REVIEW
My experiences at Jersey Mike's Subs in most locations has always been pleasant, however, this evening things took a turn for the worse. My wife and I received a Value Pack coupon from Jersey Mike's in the mail and decided to take advantage of it. The issuing location was the store at 17655 W 12 Mile Rd in Lathrup Village, MI on the SE corner of W 12 Mile Rd and Southfield Rds. What you're about to read is one of the reasons why I started my blog in the first place. I'm gonna say some things that most people are afraid to, but need to be said, so buckle up and enjoy the ride.
My wife arrived at the Lathrup Village location at around 6:15 p.m. Friday evening on the 15th of July 2016. When she stepped through the door there was only one customer ahead of her who was patiently awaiting to receive her food. After one of the seven employees took my wife's order, three other customers walked in. As my wife was waiting for her food to be prepared (a 15 minute wait), all three of the customers who had come in after her (and after she placed her order) received their orders before her. My wife, who says little, and complains even less, asked a question directly to a counter employee asking if it's their policy to make subs ahead of customers who had ordered their food before others even walked through the door? Four employees looked directly at her but didn't say a word in response. They knew she was there and heard what she asked, but chose to ignore her completely. A few minutes later a woman employee walked right up to my wife, purposely turned her head in the opposite direction, stared at a wall, held the bag of sandwiches with her arm fully extended and didn't say a word. There was no, "Thank you", "Have a nice day", or "Drop dead." Nothing. She made my wife feel as though she was a leper.
We've noticed that at some other restaurants in this area that some on their staff seem to emit racial overtones. Obviously this isn't the policy of Jersey Mike's or any other food service company. But I've seen or heard of it happening at Olga's and Panera Bread who's locations are in the same proximity of Lathrup Village. The perception is that there is a small fraction of folks working in that area, (who may or may not actually live in that area) who exhibit racial misconduct. If you are visiting Lathrup Village and find yourself wanting to get a bite to eat, you may want to brace yourself for the possibility of having a negative dining experience due to the prejudice that is sometimes displayed within that area.
I don't mind being patient waiting for my food to be cooked to order, but knowing that I'm purposely being ignored is a whole other matter. What's more, this isn't a one time occurrence. We've experienced this many times in this area over the years. Sometimes we notice it happening to other patrons who are dining out at the same location at the same time as us. At Olga's it's a rarity that we get the cold shoulder, but it does happen every now and then depending on who is working the floor that day. In the end, no one knows who the offending party is. All we know to remember is the brand of the establishment who employs them. That's who takes the black eye. In this case Jersey Mike's Subs is wearing a real shiner.
Some working in Lathrup Village go out of their way to get the point across that we don't belong. It's a gang mentality. We get the message. This isn't Jersey Mike's corporate policy or image they strive to project. Any Bozo can see that. Still, they are employing people who have this negative attitude and position them in their store. Ultimately, this reflects badly on the corporate body's image.
You can't see it, touch it or smell it, but the negative vibe exuding from those seven staff members at the Jersey Mike's location in Lathrup was like a pungent offensive odor. It's alarming. One might ask that if it's so bad in Lathrup Village why keep going back? For one thing, I'm willing to give people the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps they were having an off day. For another, it's close to home and where I've gone shopping and dining for years. But, for it to happen on a consistent basis over a long period of time, in that same geographic area, eventually someone has got to say something.
For some unknown reason, there seems to be a real element of racial tension in this area, which can be felt right away. I don't know why, but I receive decent courteous treatment while I'm in Detroit's establishments opposed to when I'm in some establishments in Lathrup Village. I've never received any racial abuse from the fine folks who live and work in Detroit, and I used to work those streets every day. I've seen and heard gun shots in the D, but no one was ever discourteous to me. Compared to business establishments in Lathrup, it's like night and day. Like I said, it's much different in Lathrup Village. It's a pity too, because not all shops there behave this way. And, I'm sure that not all employees at the offending establishments believe this is the correct way to act. If this behavior isn't tolerated by the on site manager who supervises his staff every day, that sentiment will trickle down to the least of their employees. There has to be an element of accountability present, and it's the responsibility of management to see that their policy of intolerance toward negative social behavior is met with some form of actual discipline.
