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Describe A Bad Service You Received In A Restaurant Shop: IELTS Speaking Cue Card

You should say

  • When and where it happened?
  • What happened there?
  • How was it solved?
  • How did you feel about it?
Show all 44 answers

Cue 1:When and where it happened?

  • Begin by mentioning the name of the restaurant and the city where it is located.
  • Specify the date or occasion when you visited the restaurant.

Example

Last month, I visited a popular restaurant called 'Spice Junction' in Delhi with my friends to celebrate my birthday.

Cue 2:What happened there?

  • Describe the specific incident that made the service bad.
  • Include details about the staff's behavior and the impact it had on your experience.

Example

As soon as we arrived, we were ignored by the staff for nearly 20 minutes. When we finally got a table, the waiter was rude and took our order incorrectly, bringing us the wrong dishes.

Cue 3:How was it solved?

  • Explain how you addressed the issue with the staff or management.
  • Mention any actions taken by the restaurant to rectify the situation.

Example

I politely spoke to the manager about our experience. He was very apologetic and offered us complimentary drinks and ensured that our correct orders were prioritized.

Cue 4:How did you feel about it?

  • Share your feelings during the incident and after it was resolved.
  • Reflect on how this experience affected your view of the restaurant.

Example

Initially, I felt frustrated and disappointed, especially since it was my birthday celebration. However, after the manager's response and the complimentary drinks, I felt a bit better, but I still left the restaurant with mixed feelings.

Conclusion

    Example

    Overall, the experience taught me the importance of good service in a restaurant. While the manager's efforts to resolve the issue were appreciated, it made me reconsider whether I would return to 'Spice Junction' in the future.

    Following this structure will ensure you cover all the essential points while providing a clear and engaging response to the cue card topic.

    Tips to answer this Cue Card

    1: Vague Descriptions

    Using vague language can make your response unclear. Avoid general statements that do not provide specific details about the service you received.

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    Tip

    Be specific about the incident. Describe the location, the service received, and the exact issues you faced to create a clearer picture.

    2: Neglecting Emotions

    Failing to express your feelings can make your story less engaging. It's important to convey how the bad service affected you emotionally.

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    Tip

    Share your feelings during the experience. Use phrases like 'I felt frustrated' or 'I was disappointed' to connect with the listener.

    Ignoring Resolution

    Not mentioning how the issue was resolved can leave your story incomplete. It's essential to explain if and how the problem was addressed.

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    Tip

    Include details about how the restaurant handled the situation. Did they apologize, offer a refund, or improve the service? This adds depth to your response.

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    All Answers

    Here are all the answers by real-users practicing speaking for IELTS Cue Cards on our IELTS Prep App.

    Band 6-7

    In my childhood I was very fond of restaurant meals. During that days I have compelled my father to have meals from outside hotels. It was a fascinating experience to have meals with my papa and mummy and with my little brother and enjoy the meals in an outside setup. But later after married marriage it was not that much easy to have meals in hotel with my kids. They are very naughty so that they never allow me to have meals with peace. In past days it was with milk and honey experience but when I am going outside nowadays with my husband and kids it's not like that. And once I had a bad experience from and from a restaurant. We ordered for a dish and we had to wait for a long time. Those people are make us waiting for a long period, long hours. My kids were waiting for that meal and at last we went the hotel for nothing. The individuals

    Band 6-7

    Hello, my name is Jennifer and I, with my family, went to a restaurant which was near to our house, our residence, and we went there. We had our dinner there and while we were waiting for the dinner, the guests were there still complaining about some or the other issues that was arising during our dinner while we were waiting. So when we got our dinner, it was very cold and as well as it was not tasting as good as it should. So we complained about that your service is very bad, that you should work on providing the guest better quality of service, quick service, so that they don't get felt ignored. And also, we told them that they should bring the food which is hot and a little more tasty this should, can become. And they said that they will do their best to resolve this issue and after some time they brought back the food which we ordered which was hot and tasty as well and then I felt very nice that I raised a voice against these small issues which will help in their future outcome. Thank you.

    Band 6-7

    So, it happened at a restaurant called Bloke House. So it was back in Feb, 2025, where I visited this restaurant with my girlfriend as a treat for a special incident that we had. So we both wanted to try the Italian food. So we went there, we ordered beef steak and a pizza, which was one of our favorites. So we ordered the food and when we got it, it wasn't really that incredible of the taste and the portion that we got, I mean the quantity was really, really poor. So, the ambience was great and the people who came there was also amazing. They were very nice and apart from all of this, the waitress who came to our table was really, really pushy. She wanted us to order more of the items and then it was really uncomfortable for us. So what we did was, we were kind of in a rush, we had to leave, but the waitress kept insisting for us to have a coffee or more items because usually the people who come over there were kind of really wealthy and she expected us to do the same. She wasn't even considering from where we were coming from or to cut us some slack. Maybe she was just doing her job, but then it really made us uncomfortable.

    Band 6-7

    When I was working in Kottayam, my partner and I were planned for a couple of years to go on a date but it was ended up like a bad date so we basically chose a shop called Zinger which we came across on Instagram trails, it specifically rated 5 stars so we chose that shop and we went but actually it was a bad customers office and there is no cozy atmosphere, no welcoming the customers, actually we politely complained the manager and he actually resolved the concern very good way.

