What a great comment from the restaurants side! The customer is always right (according to them). Perhaps someone should start a website where restaurant can review customers? I am sure any and all restauranteurs would have a ball with this...

vanessa you screwed !!!

Dear Vanessa,first and foremost,this establishment has been running for the last 15 years , I've been a customer to this well run establishment from day 1, it is the first time I hear of a complaint and I know most of the guests coming to this fantastic restaurant. I was also sitting in the restaurant the day you had your party and it was the first time I saw you here ,I'd like to inform you that this restaurant has catered for kings ,princesses ,ambassadors , government officials and people from around the world whom I feel privileged that to have met through The Sheikh's Palace .Please do not come and insult this beautiful and historical land mark in our country as a first or second time visitor you should be grateful that Mr Joe allowed you to celebrate your birthday party in his well run restaurant . As for the "Maitre'D" that you so call with her white mini dress, she was and still is a beauty queen which was judged by well known international panel of judges and came first in her competition .As for you , I can still remember the "annus horribilis" picture in my mind with your black tights and your white top in that horrible figure of yours . My advice to you is to first learn how to dress with what your body allows you to wear before you insult the beautiful woman in her white outfit and the black tablecloth which I'm sure of is made of a better material than your black tights . With my perfect judgement of character and my 20/20 vision ,if you want to insult an institution ,establishment or a person, make sure that you have substantial evidence that will justify your pathetic comments . Joe ,on behalf of vanessa whom I do not know ,I would like to take this opportunity to apologise for her weak judgment of character and what first class entertainment should be like on her behalf!!!!! Joe, I would like to thank you for your hospitality that you have given to my family, and the friends that I have made at your wonderful place over the years. Kindly ignore Vanessa's pathetic comments!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

@Joe, Well said, could not have put it better myself. i have never been to your restaurant but would love to just to shake your hand. @ Vanessa - grow up and do better research next time.

@Vanessa-you sound like a spoilt brat and should be banned from all restaurants

@Joe, I'm with you. Well responded.

@ Vanessa - The sommelier has gone out his way to fix things for you. Just by reading your review it seems that you would have complained just to get a freebie. Well done you got what you wanted

Dear Vanessa who has absolutely no respect for hospitality and is obviously a little confused. Background Vanessa booked her birthday party with myself last week. On booking she reserved for 15 guests not 20. (as noted she booked for 20 but only 15 came) so why would I in the name of good service have to run around and accommodate her by finding extra seats and extending her table on the night (your table count was 18 people with three extras arriving unnanounced and not eating later on(total of 21 persons seated). Any unaccomodating restaurant would have turned them away or as per menu policy charged you for them the minimum applicable charge as stipulated on every page of the menu. You requested to open two bottles of wine to taste at R180.00 and R200.00 respectively, which in the name of good service were not charged for. You requested our corkage policy which is stipulated on the menu and informed me you would like to bring your own bottle of champagne. Our corkage policy stipulates full menu price if we stock it (ie R1250 for a bottle of Moet) but in the name of good service and hospitality as it was her birthday I agreed to waiver the cost as long as the champagne was delivered prior to the function and we would then serve it. You arrived, plonking 3 bottles on the table causing a stir with other guests who felt dismayed at being charged corkage and when asked if I could please speak to you away from your guests in the name of correct ettiquette, joking that you were in trouble is a simple excuse to detract attention as to why I needed to speak to you away from your guests. The backstage passing would never have been an issue if you had correctly booked your table and you never had extra guests which we did accomodate and I never had to extend your table and seat your guests on the couches. (the mist machine was switched off on your request and this was the first time any one has complained about it in many years of use As to randomness of the hip hop show this was a showcase of two very talented dancers from previously disadvantaged backgrounds whom do a lot of charity work for the arabic community and the exposure to the higher end of the market is my way to say thank you to them for all that they do for the community (especially as they can be exposed to corporate clients.) Being bamboozled is a sign of illiteracy as is clear from the fact that our entertainment charge is stipulated on every page of the menu (You placed a food order but never read the menu). In the name of good service, Kindly accept my sincerest appologies and I will gladly offer a full refund of the entertainment charge you were “unaware” of. It is great customers like yourself who have kept us in business for 16 years by telling everyone about us. For this we thank you and welcome any one out there to put us to the test. Dear Vanessa I know you think you had a bad experience but would love to afford you a complimentary dinner table of 15 guests to let you re-evaluate the error in your mindset Regards joe

vanessa ,was it a set menu ?

On Saturday night I celebrated my birthday at your establishment, against my better judgement. I could just forget about the complete displeasure I feel about the way I was treated but I prefer to get it off my chest. I would like to see you treating this matter seriously and maybe to change some behaviours on your side, but I do not expect much. Especially since I get the strong sense that you actually don't care and made up your mind about me when I first arrived to select wine and check out the place. This has been my experience of Sheikh's Palace: You, Mr Sommolier, displayed extreme attitude towards my friend and I when we came a week prior to order the wine. Case in point - the look you gave me when you realised I was having 15 guests as opposed to the 20 I had booked for and further more when I enquired about the corkage fee Nevertheless, I wanted an Arabian themed party and decided to go ahead, even though the black crushed velvet table clothes made me cringe Although you had the 'decency' to take me aside and reprimand me about the champagne bottles, you had already given my guests the impression that something was wrong when you half jokingly said 'I'm going to kill you Vanessa, can I talk to you for a minute'. The damage was already done, you may as well have just said everything in front of them Furthermore, I was horrified when I initially arrived and realised you decided the most ideal place for me and my party was to be detached from the actual main area of the restaurant but still, decided to look on the brighter side and told myself it will be 'more private'. Little did I know that this area also doubles up as a sauna, backstage for dancers to pass through and the home of the special effects machine. Let me delve a little deeper into that: we were hot and sweating, sitting outside in an actual Arabian dessert would have been slightly better. Have you no desire to make your guests / patrons feel comfortable in your establishment the hip hop dancers was the most random act I've ever seen. Almost makes you, sir, seem desperate by diluting the concept of an Arabian themed restaurant with such randomness while my guests ate their dinner you thought it would be a good idea to have the fog machines blown on us - by the way, the fog adds about as much value to the entertainment as does the random hip hop dancers. I can't believe I had to pay an additional R25 per head for this. While on the topic of the entertainment fee, one does feel bamboozled into paying it considering there were two opportunities where I could have been informed of this prior to the evening 1. when I made my booking telephonically and 2. when I came to view the site Admittedly, the night was not all bad though, no help to you and your 'mairtre d' who wears the white mini! Constance, our waitress was an absolute gem and the belly dancer was very sweet and gracious. I recommend you take a lesson on customer satisfaction from them. All in all, I will share this story with as many friends and acquaintances as possible and with the power of the social media it will surely reach far and wide. Will it stop your business from running, probably not. But I think with your attitude you will do a marvellous job of running your business into the ground all on your own. Sincerely, Vanessa