10/10/12
425 Post Cards sent out today!
Huddle House has been around for 47 years and has restaurants in 19 states.
The Rip Off Report
Report: #941272
Complaint Review: Huddle House, Inc
Related Ripoff ReportsHuddle House, Inc Huddle House Restaurants Violates Mastercard Requirements for Credit Cards Atlanta, GA
Huddle House, Inc
Corp HQ, 5901 Peachtree-Dunwoody, Suite B450
Atlanta Georgia 30328
Mastercard and Visa have rules for merchants who take their cards, this location decided that they were going to start requiring 'ID' from customers using cards. This clearly violates their Mastercard agreements and Mastercard has an internet site for such complaints about card violations. I have made a complaint about the below to http://www.mastercard.us/support/merchant-violations.html
This complaint regards one unit of the 400+ units of the Atlanta based restaurant chain:
Huddle House at
430 S. Marietta Pkwy SE
Marietta, GA 30060
Tel: 770-424-3784
I have been eating at their Marietta location for 2 1/2 years, probably once a week between 1:30 and 3:30 pm, that is about 130 meals. I am not their best customer but the wait staff know without asking what I have to drink and that I want 2 packets of dressing with my salad. So I am not a stranger to this Huddle House location.
This is my first complaint to their HQ, sent to 3 people whose email addresses I found online:
Sept 4, 2012
Dear Sirs:
I have patronized your Marietta, Georgia location for about 2 1/2 yrs, probably once a week.
Today I had a small meal (Cost $5.02 + $2 tip) and went to pay and the waitress asked me for my 'ID'. I refused. Not only do I not show Huddle House my ID, I refuse to show anyone other than a Police Officer my 'ID'.
I am also quite well aware that the merchant agreements for Visa and Mastercard prohibit the merchant from asking for additional identification as long as the card is signed. Mine was signed.
Some other employees got involved and one older waitress who I knew from prior visits told me that this was 'for my protection'.
The world is in a pretty darn poor state when I have to rely on a Huddle House waitresses protect me. Your employees are not KGB Border guards and they have absolutely no right to demand that I show them my identification.
I am using the Mastercard complaint site below to file a violation against your chain for attempting to require me to provide identification.
Eventually they took the card without any additional ID and I made sure to let the staff and the other diners there know just why I would not return to a Huddle House and the reason.
Bill H
former Huddle House customer
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I never got any reply from their HQ. I thought I would try a second time, this is what I found and I put in this follow up complaint via email to 3 people at their HQ:
Sept. 13, 2012
Two weeks ago I sent you the below email in complaint about your Marietta location. Of course I never got any reply.
Despite this I did return to the location today for lunch. Entering I saw all manner of tacks signs posted to the effect that customers had to provide their ID if using a credit card.
Just to be sure I went to the register and asked if they were serious about this nonsense. They were and I told the fry cook that I had been eating there for 2 1/2 yrs and I was not about to show any ID and that I would not be eating there today or any day.
I am filing another complaint against your location today with Mastercard and sending them photos of those signs. It is entirely against both Visa and Mastercard regulations for any firm to require customers to provide additional ID if the card is signed.
I am also going post complaints on consumer blog sites about your firm, including the Rip Off Report.
Bill H
I am no longer a customer of Huddle House.
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Subject: Re: Huddle House 184 - Marietta, GA
Date: 9/18/2012 4:20:59 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time
From:Consumer2010@aol.com
Reply To cflores@HuddleHouse.com
CC: HuddleHouseWeb@huddlehouse.com, traines@huddlehouse.com,
"We would ask that you immediately remove the complaints that you have posted to Rip Off Report or any other consumer blogs regarding Huddle House"
9/18/2012
Nothing is going to be removed from either the Rip Off Report or my blog site.
As far as I am concerned your Corporate entity had ample notice that this franchisee had been doing this in violation of the card issuers regulations. This was spelled out in my 2 emails to you of earlier this month.
You ignored my initial complaint entirely and you are only now following up on my second complaint. I suspect that the only reason you have bothered to respond at all is that you are now on the Internet, if it hadn't been for this then I am sure you would not have replied at all.
So if you don't like it you had ample opportunity to see that the franchise holder was made aware of the complaint. I also note that you have not even provided to me the information of any contact info for this supposed franchise holder so I have no way to contact this person or his LLC, I have only your statement that you have passed this on to the person. This alone tells me that you really don't have any interest in having the matter taken in hand.