If inappropriate behavior is tolerated or even encouraged by an on site manager, we have a problem on our hands. It only takes one bad experience to destroy a company's standing in the hearts and minds of a jilted customer. So far, the Jersey Mike's in Lathrup seems to be excelling at repelling a certain fraction of their customer base. If it's not stopped, pretty soon it spreads throughout the entire community. If we look closely at the situation we'll realize that it's not Jersey Mike's who has brought this infestation to their store willingly. This unwanted culture infiltrated it's way into Jersey Mike's like mold behind decaying wood paneling. Without regular cleaning maintenance this mold will continue to spread. In fact, how the manager goes, so goes the staff. If the manager keeps a sharp eye out for those who are acting inappropriately and takes action right away, eventually the problem won't exist. Upper, mid and lower management needs to take control of this situation before a good location goes down in flames. I'm not blaming the current upper management in this case, but I am placing part of the blame on the management who holds the keys to that one store. I'm also blaming the team member who see's this behavior going on and does nothing to report it.
Apparently the Area Mgr has several stores he is responsible for. All of the other locations I have visited under his guidance seem to be operating at a high standard. It may be that he simply needs to clean house and get new personnel at the Lathrup store. Perhaps bringing workers in from a different area nearby who know how to lead with positive energy will be the answer. Infusing good people into a bad location will often lift the standards higher than what was expected. It boils down to leadership.
Those who know me know that I'm not big on political correctness, so I don't really care if I receive some backlash regarding this review. I know that 'race' is a buzz word that most people are hesitant to use, especially in today's overly sensitive political and racial climate. Personally, I don't care about the pigmentation of someone's skin or their ethnic background. As far as I'm concerned, we're all pink on the inside. No one is better than anyone else. Our personal worth is not up for grabs. However, our behavior and performance is up for grabs. The behavior and performance at the Lathrup store on this occasion was unacceptable. What I care about is treating others the way I'd like to be treated, especially if we're in the food service industry interacting with customers. If a food service company advertises good food and courteous service for a fee, that's what the patron should receive. Why should we settle for anything less? The food service provider is in the position they are in because they asked to be there. If they didn't, they should have never applied for the job. The staff at the Jersey Mike's in Lathrup Village doesn't seem to grasp this concept. At the moment all they are serving up is a bad attitude.
I don't mind being patient waiting for my food to be cooked to order, but knowing that I'm purposely being ignored is a whole other matter. What's more, this isn't a one time occurrence. We've experienced this many times in this area over the years. Sometimes we notice it happening to other patrons who are dining out at the same location at the same time as us. At Olga's it's a rarity that we get the cold shoulder, but it does happen every now and then depending on who is working the floor that day. In the end, no one knows who the offending party is. All we know to remember is the brand of the establishment who employs them. That's who takes the black eye. In this case Jersey Mike's Subs is wearing a real shiner.
Some working in Lathrup Village go out of their way to get the point across that we don't belong. It's a gang mentality. We get the message. This isn't Jersey Mike's corporate policy or image they strive to project. Any Bozo can see that. Still, they are employing people who have this negative attitude and position them in their store. Ultimately, this reflects badly on the corporate body's image.
You can't see it, touch it or smell it, but the negative vibe exuding from those seven staff members at the Jersey Mike's location in Lathrup was like a pungent offensive odor. It's alarming. One might ask that if it's so bad in Lathrup Village why keep going back? For one thing, I'm willing to give people the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps they were having an off day. For another, it's close to home and where I've gone shopping and dining for years. But, for it to happen on a consistent basis over a long period of time, in that same geographic area, eventually someone has got to say something.
For some unknown reason, there seems to be a real element of racial tension in this area, which can be felt right away. I don't know why, but I receive decent courteous treatment while I'm in Detroit's establishments opposed to when I'm in some establishments in Lathrup Village. I've never received any racial abuse from the fine folks who live and work in Detroit, and I used to work those streets every day. I've seen and heard gun shots in the D, but no one was ever discourteous to me. Compared to business establishments in Lathrup, it's like night and day. Like I said, it's much different in Lathrup Village. It's a pity too, because not all shops there behave this way. And, I'm sure that not all employees at the offending establishments believe this is the correct way to act. If this behavior isn't tolerated by the on site manager who supervises his staff every day, that sentiment will trickle down to the least of their employees. There has to be an element of accountability present, and it's the responsibility of management to see that their policy of intolerance toward negative social behavior is met with some form of actual discipline.
