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On the hook

Image
By R.
Impressive reach:

The co-founder of Blue C, Steve Rosen wrote us back to say that he loves DeDe too, but in a way that we could never know - she sucked bad enough to can her.

Well, I still find it hard to believe that unless DeDe was embezzling from the company, why management and DeDe couldn't work through their differences, and find a way to retain an experienced, well loved employee. It's a major failing on behalf of the management, and I'll miss DeDe almost as much as I'll miss spending $30 for lunch two times a week.

Here's the email:

Dear R,

Thank you so much for taking the time to email us about your strong affection for DeDe. I completely understand your frustration because she is such an excellent server, and so great with guests--really great. For this reason it was even more frustrating for us to part ways with her.

For obvious reasons I cannot go into any specifics out of respect for DeDe, but it's safe to say that there are two sides to our business as it relates to our employees; the customer facing side and the operations sides. When we have someone who is as strong as Dee Dee is on the guest facing side we always want things to work out because our guests are our lifeline! You are a perfect example of this. Your blog is a real contribution to Tukwila and the fact that you put the energy into it that you do is a real testament to why we wanted to open in Tukwilla in the first place. [well thanks, but you're not off the hook!]

For as much as I wish I could go into details, please know that we never make these decisions casually. In fact we labor over them when it comes to an employee who has many regulars as guests. As a restaurant owner my number one priority is to never alienate our guests. After all, we are trying to provide employment for people, feed our guests at a value during tough economic times, and do our best to make people
happy. So, when a post on a blog goes out without the benefits of all of the facts it can be very damaging. We understand this.

We share in your disappointment. I know without knowing the facts it is hard to get any satisfaction out of this response, but I do really appreciate you taking the time to email us about your feelings. I personally understand where you are coming from and hope you realize that this was an unfortunate loss all the way around. There was not a day when I went to our Southcenter location that I didn't enjoy seeing DeDe. Truly. The fact that you and your colleagues have been such loyal guests makes it all the more tough. If we didn't feel like we could find people who appreciate what we do we would never have opened at Southcenter.

Best regards,

Steve Rosen
Co-Founder, Blue C Sushi

Comments

Anonymous said…
I sent Blue C a note when I read your posting. I wonder how many other readers shared their distress.
March 23, 2009 at 12:08 PM
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