I am shortly going to put up some additional blog sites showing what a poor firm that Huddle House is so that consumers can avoid your chain.
Harris
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Subject: Huddle House 184 - Marietta, GA
Date: 9/18/2012 3:06:22 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time
From: cflores@HuddleHouse.com
To: Consumer2010@aol.com
Dear Mr. Harris:
Thank you for taking the time to write us. The Huddle House restaurant in Marietta, Georgia is independently owned and operated by a franchisee. The franchisee is the entity who would be governed by any merchant agreements with the credit card company and therefore, the franchisee must address this matter with you. A copy of your email has been sent to the franchisee with a request that they follow up with you concerning this matter.
We would ask that you immediately remove the complaints that you have posted to Rip Off Report or any other consumer blogs regarding Huddle House, Inc. as these complaints imply that Huddle House, Inc., rather than the franchisee, is involved in this matter.
Thank you,
Carmen Flores, Administrative Assistant
=================================
From: Consumer2010@aol.com [mailto:Consumer2010@aol.com]
Sent: Friday, September 14, 2012 4:43 PM
To: Tara Raines; Jeremy Lee; Carmen Flores
Subject: COMPLAINT NOW ON THE INTERNET.
As mentioned in my prior complaints to you I have now put the matter on the internet at: http://www.ripoffreport.com/huddle-house-inc/restaurants/atlanta-georgia-06D5A.htm
Bill Harris
======== ANOTHER COMPLAINT FYI ============
Reported By: babygirl123 — Columbia Tennessee
Huddle House,
173 Village Lane
Hazard Kentucky 41701
phone: 606 436-5733
Web: facebook/ huddle house/ dawn couch
Category: Restaurants
HUDDLE HOUSE kicked us out of restaurant for cleaning our own table after waiting for 30 mins, Hazard, Kentucky
I have a friend that went into your Hazard, Kentucky location today and was not able to find a clean table, when she cleared the table the FEMALE MANAGER, Dawn Couch got very mean and asked her to leave and to take her "n*gger" baby with her!!!
Is this common practice for your business?
This IS WRONG!! If you don't have enough people to keep the place clean so that other incoming customers don't have to clear their own tables then HIRE MORE PEOPLE!
And to speak to people because they have children of another race that way is DEFINATELY A NO-NO! Maybe there needs to be classes in how not to be PREJUDICED! How to TREAT ALL PEOPLE WITH RESPECT!
My friend was in tears when she left there, vowing to NEVER enter another Huddle House!
Oh and she wasn't even given the chance to eat... so that is more money your company lost! Just so I know are all Huddle Houses staffed with Bigots?
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In looking up Huddle House online I found loads of complaints. Here are some from the site Trip Advisor FYI:
AngelaMilchak Chattanooga, Tennessee
Senior Reviewer 6 reviews
"Never saw such lazy people"
Reviewed August 8, 2012
Never got a seat, we finally left cause there were tables open but they were dirty and nobody not even the manager seemed to want to clean them. I guess they didn't want any service.
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aintbs Georgia Senior Contributor 36 reviews
"Cannot recommend"
Reviewed September 5, 2012
Don't get me started on this place. The worst food I have ever had in my life. I will say there chicken is good, but stay away from the breakfast meals!
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ndirish55 virginia Senior Contributor 28 reviews
"Like flies?"
Reviewed May 24, 2012
Most disgusting restaurant we have ever been, booth next to us had leftover food on table, sat next to windows, must have been hundred flies on window , food, buzzing around, floor, counter filthy, we left.
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HighwayStarManny Casselberry, Florida, United States
"long wait, bad food, terrible service"
Reviewed May 23, 2012
rude waitresses, didn't get my food order correctly when asked why, she said we didnt have what you wanted. terrible food, got food poisoning. will not visit again.
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earl w Gainesville, Georgia
Senior Reviewer 6 reviews
"cold food"
Reviewed March 1, 2012
I will not eat at this place again. Sorry, just bad food.
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RoadBiker5458 Asheboro, North Carolina
"YUCK"
Reviewed June 25, 2011
We went to the Huddle House in Dillsboro NC; the place had a 93 grade but it should have been a 39. I had to get three forks before I got one that didn't have food stuck between the forks. The place was nasty; we should have walked out and the service was just as bad. we didn't even got to the rest room because of the way the eating area looked it was probably worse. Please don't take your family here to eat.