    Band 6-7

    So, 6 months ago I was in a restaurant which is very famous for their Italian cuisine and I was delighted to try their very famous pasta which was their main dish and I clearly mentioned that please do not add oil in the pasta, but after when pasta arrived and I had tried, the pasta was filled in oil. I was very furious because I was on a diet due to my health issues, so immediately I called their manager and reported the issue, but manager was not ready to hear my problem, he was saying that it was your mistake, you have not informed us earlier, but due to this incident I was not convinced with their answer, due to this the trust which was built in my mind regarding that restaurant was broken, due to this I never went to that restaurant again, I am the person who stick to their words and from now till today's date I have not suggested that restaurant to anyone and I will always criticize for their service, regarding that issue which I had faced, it is not resolved yet.

    Band 6-7

    Yeah, I'll share an experience. I want to share an experience where I got unlucky in my food at a restaurant. It is really coincident that actually it happened yesterday. I went out with my family to have a delicious dinner at a nearby restaurant. We ordered different types of food from the menu, mostly in the Indian cuisine. I ordered my favorite, burnt fried rice and it was really delicious. However, the food my brother ordered was lasagna and it was so horrible. At first, he didn't notice the smell it gave but after the first bite, he felt that it was really bad. Furthermore, we believe that the cheese they used was not good and that might have resulted in the bad taste. We called the waiter and asked him what was going on. The main manager came and everyone went to the kitchen and called up the chef. They had a discussion and they finally got back to their desk and told it was their mistake. They were willing to offer the compensation. We were glad that the issue was solved and we got a 50% refund at the hotel.

    Band 6

    One time when I experienced absolutely terrible service in a restaurant or shop is when I visited Jaipur. I visited a renowned restaurant of Jaipur which had quite a fancy menu including cuisines like Thai, Chinese, Mexican, Italian and all sorts of continental items. So we got really excited and my appetite started growing extremely. But when we ordered a few items they completely denied to serve them saying that they do not have enough material present in the kitchen to prepare those items. Finally we ended up asking them to prepare whatever they feel is their speciality. And to my surprise I could not believe that they chose a very basic menu like actually they chose a very basic food item like Dal Bati and Churma. But Dal Bati and Churma is not complete without a buttermilk and when we asked for buttermilk they said even they cannot serve us buttermilk as their refrigerator is not working. I felt so devastated as I was starving with hunger. But finally we ate whatever was served but yeah after eating Dal Bati I was quite satisfied because they had prepared it quite well.

    Band 6

    Literally, this event has happened in one of the best restaurants in my hometown. We were a bunch of friends where we went for evening snack. So we have ordered a complete full meal of biryani. The taste was very authentic and it was really good. But I have found a piece of iron rod which was placed inside the food. It literally broken my day. We complained about the worst service to the manager. He was very respectful enough to solve the issues. He said, there is no necessity of paying the bill amount. And they offered us free biryani. But it always stricken. We must intimate to the food security officer. It was literally heart stricken. The manager was very respectful in solving the issues. He just mentioned not to pay the amount. He also offered us discounts and free meals. But the service was really worst. And then we were able to leave the restaurant. Handful of offered biryanis. And I was happy that there is no necessity of paying the bill.

    Band 6

    One week back me and my friend has gone to Iskcon temple and coming back from Iskcon temple we felt really hungry so we stopped at one hotel named HP hotel and everything was nice, the buildings, we thought the service will also be good so we entered into the hotel and then we ordered idli and dosa for both of us after 10 minutes of time but still we haven't received our order and we went to the manager and we asked him for our order but still he didn't reply and he also said that in a very arrogant way that you should wait even some more time and in a very angry way he told that and we felt really bad by saying that because you are a manager for a hotel and you should be really respectful so I felt really awkward and I got some negative vibes from there and we respected his decision and we sat for some more time and still we didn't get even after some more time we got it but still the food was not proper, the serving, everything was not nice and the behavior that they shown towards us is something which is not really kind and I felt really bad but after some time we went to the hotel's director and we spoke to him that the kind of management that the whole hotel is showing towards us is something which is not proper and he called the manager and other staff members and scolded them and he told them properly that you should not behave in such a way with the customers and that's why he told us sorry as well the whole staff and the manager and that's how the problem got solved.

    Band 6

    I would like to talk about this restaurant that we went to, it was one of our friends from Nasik, that we used to know. They came down to Goa for a holiday for 3-4 days and it was the time of the Ife Festival. Lot of people from far and near come to see the things in Goa. So we met this couple and we had taken them to this restaurant that was close to Panjim city, close to where they were staying and we went and thought it would be a great place to enjoy a good meal. So we sat down and the ambience was nice and we ordered the food and we thought since they like Goan food, they would like to try Goan food since they don't have it in Pune. So we ordered a good Goan food and when it came on the table, we could feel that the food wasn't fresh and it was quite smelling. So we called the waiter and asked him what is this and why was it smelling. We could feel the smell as it came out from the kitchen. But at first they tried not to admit that what we said was wrong. But then when we tasted it, we felt that it was really bad and we could not eat any of the food that we ordered further. So that was a bad experience and we wasted a lot of time sitting down there. Then we decided, we got up and they admitted that it was a mistake and we went and sat in another restaurant.
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