If inappropriate behavior is tolerated or even encouraged by an on site manager, we have a problem on our hands. It only takes one bad experience to destroy a company's standing in the hearts and minds of a jilted customer. So far, the Jersey Mike's in Lathrup seems to be excelling at repelling a certain fraction of their customer base. If it's not stopped, pretty soon it spreads throughout the entire community. If we look closely at the situation we'll realize that it's not Jersey Mike's who has brought this infestation to their store willingly. This unwanted culture infiltrated it's way into Jersey Mike's like mold behind decaying wood paneling. Without regular cleaning maintenance this mold will continue to spread. In fact, how the manager goes, so goes the staff. If the manager keeps a sharp eye out for those who are acting inappropriately and takes action right away, eventually the problem won't exist. Upper, mid and lower management needs to take control of this situation before a good location goes down in flames. I'm not blaming the current upper management in this case, but I am placing part of the blame on the management who holds the keys to that one store. I'm also blaming the team member who see's this behavior going on and does nothing to report it.
Apparently the Area Mgr has several stores he is responsible for. All of the other locations I have visited under his guidance seem to be operating at a high standard. It may be that he simply needs to clean house and get new personnel at the Lathrup store. Perhaps bringing workers in from a different area nearby who know how to lead with positive energy will be the answer. Infusing good people into a bad location will often lift the standards higher than what was expected. It boils down to leadership.
Those who know me know that I'm not big on political correctness, so I don't really care if I receive some backlash regarding this review. I know that 'race' is a buzz word that most people are hesitant to use, especially in today's overly sensitive political and racial climate. Personally, I don't care about the pigmentation of someone's skin or their ethnic background. As far as I'm concerned, we're all pink on the inside. No one is better than anyone else. Our personal worth is not up for grabs. However, our behavior and performance is up for grabs. The behavior and performance at the Lathrup store on this occasion was unacceptable. What I care about is treating others the way I'd like to be treated, especially if we're in the food service industry interacting with customers. If a food service company advertises good food and courteous service for a fee, that's what the patron should receive. Why should we settle for anything less? The food service provider is in the position they are in because they asked to be there. If they didn't, they should have never applied for the job. The staff at the Jersey Mike's in Lathrup Village doesn't seem to grasp this concept. At the moment all they are serving up is a bad attitude.
Getting back to our unforgettable experience... To make matters worse, they got my wife's order wrong. My wife made sure they knew that her sub couldn't contain jalapeño peppers. She is currently suffering from an acute case of acid re-flux. They didn't need to know why she didn't want jalapenos, they just needed omit them. Someone could get seriously ill if given certain foods that can aggravate a physical condition. Someone could die if they consume an ingredient they're allergic to. I'm sure you would agree.
Anyway, my wife couldn't stand being there any longer so we decided to eat our subs at home. When she unwrapped her sandwich guess what she found? Moocho grande jalapenos. The sub she ordered was the Big Kahuna Cheese-steak, which is dressed with jalapenos, onions and sauteed mushrooms. To her dismay they added the peppers and left off almost all of the mushrooms. Her entire sandwich contained only one mushroom. Was the sandwich maker trying to mock her? Was that his puny attempt at getting her back for asking about the store's serving policy? I guess we'll never know. I do know this: If someone asks to omit an ingredient, and the staff member does it anyway because they think it's funny, and the customer gets sick as a result, that employee is guilty of assault with a spicy weapon.
Personally, my sub tasted fine, but in the back of my mind I'm wondering: If it's possible to treat us badly to our face, what could they do to our order behind our backs without us knowing it? It's a fear a lot of people have. This is one of the reasons why I don't think I'll go back to the Jersey Mike's at the Lathrup location ever again. They've completely lost any sense of trust we may have had for them. It's not the company I'm disappointed in. It's those who work at that specific location. It's too bad too, because we don't live far from there and this location is very convenient for us. Now, we'll have to travel several more miles in the opposite direction to get a Jersey Mike's sub. Also, I feel sorry for the middle management who has to oversee this band of malcontents. I know this is behavior not well tolerated by those who are vested in Jersey Mike's. Letting people go and hiring and training new personnel is time consuming and expensive. Also, it's never an easy task to repair a damaged reputation. Damage control is a headache.
Anyway, my wife couldn't stand being there any longer so we decided to eat our subs at home. When she unwrapped her sandwich guess what she found? Moocho grande jalapenos. The sub she ordered was the Big Kahuna Cheese-steak, which is dressed with jalapenos, onions and sauteed mushrooms. To her dismay they added the peppers and left off almost all of the mushrooms. Her entire sandwich contained only one mushroom. Was the sandwich maker trying to mock her? Was that his puny attempt at getting her back for asking about the store's serving policy? I guess we'll never know. I do know this: If someone asks to omit an ingredient, and the staff member does it anyway because they think it's funny, and the customer gets sick as a result, that employee is guilty of assault with a spicy weapon.
