Egg based outrage at EDD...now quite scared

[bawdy-nan]

On Good Friday I popped into EDD near closing time to buy a piece of cheese. I was alarmed to be witness to a very ugly "discussion". A customer, who seemed to be spending a truly ludicrous amount of money on chocolate based egg-style tat, was being faced down by the Napoleon in charge. Apparently she'd knocked over some bunny/egg confection in the pile it high sell it even higher room of precarious display and damaged it. The squat wee fella in charge was insisting she pay for it. She insisted she wasn't to blame, rather the over ambitious display. Teeny tiny Tim pointed, stony faced, to the large bag of similarly damaged goods citing the "good" customers who'd paid up without complaint or even the desire to take away the broken goods.

Our determined lady insisted she wouldn't pay and they haggled, humourlessly, until they reached an agreement of sorts.

Meanwhile I'd persuaded someone to serve me my cheese. I tried to leave only to find he'd locked the door!

He took her 70 quid and told her she was "out of order" she took her bag of fancy easter fayre.

I secured the help of a lowly wiping assistant and legged it.

Commerce won in the end, presumably because all other available chocolate egg outlets were closed and this woman had some serious confectionery promises to fulfil.

I've found the man grumpy before but this was very very strange and possibly the worst and most ungracious exchange i've witnessed in a ED shop.

Am I safe to return to EDD?

[georgia]

Egg-traordinary behaviour. Especially as she was spending ?70 on chocolate anyway. Have to say have never been in there and maybe I won't bother now..

[MadWorld74]

I think (unless he was having a spat with someone else as well!) that I was in there at the same time. The lady knocked over a yellow plastic and fake feather chicken type thing off the middle table...she may have knocked over an egg I don't know. I saw the squat man wading over and we just left there and then. They have some nice stuff in there, but it aint cheap cheap! (excuse the pun)

[ratty]

Boycotted!

[Spurling_Roader]

EDD sells delicious goods and it's an excellent (if pricey) deli but I've always found their staff to be rather grumpy. Such a shame as its a real asset to Lordship Lane.

[jim_the_chin]

there's not room to change your mind in that shop

[louisiana]

They do some quite good bread (the cheese is better at The Cheese Block in my view), but staff can be extremely offhanded, and with all that STUFF they had in over Easter there wasn't enough room to swing a mouse, never mind a cat. I'm not surprised things got knocked over - it's their own fault.

Louisiana

[Polly D]

The bloke who is always working there (maybe the manager but not the owner) is a real know-it-all (although to be fair he once popped a loaf of bread in my bag of goodies near closing time). Not long ago I was in there and the owner was ranting soooooooooo loudly on his mobile in the middle of the shop to a supplier who was chasing him for an outstanding bill. Mr Owner was telling him how much he spends with him and therefore there was no need to chase him for the money. Obnoxious bloke; why does he think his customers wanted to hear that? Frankly put me off going in there again, which is a shame as there are some v tasty things (although extremely expensive).

[SimonM]

Locking the Door = "Fale Imprisonment". He will do that to the wrong person one day...

A shame as I love the shop - it;s the only local outlet I know, supermarkets included, for strong French bread flour...

[bawdy-nan]

To be fair, I think the door locking thing was more to do with the fact he was closing and didn't want anyone else in the shop. Nevertheless it made my heart beat faster as I realised my escape was blocked.

[Scruffy Mummy]

The crucial question is - were the eggs Fair Trade Chocolate or not?

[OutOfFocus]

ratty Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Boycotted!

me too

I have always felt put off it, if they can treat customer in such away they don't deserve my custom.

[Huguenot]

Ooooh, I'd have enjoyed that one ;-)

The pile of previously broken display goods almost suggests that he was deliberatly placing surreptitious hurdles in the way of his customers! The locked door...

I shall keep my elbows hoisted next time I buy some Andalucian wild boar!

[Recuerda]

I also find them fairly un-customer focused and have boycotted the place since Christmas when I was over-charged for some already over-priced item and then them refusing to back down. Even when I pointed to their window display which clearly had the item I had bought at a cheaper price he wouldn't budge. Basically I think the bloke is a bit of a git.

[Nero]

I only go there infrequently, but when I do I always have had average-to-good service. Once I was given free bread as it was the end of the day. It is too expensive though, and badly laid out. There needs to be more room for the customers at the counter. Nero

[mockney piers]

They used to have a lovely Spanish girl working there, a Valenciana if memory serves me, and she was always a ray of sunshine, but has returned to La Patria I believe.

I do sometimes find it a bit intimidating in there I have to say, but the produce is good especially if you can't be arsed to go to Borough Market. But don't expect any change from .. well, don't expect any change.

[Dodo1]

I would tell tony (the Owner). He would be shocked to hear about this.

[Jo]

That's outrageous. But I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who feeels intimidated in there - that youngish guy who is always in there watches like you're a criminal when all you fancy is some overpriced pesto and a nice ciabatta, and then can't be fashed to find even a smile when you hand over your tenner...

[karter]

I go in there all the time. Jay is a nice guy. Its hard to work in there i think, you just need to get to know him. Of course everyone has a right to their say though.

[Keef]

He doesn't exactly sound like an easy, or desirable person to get to know though :-S

[louisiana]

I've been in a fair few times over the last four years, though I'm not a regular for the following reasons. The only person with a smile was the Spanish woman (now no longer there?) Visiting friends of staff (not buying anything) seem to take precedence (interminable discussions) over paying customers, and scowls are far too common. Too much space is given over to stock, which makes those queuing up uncomfortable - you can't move without hitting something or somebody. Sometimes you just can't move. The only things I will go in there for now are: one kind of bread and one specific type of pasta that I can't get elsewhere easily. I won't go in there on a Saturday at all.

Louisiana

[ivemet-jimmy]

I agree with HUGUENOT! one would think that there would be a certain amount of risk assesment when it comes to putting up such a desplay! If you consider that someone might accidently knock the desplay over, then you would have to presume that its a bad idea?!

[Ko]

The man who made the lady pay sounds like a real bully. He should be ashamed of himself.

[*Bob*]

I've never had cause to raise an eyebrow at the service in there, though I haven't been in on Saturdays, during 'rush hour'. It's a nice shop because it *is* piled high with stuff, but it's true that if you put up a display that can be reached by the public you should make allowances for it being knocked over by accident. Especially in an area so heavily populated by people with young children.

Why people insist on wheeling their prams in there when it's busy, I don't know. It's not as as you can't keep an eye on them - there's an eight 12-foot pane of glass in front of the shop.

[Keef]

Poor woman probably couldn't think straight at the time, but it's a shame she didn't get her mobile out and call the police there and then! That would have scared the liitle git!