off at a tangent.
I wemt to a cafe in a local department store a while back and they had finished serving breakfasts. My lovely Mum decided to tell the lady that 'we had a problem as I was diabetic and couldn't eat anything on the menu!' :$ (I was 46 at the time and just on Metformin, bless her!) After resisting the urge to gag her I mentioned to the lady that a breakfast would have been ideal but we were 30mins late, to which she said that would be no problem and they did 2 breakfasts for us.

Please try an email to Sainsbury's customer services and see what they suggest along with raising concern about the incorrect drink - that could be dangerous if it was given to a small diabetic child!
Happy New Year
Angie

 

[Dusty2000]

Sid bonkers as I said before I was not rude nor was I ranting. I asked to see superiors due to the rudeness I had received. Not sure what your diabetic means. What is my diabetic please? I just politely asked. No I don't feel need to educate everybody. As I said am interested in people who have experienced problems with trying to eat a diabetic compatible diet.

 

[jopar]

Osidge

Sorry I'm not ILL..

I have a medical condition that I have to managed 24/7 so that I don't become Ill....

And yes what diet you chose is personally preference, take your example of a lot of places offer a Vegetarian option, a easy thing to achieve as a lot of non vegetarian will often chose this option.... So it's maintains a reasonable business sense...

But that's probably why I've always coped with being diabetic receiving little grieve off others, as I don't see myself as being Ill, so nobody else does either..

I still feel that the situation was blown out of all proportions....

 

[Dusty2000]

First time ever I have had such a problem and first time I have ever complained about a diabetes issue apart from odd occasion when have been given non diet drinks and have mentioned my diabetes then. But actually don't make big issue of it. I was angry on this occasion and mainly because the customer service and attitude was very poor. I posted on here to ask if anyone else had met with such issues.

 

[WhitbyJet]

I am type 2, low carb, no medication - I have never had any problems when eating out, always find myself something suitable on the menu, even wall to wall carb Pizza Hut where I opted for a huge mixed salad and chicken wings.
I have asked in cafes/restaurants to serve my meal without the carby accompaniments, found that 9 times out of 10 staff asked if I would like to have something else instead, on a couple of occasions I paid less for my meal 'because you didnt have the chips' -I found people most helpful, I have never asked anyone to swap any food items for me. Restaurants cannot cater for everyone's dietary needs.

I would have taken issue if a staff member had been rude, I would also have complained for being served sugary coke instead of diet coke.

 

[Dusty2000]

Yes Whitbyjet most places are very helpful and that is always my experience. I guess I asked for something to replace the chips so that I would be full. The carb bit is usually the biggest part of a meal when eating out and the meal I wanted was probablyonot going to be very filling without the chips. Thanks for your comments. It sounds like I am dead fussy but really I am not lol

 

[BarbaraMc]

Hi Dusty
Sorry you had such a poor experience at Sainsburys and on here, I certainly don't think you are fussy, or rude.

As I'm not on insulin, only Metformin, it was less of an issue for me, the menu said 'chips or salad' and I didn't ask for either, nor was I asked which I wanted (I didn't), but the meal arrived under a heap of chips. I just left them on the plate and made a mental note to try and eat elsewhere in future - I actually was not impressed with Sainsburys Lasagne either, not as good as those on the supermarket shelves. When I asked Morrisons to leave off the chips, they immediately offered salad instead, at the same price, and it was beautiful (with fish).

I would definitely complain if given a full-sugar drink instead of diet, and point out it could have had quite serious consequences for some diabetics (even me if driving). I do agree that needs to be directed to their Head Office.

 

[Sid Bonkers]

Not sure what your diabetic means. What is my diabetic please?

For "your" read you're, but you knew that didnt you? You're diabetic and I am dyslexic .

Doug said:

As has been said many times, this forum has a good reputation for support.

And he is right, there are members here who really need support, there are those who are newly diagnosed and sent home scared and frightened with little or no information on their condition or how to deal with it.

There are members here who are struggling (for a variety of reasons) to get their bg levels under control.

There are members here who are or suffering or have suffered serious diabetic complications like kidney failure, heart disease, retinopathy and neuropathy that in some cases has led to amputations.

And you cant find anything to eat in Sainsburys,but it is really a non problem that all diabetics deal with on a day to day basis, its called personal choice.

I shall say no more on this subject nor will I return to this thread so dont bother with further flames as I wont read them.

 

[anna29]

Hi All.

As to get this thread back on a non personal track .
Can we all remember that the OP dusty was struggling with limitation to options
with a fixed menu.

Other places however 'do' offer options/flexibility to their menu's ...

We need to move on in a more positive mode in this thread to prevent any arguements
or further personal attacks .

I have editted some unnecessary comments out of posts to calm things down.
Please can we return to get things more positive and productive for "all" members .

Thanks Anna.