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vacasonbudgetGA Lawrenceville, Georgia
"Do NOT eat here. Do NOT order take out."
Do NOT go to the Huddle House. It's complete chaos there. We placed a ToGo order from our hotel and were told it would be ready in 15 min...... My GF got there in 15 min and THAT'S when they started our order. And Guess what??? There were No bags for ToGo orders so we got our food in a small trash bag. The girl took our order over the phone but didn't tell us they were out of ALL ToGo forks, spoons, knives, butter, salt/pepper.
How were we supposed to eat our breakfast since we were staying at a hotel and didnt have access to a kitchen? Maybe their manager cheated to pass his GED. Was he too high to think about ordering enough supplies for one of the busiest months??? He was no where to be found by the way.
Also, she got back to the room and took our platters out of our cute little trash bag and realized our complete order wasn't there.... She had to walk back to Huddle House, get the REST of our order and go to WENDY'S to get freakin' silverware. We will just go to Wendy's next time we want a fast and good hot meal that INCLUDES SILVERWARE to eat with. Plus, Wendy's didn't have as many skanky tight-pants wearing (belted to fit below their butt cheeks of course) greasy haired, skateboarding Emo posers smoking Virginia Slims stolen from their grandmothers with emphysema.
Never again will we try this pathetic excuse for a Huddle House. Maybe the cooks and servers are all inbred and dumb. Not their fault they have no common sense. I blame management. Seems like LACK OF MANAGING is the issue here.
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christinacrumbley Gainesville, Georgia
"What the heck happened to this place????"
Well first of all I live about 40 minutes away. Me and my friends come to Helen a few times a year and always eat several times at this Huddle House. What happened? I didn't know any of the servers and I don't believe they even knew how to do their job. The short ugly hairy cook was not in uniform and talking on his phone while cooking. Yuck! This was a Saturday around 12:30.
The place was a mess and everyone kept walking outside to smoke and talk on their phones. Well, needeless to say but our food was terrible. We usually eat there at night when we are finished enjoying Helen's late night activities but I must say that we will never ever go back again. Whoever owns thisplace now needs to get in check and rehire the old staff we used to love! All the other businesses told us about how that place has gone down the crapper but wow!
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rudyblue evansga
"Huddle house from Hell, Helen,Ga"
Unorganized insanity.. We waited 45 minutes for our food. Numerous people came in behind us.20-30 minutes later. They got their food while our digbat waitress walked around in la la land. We asked about our food numerous times. We finally just got up and walked out in total disguist.
Why Huddle house allows this sorry excuse for a restaurant to stay open with their name is beyond me. I will never got to any Huddle House anywhere after this. Their business license should be revoked.
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KD1055 Oak Ridge,TN
"Just Yuck"
First of all, there wasn't very many people in there at the time we went but if took forever to get our food. The eggs were overdone and everything was bland. Another person in our party ordered the Belgium Waffle which was undercooked. Refills were not coming fast enough and at one point, the waitress took a glass to refill it and never came back. The bathroom was dirty but then the restaurant itself wasn't very clean.
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gdfisher washington, dc
"Something fishy going on at Huddle House Franklin, VA"
2/3/10..tried to pay 13.00 check with Huddle House gift card, bought 12/09, at Franklin, Va restaurant..waitress freaked out..."trouble with gift cards...computer won't take them...don't know how to make it work"...so I.paid the 13.00 check in cash and called to check the gift card balance when I got home...balance on 20.00 gift card was around 6.00 meaning that the card went through and I paid the bill in cash so what did they do with the 13.00 extra in the cash register?..watch out for your wallet in Franklin, VA and whatever you do, don't use the gift card that somebody paid their hard-earned money for because Huddle House in Franklin, Va doesn't take Huddle House gift cards.
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gayinoakpark Oak Park, IL
Contributor11 reviews Reviews in 10 cities 33 helpful votes
"Stay away!"
I preface this damning review by recognizing that we went there at 10 AM on a Saturday morning while Oktoberfest was going on. We stood outside in line for 30 minutes. Everyone in line could see through the windows that half the tables in the restaurant were unoccupied but covered with dirty dishes left by previous patrons.
I finally excused myself through to the head of the line, entered the restaurant and asked why they thought is was OK for customers to stand in line for half an hour while half the tables in the restaurant had not been reset.
