Like everyone else in the city of Bengaluru, my friends and I were super thrilled when we heard that the much-awaited Koramangala Social had opened — the 15th outlet of the brand ‘Social’. And when they announced their “First three drinks at 15 rupees” offer, we decided to go check it out.

The terms and conditions mentioned that they wanted exact change in the form of coins. So we took a whole box of coins with us and went forth, looking forward to a great afternoon.

But once we reached, we met the human version of disappointment: a guy named Ashley. Waving his arms while standing at the reception, he shooed several customers away for wearing sandals and jeans.

Granted, the policy did not allow people to wear sandals and jeans. (We didn’t know that before, but it’s okay.) What pissed us off though, was the humiliating manner in which he spoke to his customers.

This is how we looked this afternoon.

It reminded me of what I read in my history text book, years ago. While the British ruled India, they were infamous for their racist signboards that read “Dogs and Indians not allowed”.

Ashley, standing vainly at the reception of Koramangala Social in the 21st century, was no different. He was absolutely rude in the way he dealt with his customers. Where’s the basic human courtesy, let alone the “social” factor of the hospitality industry?

Social, as a brand, is awesome. It’s friendly, funky and exciting. But this particular man is not so “social”, after all!

P.S: Dear Ashley, carrying a box of coins according to your restaurant’s terms and conditions does not make us beggars.

A penny for your thoughts, Social.

Also to be noted: The reviews that my friends and I wrote on @Zomato have been deleted without a moment’s hesitation. (Full marks to their promptness!)

Update: Turns out Zomato deleted those reviews themselves. And they have no solid reason for doing so. What’s that smell I get? What’s cooking? Oh, it’s just the lack of transparency.