Spaghi's Applecross on OurDeal

Well yesterday was the last day for the Spaghi's group buy voucher from OurDeal which sold out at 2000 vouchers sold for $29 each - a total revenue of $58,000 in one day! The offer was 2 pizzas or pastas, 2 cans of soft drink and one serve of salad or entree bread worth supposedly $77.

So how did we go with redeeming the takeaway voucher? We called up 5 times at various times between 4pm and 5:35pm but no one picked up and so we decided to go down there personally to order the takeaway. My first surprise when we got there at 5:45pm was that the lady which had been getting less-than-rave reviews on Urbanspoon was quite nice to us when we told her we would like to order a takeaway.

HOWEVER, the bite came from the guy at the counter who berated us for ordering in person so we offered to leave and call in our order. He said he has 150 (really??) orders and he won't be able to get our order in till 8pm. I said that would be fine but later he said he should be able to get the order to us in half an hour.

In the end he relented and asked us what we would like to order. When I asked what we can choose from he started muttering about how people do not read instructions on the website. (I went back to check and nothing on OurDeal lists the menu items that we can choose from. The page he was referring to was no longer available online).

This is the sort of experience that you fear when using a group buy voucher. For a restaurant that happily took $58,000 without providing one dish to anyone, it is some wonder why they would want to throw goodwill to the wind in such a way. I felt humiliated and embarrassed but only by doing what I was entitled to do and that is get something for my $29!

Anyway, apart from the bitter taste left from this introduction, we ordered the Tortellini and a pizza with bacon in it which turned out to be very good. The entree bread is something like turkish bread and comes with a dipping sauce that tasted a little like the sauce used for chilli mussels. It was fantastic. The question is whether I would go back there again after the rude service.

Stockland Gift Voucher Conditions Worth Noting

Stockland is going all out with offers from Our Deal, however there are some things that buyers should know. The terms and conditions for these vouchers are quite interesting, as listed below.

For example, there is only a select number of shops in each shopping centre which will accept the gift voucher. I am quite sure Woolworths, Target and other large stores will be excluded but you cannot find out from the website. You need to contact the Customer Care Centre or the Centre Management Office to find out. There is also a minimum spend of $20 for any transaction in which you use the gift voucher. Whilst these conditions may be reasonable, it is probably worth noting before we think of getting 50% off our groceries at a nearby Stockland shopping centre.

Stockland Gift Card Terms and Conditions
From http://www.stockland.com.au/shopping-centres/gift-cards_6437.htm

1. Defaced, mutilated, altered, lost or stolen cards will not be replaced, refunded or redeemed. Treat the Stockland Gift Card like cash. 

2. Stockland Gift Cards can be credited with any amount between $10 and $500.

3. The Stockland Gift Card is redeemable for merchandise or services at participating stores in Stockland shopping centres (only). For a list of participating stores, please contact the Customer Care Centre or the Centre Management Office. The Stockland Gift Card is not redeemable for cash and cannot be used for the payment of credit or retailer accounts.

4. Individual retailers are not required to accept Gift Cards for transactions under $20. 

5. The Stockland Gift Card must be redeemed before the expiry date shown on the card.

6. The Stockland Gift Card will not be redeemed after the expiry date and will be void.

7. The Stockland Gift Card cannot be reloaded. The Stockland Gift Card is partially redeemable. It is up to the customer to use the full value before the expiry date. Cash will not be given for any unused balance. Any unused balance on expiry of the Stockland Gift Card will not be refunded or credited. Where the cost of the purchase exceeds the available card balance, the customer will be required to make up the difference with another payment method.

8. The customer is liable for all transactions on the Stockland Gift Card except to the extent to which there has been fraud or negligence by Stockland or any of Stockland employees.

9. The customer can check the card balance at any time by calling
1300 55 33 80. Stockland reserves the right to change any of the terms contained in these Terms and Conditions of Use at any time. Changes to the Terms and Conditions of Use will be available here, or at Stockland Shopping centre's Customer Care Centre or Centre Management Office.

10. Visit the Stockland Shopping Centre's Customer Care Centre or Centre Management Office if you have any reason to believe that an error has occurred in relation to Stockland Gift Card.

Clancy's Fish Pub on Scoopon Round 2

I think it was last Thursday we went to Clancy's Fish Pub in Applecross to use my second Scoopon and it was again another successful night. It really seemed like everyone was using Scoopons there because that day was the last day for the voucher. Apparently, they've had the majority of people redeem their scoopons but it looked like another 300 were still to be crossed off the list. We ordered the crab pasta, chilli mussels, fish and chips and the seafood paella. Everything was good and for the four of us, we were quite satisfied with the meal. We'll keep an eye out again for more one day deals coming from Clancy's.