Nothing against Denny's but John Metz, in particular, needs a lesson.
I believe it could be quite simple actually.
When one looks at franchisee John Metz of Denny's it's easy to realize that he is a rectal wonder.
Here's a man, and I use the term loosely, that said he would raise his prices by 5% due to Obamacare.
Apparently he didn't don his thinking cap before he made this brilliant statement to the media. He seems to have failed to understand that when he ties the name Denny's in there are a few more other franchisees that may suffer backlash from his blatant stupidity.
Those folks don't seem to be too happy nor does corporate.
His comment that, basically, if you don't like it just tip the server less undoubtedly make for great relations with the folks that labor in his employ.
Meanwhile, other Denny's franchisees have suffered losses in sales, non stop phone calls and basic anger at their establishments due to one asshole. Nice job.
So how do you send a message to just this one piece of human feces while giving support to the employees? I think it's simple and wish I were in Florida to do it.
Does anyone here like tea? I do. I love it. I carry my own with me as a matter of fact. I will go to a restaurant and order a pot of hot water and pay tea price for it so I can make my own. I gladly pay for that water for a good cup of tea.
But I digress. Or do I?
It's simple. One goes to a Denny's run by John Metz and orders the cheapest thing you can find. A cup of coffee or tea for example.
Consume said beverage or cheap meal quickly. Ask for bill. Pay bill and gladly pay the extra 5%.
If your bill comes to a dollar gladly pay that extra nickel. Nicely point out to the cashier that the owner is an asshole but it is in no way the fault of the employees. You appreciate the service and hard work provided by them.
Now BEFORE you do that make sure and leave the server a nice tip. Say $10 for the EXCELLENT service provided in the ten minutes you were there. Even if the service wasn't that great. Also make sure to politely tell them that you're sorry they work for an asshole.
Give the employee MORE than the owner instead of less. Then, if you're hungry go somewhere else to eat.
Now what would this accomplish you might ask. Customer count goes up. Actual sales go down. Servers making money that the owner "should have".
Consumers can make a point real fast. Of course you wouldn't want to hurt his sales too much as rectal wonders like John Metz would cry they had to lay off employees due to lost sales. We want the "real" workers to maintain their jobs after all.
These folks work for an asshole that has proven, at this point, he couldn't give a rat's ass about them. We need to back them while delicately sending a message to him.
I think it could be organized to send that message. Floridians target one of his establishments once a week perhaps. A money hungry person such as Metz would figure it out. It IS about money after all.
This aside if he had pulled his head away before he shoved it up his ass there was a much simpler solution.
Just raise your prices by 5%. I might even suggest 6-7% to cover the costs of new menus and pad your pockets a bit more. People will deal with that.
If your $20 meal turns to $21, $21.20 or even $21.40 most people won't bat an eye.
Instead he chose to be an asshole and make it political.