swiss chalet

[Guest glavacem]

Hi guys,

 

A little off topic.....i own fairfax and want to help Swiss chalet out. I think the website and app is losing them business. Today my wife is trying to use the website and she is not happy again and will end up calling our order in. She can never place an order through the site or app.

 

Is there anyone I can forward this to at Fairfax to look into?

 

We are not trouble makers and always order from Swiss chalet, and these issues have been happening for a long time. I can't help but wonder how much business this is costing them.

[ourkid8]

Why wouldn't you just send the feedback directly to Cara? Please see link below:

 

http://www.cara.com/contact.php

 

Hi guys,

 

A little off topic.....i own fairfax and want to help Swiss chalet out. I think the website and app is losing them business. Today my wife is trying to use the website and she is not happy again and will end up calling our order in. She can never place an order through the site or app.

 

Is there anyone I can forward this to at Fairfax to look into?

 

We are not trouble makers and always order from Swiss chalet, and these issues have been happening for a long time. I can't help but wonder how much business this is costing them.

[TwoCitiesCapital]

Why wouldn't you just send the feedback directly to Cara? Please see link below:

 

http://www.cara.com/contact.php

 

Hi guys,

 

A little off topic.....i own fairfax and want to help Swiss chalet out. I think the website and app is losing them business. Today my wife is trying to use the website and she is not happy again and will end up calling our order in. She can never place an order through the site or app.

 

Is there anyone I can forward this to at Fairfax to look into?

 

We are not trouble makers and always order from Swiss chalet, and these issues have been happening for a long time. I can't help but wonder how much business this is costing them.

 

This is probably the better route - Fairfax is like Buffett in that it appears to be relatively hands off. I doubt this feedback would be passed along by them.

[Guest glavacem]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

 

We have used the contact form to no avail.

 

We had to call our order in again. The nice fellow on the phone said they have had nothing but isssues with the website and that so many people are calling into order (as they cannot order online)they cannot keep up.

 

I guess they are getting a new site in the new year.

 

Happy new years guys...love the people on this forum.

[Parsad]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

 

We have used the contact form to no avail.

 

We had to call our order in again. The nice fellow on the phone said they have had nothing but isssues with the website and that so many people are calling into order (as they cannot order online)they cannot keep up.

 

I guess they are getting a new site in the new year.

 

Happy new years guys...love the people on this forum.

 

Regardless of a new website, I've emailed Paul Rivett for you...it will get to the top at Cara! 

 

Can you send me your email or phone number ([email protected]), and I'll forward it to Paul, in case anyone at Cara wants to contact you. 

 

Cheers!

[TorontoRaptorsFan]

Sanjeev,

 

The quality of food since Fairfax has invested in Cara has gone down the drain.

Just ate at Bier Market near Sherway a few weeks ago for the first time. The burger was bland, the fries had no crispiness to them. The crepe dessert was uninspiring.

I find Swiss Chalet is hit or miss. 90% of the time the chicken is dry. You literally need to order more Chalet sauce to drown the chicken so it's palatable.

Harveys can't come close to the burgers made by Five Guys, Shake Shack, or In-N-Out.

I stopped going to The Keg since La Castille (Mississauga) has a better tasting steak, gives you a salad with side and is roughly the same price.

I ate at Finn McCool's twice and it will never go back.

Montana's ribs are terrible. They'll never win any BBQ awards. But yet they promote them as the greatest thing since sliced bread.

I was at East Side Mario's the other day. Had the bucatini amatriciana and I used my water glass to drain the liquid that my pasta was sitting in.

 

Maybe they need McEwan to make some food consultations to these restaurants because the current formula doesn't work and will only get worse once the American chains start to muscle in and start eating up market share...

[Parsad]

Sanjeev,

 

The quality of food since Fairfax has invested in Cara has gone down the drain.