Personally, my sub tasted fine, but in the back of my mind I'm wondering: If it's possible to treat us badly to our face, what could they do to our order behind our backs without us knowing it? It's a fear a lot of people have. This is one of the reasons why I don't think I'll go back to the Jersey Mike's at the Lathrup location ever again. They've completely lost any sense of trust we may have had for them. It's not the company I'm disappointed in. It's those who work at that specific location. It's too bad too, because we don't live far from there and this location is very convenient for us. Now, we'll have to travel several more miles in the opposite direction to get a Jersey Mike's sub. Also, I feel sorry for the middle management who has to oversee this band of malcontents. I know this is behavior not well tolerated by those who are vested in Jersey Mike's. Letting people go and hiring and training new personnel is time consuming and expensive. Also, it's never an easy task to repair a damaged reputation. Damage control is a headache.
Anyway, after this experience, I decided to call the store and ask for the Regional Office phone number. The young woman who answered didn't seem to take my call very seriously. There was a lot of laughing in the background as if the employees didn't have anything else better to do. She yelled, (yes, yelled) to someone near her what the Regional Office number was, came back to me and lied saying that they don't have a Regional Office. Of course I knew this wasn't the case and told her that I'd just call another location and get the number from them.
That being said, I decided to call the Troy, MI location and told one of the Assistant managers about the episode in detail. He was very helpful and agreed that the behaviour displayed at the Lathrup Village location was grossly inappropriate and that he would have their Area Mgr give me a call the next day. He even told me that it's untrue that they don't have a Regional Office. To his credit, he said he would call the Area Manager as soon as he got off the phone with me and relay the situation to him. Within ten minutes the Assistant Manger from Troy called me back apologizing for the behaviour of the Lathrup Village location. He also said that his Area Manager takes these things very seriously and that this isn't the first time people have reported similar complaints about the Lathrup location.
What's lost in all of this is the fact that Jersey Mike's makes one fine tasty sub. Too bad this experience with them was tainted and left a bad taste in my mouth. I love Jersey Mike's Subs, but will no longer put up with the Lathrup Village location's attitude or behavior. If I want a Jersey Mike's sub, I'll be going to the Troy location. It's much further out of our way, but it'd be worth it knowing we'll be treated well. They know how to properly receive and service a customer.
My recommendation is this: If you happen to notice the Jersey Mike's next to Olga's on the SE corner of W 12 Mile Rd in Lathrup Village, BEWARE! They lie, are slow to serve, purposely get orders wrong, play favorites and make you feel unwelcome to be in their store. That's not a place where I want to spend my dining out dollars.
Update: (7/18/2016). I received a call from the Area Manager from Jersey Mike's. All of the managers I spoke with were gracious and courteous. They all seemed genuinely sympathetic to our complaint and very concerned that such a thing would happen under their brand. They apologized for the behavior of those involved and assured me that an investigation has already been launched and steps are being taken to correct the situation. He also attempted to make thing right by offering a couple of free sub cards. I politely refused the cards, but I let him know that his gesture of offering them was more than enough. My goal was to see that the employees at Jersey Mike's of Lathrup Village were aware that this type behavior will not be tolerated and will be met with swift action. Our thanks to those at Jersey Mike's who are comitted to giving their customers an experience that would make them want to return.
I will continue to patronize Jersey Mike's; just not at that location.
Hope this helps somebody.
Happy noshing,
~Bobby
My recommendation is this: If you happen to notice the Jersey Mike's next to Olga's on the SE corner of W 12 Mile Rd in Lathrup Village, BEWARE! They lie, are slow to serve, purposely get orders wrong, play favorites and make you feel unwelcome to be in their store. That's not a place where I want to spend my dining out dollars.
Update: (7/18/2016). I received a call from the Area Manager from Jersey Mike's. All of the managers I spoke with were gracious and courteous. They all seemed genuinely sympathetic to our complaint and very concerned that such a thing would happen under their brand. They apologized for the behavior of those involved and assured me that an investigation has already been launched and steps are being taken to correct the situation. He also attempted to make thing right by offering a couple of free sub cards. I politely refused the cards, but I let him know that his gesture of offering them was more than enough. My goal was to see that the employees at Jersey Mike's of Lathrup Village were aware that this type behavior will not be tolerated and will be met with swift action. Our thanks to those at Jersey Mike's who are comitted to giving their customers an experience that would make them want to return.
I will continue to patronize Jersey Mike's; just not at that location.
Hope this helps somebody.
Happy noshing,
~Bobby
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