The Berkeley

Great, lively pub in general. Come here quite a lot as it is cheap and usually has a good atmosphere. Bit of a concerning experience tonight, though. Ordered 2 Kronenbourg. Was given two Strongbow. Easy mistake to make as it was loud in there- no big deal. After my mate and I had taken a sip each and realised we'd been given cider, I took the drinks back to the bar. The lady who served us was mortified and really apologetic. However, another woman- who I presume was the Supervisor- decided to intervene. She immediately told me that I had accepted the drinks as sold and therefore they could not be exchanged. I politely explained that I had asked for Kronenbourg and had been given Strongbow. She asked if I had taken a sip of either drink. I replied that my friend and I had each taken a small sip before realising we'd been served cider. She replied that she therefore could not accept the returned drinks as, due to us having taken a sip, they could not be resold (bit weird). She further argued that, as we had been charged Strongbow prices, it would not be possible to make any kind of exchange. I tried to reiterate, again, that I had not ordered Strongbow but had been served it anyway. She retorted that the drinks were in Strongbow glasses and so I should have realised the mistake before accepting them. Obviously, anyone who has ever been in a pub will know that you don't always get the drink you ordered in a matching glass. The most concerning part of all was that she went on to advise me that the two drinks would need to be poured away as wastage and the full cost would be taken out of the wages of the staff member who served me. I, and other customers next to me at the bar, protested the unfairness of this. The "Supervisor" spat back- as if to justify it- that any wastage that she was responsible for would come out of her wages regardless. The lady who served me seemed very embarrassed and said she would just take the cost out of her wages. The whole thing was handled shockingly by the "Supervisor" who, to be fair, should be miles away from any kind of customer service. I can only hope that the way the poor lady who served me was treated is not representative of the way staff are generally treated at The Berkeley.