 

[angieG]

When we were in the USA last year on holiday I was amazed (and delighted) to find many of their cafes and diners have low carb options actually flagged up on their menus. In most places it was easy to find a suitable meal. It is a shame that it isn't common practice over here.
Happy New Year
Angie

 

[anna29]

Hi All.
Thinking about when me and hubby have been over to france.
There is a resturant over there called ' Flunch ' here you could have pick of
small portions of starters , they always had a 'lot' of choice with these . :thumbup:
Loads of salady things too , with a little bit of either egg, mixed veg/coleslaw, fish, meat's in them ...

My thing was to choose a couple [two] of these and 'NOT' have a main course

Found I could tollerate this way much better with my digestive system and
best of all - this really did help with my BG levels keeping them much steadier/lower too ...

Now I have remembered this - have asked hubby to take me there again in may 2013

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL .

Anna.

 

[Robinredbreast]

Hi All.

As to get this thread back on a non personal track .
Can we all remember that the OP dusty was struggling with limitation to options
with a fixed menu.

Other places however 'do' offer options/flexibility to their menu's ...

We need to move on in a more positive mode in this thread to prevent any arguements
or further personal attacks .

I have editted some unnecessary comments out of posts to calm things down.
Please can we return to get things more positive and productive for "all" members .

Thanks Anna.

Hi after reading the posts regarding dustys meal at Sainsburys, I agree with what Anna has written.

Dusty, I have never eaten at Sainsburys and since being diagnosed with Coeliac disease, since November, it is even more difficult, but I did have lunch at our Sports Center cafe a few weeks ago, I asked about the soup, which was freshly made Carrot Soup and I told the young man behind the counter that I had Coeliac Disease ( just told him I couldn't eat wheat, as its easier that way) and he phoned his boss and asked about the ingredients in the soup and no gluten,wheat, barley or Rye was added The waitress said they had gluten free bread, but it would have to be defrosted, but that was fine by me. By just asking about the ingredients and the helpful staff, I had a nice lunch with my daughter and my friend, my first GF meal out.
Tomorrow is New Years Eve and for the first time in many, many years we are going out to a church NYE party at 6pm,it says fun and games with light snacks. I rang the number on the card and asked if I could take my own snacks as I have dietary medical conditions and probably wouldn't be able to eat anything and he said yes of course thats fine and he is looking forward to seeing us there. So I am so glad I asked.

From what the OP had first written, it seemed to be that Sainsburys were not so accomadating with the changes asked by OP and thats the main point of thr thread, hopefully Sainsburys will now be more flexible with their customers needs. As I view it, it doesn't appear to be a lot to ask and it couldn't of been such a terrible hardship to the cafe :roll: Good Customer Service should be a the top of any companies list :thumbup:

All the best RRB

 

[princesskerry]

I dont find Sainsburys cafes the best at all, the last time I went in there I waited over half and hour for a bowl of soup which they eventually served me straight from the pot they had behind the till (so I would have thought could have been served a lot faster). I had to ask for the accompanying bread roll and when I tasted it was only just warm - their response was ''we can microwave it for you''.

Never again.

 

[Mamalu]

I have had a similar situation in Sainsburys cafe, ordered a bowl of soup and brown roll, paid for it, sat down with my mother who had ordered cheese tart and salad. Hers came within a couple of minutes, so I assumed mine would come soon too. After a while, I went to the counter to ask about my soup, only to be told that it was sold out. Thank goodness I didn't inject beforehand, as there was nothing else suitable for me. I did complain to the store manager, who was not really very interested. I have since voted with my feet, and eat elsewhere when out shopping.

 

[JanieMc]

I'm with Gazed doughnuts here. It's a dangerous game to take your insulin based on what you assume you'll be eating. If you want low carbs, how do you know how much you will need? Also there's the business of fat absorption. Foods cooked in oil do not really require insulin to be taken 15 mins before because your BG and insulin peaks will be mismatched. When we eat chips for example, we should take our insulin well after the meal or divide our dosage to accommodate the fat. (Easier with a pump tho). I understand the argument of there being so little low carb choice. It doesn't say much about a healthy eating programme. However, that aside, my friend owns a pub that does food. She calculates the price of the set meal on the items offered. It can drastically alter profits when a president is set for people altering that. I support you completely on the sugary pop thing. It drives me crackers when that happens. It's labelled as diet above the counter and is connected to liquid glucose!

 

[56hambro]

If you had already injected, surely you needed to have some carbohydrates ?

 

[kingofthetill]

I have never had a prob with any supermarket cafe, if the meal looks to large or not what I fancy I explain my situation and ask for something on the children's menu then estimate what amount of insulin I need when the meal is in front of me.

 

[Dusty2000]

Well yes I did need some carbs but not the.end amount available. But anyway on a related topic the problem of getting full sugar drinks when ordering diet ones is quite bad. Seems to happen and lot to me especially when it is non branded drink as for some reason the diet ones have a very sweet taste. Think I will stick to water. Drink water a lot but sometimes want a change though

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