Just ate at Bier Market near Sherway a few weeks ago for the first time. The burger was bland, the fries had no crispiness to them. The crepe dessert was uninspiring.

I find Swiss Chalet is hit or miss. 90% of the time the chicken is dry. You literally need to order more Chalet sauce to drown the chicken so it's palatable.

Harveys can't come close to the burgers made by Five Guys, Shake Shack, or In-N-Out.

I stopped going to The Keg since La Castille (Mississauga) has a better tasting steak, gives you a salad with side and is roughly the same price.

I ate at Finn McCool's twice and it will never go back.

Montana's ribs are terrible. They'll never win any BBQ awards. But yet they promote them as the greatest thing since sliced bread.

I was at East Side Mario's the other day. Had the bucatini amatriciana and I used my water glass to drain the liquid that my pasta was sitting in.

 

Maybe they need McEwan to make some food consultations to these restaurants because the current formula doesn't work and will only get worse once the American chains start to muscle in and start eating up market share...

 

Don't know how the Keg's are everywhere, but I go to many in Vancouver and surrounding areas during the year and I've been to the one in downtown Toronto near Fairfax's office.  I've never had a bad steak...in fact, I've always had a good to great steak at the Keg...cooked exactly how I like it.  The service is always great and you know what you are getting there.

 

I went to BierMarket a couple of years ago...the mussels were fantastic as was the beer.  I've never had the burger there.

 

Harvey's competition is DQ, McDonalds, BK, et al...when compared to them, Harvey's burgers are as good or better.  They are not Five Guys, nor are they Shake Shack...they aren't meant to be like them.

 

Swiss Chalet is what it is.  It was one of the first restaurants to offer healthy fare, but roasted chickens are now available in every grocery store deli.  Still, they give you exactly what you kind of expect.

 

The food at the Montana's I go to here is pretty good.  Nothing spectacular, but decent low-mid market restaurant fare...not that different than TGIF's, etc. 

 

I think East Side Marios could use some help...the only one in Vancouver closed a little over two years ago.  Never been to Finn McCools. 

 

The one thing that should be noted is that Berkshire and Fairfax shareholders always want the companies BRK and FFH invested in to be really well run, top notch, clean, excellent service, etc.  But remember, that these businesses are what they are.  Even if Berkshire buys McDonalds, it will never be as clean as a Sees Candies.  The culture of the two businesses are different.  The expectations, traffic, etc are all different. 

 

I remember when I first became a Berkshire shareholder, I would always wish that local DQ's were run better...I expected better, because these were BRK businesses!  But they are what they are.  BRK bought them because they generate plenty of free cash flow...not because they are Five Guys or In & Out.  Fairfax can improve some of these operations to a certain degree, but if you start to detach from what has worked, you may impact the cash you generate because you lose the existing clients or you impact margins with increased expenditures. 

 

Can you imagine McEwen revamping East Side Mario's menu and adding a mushroom truffle oil risotto?  I'm guessing margins would shrink to the same level as McEwens high-end restaurants!  Cheers!

[StubbleJumper]

I would agree with not improving the restaurants.  Montanas is what it is.  A quick lunch at modest cost from an unspectacular but reliable menu.  Swiss Chalet is one of the cheapest sit-down meals that you can get...it's not fantastic, but it's a good solid lunch.  Mass appeal is good.

 

 

SJ

[cwericb]

Eat at Harveys fperhaps once a month. Food’s decent but service is slow.

 

Eat at Swiss Chalet once a week during the winter. Food is usually very good and have never had chicken that wasn’t moist and tender. Roast beef is not bad and steaks are usually okay but have had a few that could have been better - wife says ‘what do you expect when you go to a chicken place and order steak?’ Clean, very good service, and excellent bang for the buck but a 20 minute wait for a table is normal on Friday evenings. I rarely ever complain when eating out, but did once at Swiss Chalet about a steak. The manager immediately came out and was very concerned and wanted to know all the details and made a correction to the bill.