ComplaintsforTaqueria Merlo

• Initial Complaint

  06/29/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Date of service: 6/19/21 Amount paid: $38.70 Check: XXXXXX On June 19th, I went to *****'s. The first thing I asked was to please make sure I didn't get too much fat because the last time I came, I could barely make three tacos out of 2 lbs of barbacoa because of all the yellow slimy fat. When I was given my order, it had a lot of fat! I would say about 50% or more of it was fat and my family was unable to eat it. When I complained, she said "It all has fat and if you don't want fat then you need to order chicken or steak!" I told her, I understood that it would have some fat, but not 50% of it! I told her that it was not fair for me as a customer to pay almost $40 and turn around and just have to throw away half of it because it is just all fat. She then stated, "Well I can't give you all the good meat without fat and then give another customer more fat!" She continued to tell me if I didn't want fat that I needed to order something else like chicken or steak.

  Business response

  08/03/2021

  Business Response /* (1000, 6, 2021/07/07) */ Dear customer, We are sorry for your unpleasant experience with your purchase of barbacoa. As we explained, this type of meat is very high in fat content as it is a piece of meat cut from beef cheek. We gave you the option of substituting your order with lower fat alternatives or providing a refund. Both options were declined, and you proceeded to react with inappropriate behavior by insulting our staff. There are much better ways to resolve this matter, as we tried, but it was declined and you proceeded to purchase the 2lbs of barbacoa. We would also like to explain that most meat products that come from our distributors are encased with excess fat, but that does not deter us from battling with our distributors, we understand that certain cuts of meat naturally come like this. As a part of preparing these meats, we do remove most of the excess fat however some fat is left so we can slow cook it and ensure the quality taste that is expected with barbacoa. It is no different than a marbled steak from a steakhouse, intramuscular fats add flavor to the meats. We wish you the best and hope we can be unified with this response. Thank you. Consumer Response /* (3000, 9, 2021/07/08) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) I was never offered a refund. Am requesting half of what I paid for because as you can see in the photo provided it was 50% or more of fat and that's not counting what I had thrown away prior to taking the photo. Therefore, there was not enough meat for our family to eat. I understand that this product comes with some fat, but when it's greater than 50% and so obvious, they should try to satisfy the customer. I understand they want to make their easy money, but this is not the appropriate way to be and is not a descent way to serve customers and provide them with excessive fat that has to be thrown away. The lady that served me was very rude. She stated she removed all the obvious fat, but when I got home as you can see in the photo she didn't. The picture speaks for itself. I bought some barbacoa the next day at a different location and it had maybe less than 3% fat and cheaper in price. This lady is known to be very rude as seen in their reviews. I am requesting half of what I paid for, at the least even though it was greater than 50% of fat. If I had known she left all that fat as shown in picture, then yes I would have probably ordered something else. I specifically have come to this location for the barbacoa. I've heard that they do this a lot with the Mexican population, in which they never come forward to report to BBB because most are illegal and afraid to complain or simply do not know the process or have the means to do so. This is not my case and I know my rights as a consumer. They lied and stated they offered me a refund. If I would have been offered a refund, I wouldn't have submitted a complaint with BBB.

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