The Bad Restaurant Review

My uncle opened a small restaurant last year. The food is excellent — everyone in the family knows it. But last week someone gave him one star online. The review said the service was slow and the soup was cold. My uncle was so upset he couldn't sleep.

I read the review carefully. The customer had come on Saturday night, when the restaurant was completely full, and my uncle was cooking alone because his helper was sick. The soup probably was cold. The service probably was slow. The review was unfair, but it wasn't a lie.

I helped my uncle write a reply. He apologised, explained it had been a difficult night, and invited the customer back for a free meal. The customer came back. He wrote a second review: five stars. My uncle has now hired a second helper for Saturdays.