Reader Nathan writes:
Here’s a story about how Cinnabon gave me some free churros:I went to a Cinnabon store at the airport (on a Sunday) and tried to order two churros. When I got there, there was barely anything stocked in the front trays – basically, they looked closed. There was, however, a tray of churros on the oven behind the cashier. When I gave my order, the cashier said that they don’t have anymore churros. He told me that they only make churros one time in the morning and that they weren’t allowed to make them in the afternoon (it was about 3:00 PM). It was very clear to me that the employee didn’t want to make any churros but what do I know about some weird company policy.
I emailed customer service about my experience and here their reply (they sent it to me on Monday morning):
Thank you for contacting us about your experience on 3/29/2008 in Ft. Myers, Florida. We appreciate our guests taking the time to inform us about their experiences.
As we understand it, the product you wanted to buy was not available at the bakery because the bakery had run out. We at Cinnabon are committed to giving you the value and variety you seek, so we take your feedback very seriously. We appreciate your willingness to tell us about your experience as it will enable us to follow-up with the bakery and correct the problem for you and other guests. Because Cinnabon’s bakes all products fresh throughout the day and cannot always predict which products will sell, we sometimes experience temporary delays in product availability. We can assure you that the management team will work hard to prevent this from happening again.
While it certainly won’t erase your past experience, we hope you’ll give Cinnabon another try at our expense. We are sending a gift certificate for your use on your next visit.
If you have any other concerns or comments, please do not hesitate to share them with us or with the management at your local Cinnabon Bakery. We are committed to earning your loyalty.
Thank you again for your past business. We hope you will give Cinnabon another chance to serve you in the future, as your satisfaction is important to us.
Sincerely,
Chris
Cinnabon Guest Response LineI wrote back saying, “I don’t really care to go on about it but it’s just not true that they had run out. There was a tray of churros right behind him on the oven. Besides, if that was the case, then why didn’t the employee tell me that? Instead, he lied and told me that they are not allowed to make them in the afternoon.”
Well, I just received another email this morning (Wednesday):
I WAS DISAPPOINTED TO LEARN OF YOUR RECENT SUBSTANDARD EXPERIENCE AT OUR FT MYERS CINNABON UNIT. I CAN ASSURE YOU THAT “CHURROS” ARE SERVED FROM MORNING UNTIL CLOSING. I WILL INVESTIGATE THIS INNCIDENT TO SEE WHY YOUR NEEDS WERE NOT MET. CINNABON IS SENDING YOU A COMPLIMENTARY COUPON TO HELP US APOLOGIZE FOR THIS INNCIDENT. I HOPE YOU WILL VISIT US AGAIN WHEN IN THE FT MYERS AREA.
Thanks Cinnabon!
For some reason we love Cinnabon’s second all caps “yelling” reply. Perhaps we’ve been doing this job too long.
(Photo:martyz)
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Don’t type so loud!
@FightOnTrojans: I must visit this “Churrolandia”.
Honestly, I’m not sure what excites me more: The fact that they may have amazing churros, or the fact that the name is a combination of “churro” and “scandia”, which are two of my favorite things ever.
Now I really want a churro.
“Caps Lock”
Oh, there is it, next to the “A”.
They should call them Cin-cidents .
@urban_ninjya: I’m pretty sure I’ve seen the cinnabun balm in the store. They have all kinds of flavors now. There’s a set that has twizzlers, reeses, bubble yum, kisses, etc. Some of them smell good, but taste awful in my opinion.
@tragatz: A churro is a tube of fried dough, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. They are about 2″ in diameter, and anywhere from 6″ to 18″ long. They have ridges on them because the dough is extruded through a gizmo that is sort of like a Play-Doh fun factory. Here in El Paso and across the border, people sell churros, walking around with them slung over their arms and shoulders, or carried in slings. They can also be purchased in clean and modern shops if you haven’t had your shots. There are churro variations, because they are originally Espanish, and are served throughout the Espanish-speaking world.
Dude, if you want some of the best churros, you should go to Sea World. They have really great churros, although they are expensive. One time when I was around 14-15, a friend and I bought some churros and a seagull swooped out of nowhere and attacked me, leaving me with just a little bit of paper and no churro. I went back to the churro stand and told them that a seagull stole my churro, and they gave me a free one! Being a trouble maker, my friend and I decided to go to every churro stand and get free churros.
El Pollo Loco also has good churros, 2 for a dollar I think.
We have a cinnabon in Fort Myers?!?! WHAT?!
Is this news? Service was bad. You complained. The company took care of you. What’s the problem?
@trujunglist: I don’t know why, but “a seagull stole my churro” forced me into giggling fits.
Cinnabon isn’t just taking this seriously… they’re taking it deliciously.
@m4ximusprim3: Dude, you will not be disappointed. It is baked-goodie heaven. Remember, in Spanish (at least the Chicano-ized slang Spanglish I grew up with) attaching “-landia” to the end of a word infers that it is a great place for that item. I think it originated with Disneyland (Disneylandia in some circles), and now everyone tries to attach it to their business name (used car dealers with “Carrolandia” etc.). Think of the world created for the game “Candyland” and replace it with all forms of baked heavenly goodness, and that’s this place.
@gmss0205: Clearly, a lifetime of energy drinks, oversalted fries and Xbox has left you overstimulated and unable to appreciate subtlety. This post is about the simple delights of a customer complaint solved, and of HILARIOUS EMAILS APOLOGIZING FOR THE INNCIDENT. Not everything can or should be a crack-fueled descent into the customer-service abyss. You need something to help you find your soft side. I recommend cuddly kittens and an Anne Murray box CD set.
@gmss0205: I think you are missing the point of consumerist.com
I say what what in the butt
Just wanted to let you guys know that I work for the Cinnabon guest response line. Actually, Cinnabon pays Coca-Cola to do their customer service stuff, along with several other restaurants, including Hardees, Carls Jr., Sonic, Hooters, Waffle House, Chic-Fil-A, and many others.
I wanted to remain anonymous so please excuse this BugMeNot account. If any of you guys have questions regarding the guest response lines for any of these restaurants, let me know, I handle them all.
- CCC
Bravo on the ALL CAPS followup response! lol.
@BugMeNot2: I have a question for you–did you write that second email?
@gmss0205: @AMetamorphosis: I think you guys are missing the point; I get the impression that this was meant to be a halfway-positive post, not a complaint.
Also, an excuse to make fun of the executive who can’t find his Caps Lock key.
what’s a churro?