The breathtaking answer I got was, "We can't reset the tables because we have no clean dishes or silverware!" Any guesses about what connection this employee was not making with a statement like that?????? We left. Who would trust food prepared by people like this?
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SandyGadd Chattanooga, TN
"Worst Place I've Ever Tried To Eat At"
First, we had to wait a bit, but that was ok, met some really nice people while waiting.....when it came our turn, the waitres took our drink order and we never heard from her again for a long time...one couple in front of us was already eating within ten minutes of being seated, which was ok....then we got our drinks finally.....our order was then taken which was about 30 minutes after being seated...two other separate groups were eating before we got our drinks, which was ok too...then iI over-heard a groups say their eggs were not done.....they packed up and left food and all...we should of done the same thing...the cashier was not sympathetic at all...my bacon was not done as I had asked it to be, my eggs also weren't done...white runny, which is really gross to me, my biscuit and gravy looked like a "no offense to Krystal", a square biscuit/roll.....the absolute worst dining experience I've ever had ...no discount was even offered. I've worked in a restaurant and I know the customer is always right! They need more help, was really pittifull!
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chasm4u Chattanooga, Tennessee
Top Contributor61 reviews Reviews in 28 cities 248 helpful votes
"I know its a huddle house but even they have standards"
Wrong food brought to us twice.
Food was ok but slow service.
Took 45 minutes to get a big house breakfast and an omlete.
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FYI: Huddle House and the Courts:
Published Wednesday, April 18th, 2012 - Times Free Press
Read story at:
http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2012/apr/18/twins-fired-after-huddle-house-flap/
Twins from Trenton, Ga., were fired from their Huddle House jobs earlier this week after they complained on Facebook about their boss.
Joshua and Kasey Griffith lost their jobs after they called their manager lazy because she wouldn't give them time off after the death of their mother, according to Kasey Griffith's Facebook account.
Huddle House field marketing manager Jeremy Lee said he was unsure exactly why the two were fired from the corporate-owned store. But the Huddle House human resources department was looking into the situation.
"We know as a fact that they were allowed time off," he said. "There was definitely sympathy out there for that situation."
The two lost their mother last Friday. According to Kasey Griffith's Facebook page, Joshua Griffith was fired from his job Sunday after posting an angry message on Facebook about his boss.
The store's staff declined to comment on the firings, and the Times Free Press was unable to reach the Griffiths for comment. Lee said Huddle House does not have a specific policy about what restaurant employees may post on Facebook and other social media sites.
Georgia is an "at-will" employment state, meaning that employees work at the will of the employer and can be fired for any reason except for those prohibited by federal law such as race, gender, religion or sexual orientation.
The Griffiths' problem has become increasingly common among social media users struggling to find the line between private and public communication. Employers increasingly are relying on social media sites like Facebook to screen potential job candidates.
"Facebook isn't a party, where it sometimes stays at the party," said David Moon, president of the Social Media Alliance of Chattanooga. "Regardless of how you lock down your social media account, it's out there."
Moon likened the backlash against employers who check up on employees' social media accounts to the uproar caused when workers realized employers could read their office emails.
"It's always been a problem," he said. "People think that's an invasion of privacy, but you've got to look at it from 30,000 feet. It's not, really. It's good business practice."
The best way to avoid problems down the road is for users simply not to post anything they wouldn't want to be discovered later. Even with the strictest privacy settings, once a user makes a post the information is out of their hands and out there on the Internet.
"The best advice is just don't do it," Moon said. "I've had four-letter words in my conversations from time to time, but that's not how I want to put myself out there as a professional."
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Below is just one of the many actions where various Huddle House locations and franchises end up in Federal Court.
Here are 2 pages of one of those actions against Angs Group, Inc DBA as Huddle House in Missippi.
This is not an uncommon sort of complaint where Jackie Anderson 'on his own behalf and on behalf of those similarly situation' files against the Huddle House for 'Recovery of Overtime Compensation'.
In Sept 2009, Plaintiff Jackie Anderson was hired as an hourly paid cook and in March 2010 was promoted to a salaried Assistant Manager position, working at that position until Nov. 2011, at less than $455 per week.
The duties included scheduling, making bank deposits and ordering food and during this time worked for the Defendant in excess of 40 hours a week, this work was not paid at the one and a half times the regular rate for those hours over 40 in one week as is required by the Fair Labor Standards Act. Presently the matter is still before the Court.
for a larger image right click then open in a new window:
