Free Market Research?

 I recently stayed at the Sheraton at the Nashville Airport.

I got a nice email from the manager.

Part of it said: "Should you receive a survey invitation from Marriott Bonvoy, I would love your feedback there.  Our goal is to exceed your expectations across the board; the cleanliness of your room, the helpfulness of our team, and your experiences in our restaurants and bars."

So I sent him a reply.

I doubt anyone will read it.

Here it is.

I was there on two nights, 25/26 and 31/1.  Both were in and outs - I was on my way to Manchester for a Memorial Day bacchanal, and I got in after midnight on the first one so I took a taxi and everything was closed - it would have been nice to have had a later shuttle than the one I missed, and also to have had the bar still open - so I just went to bed and departed at ten when my ride to Manchester showed up.  The pillows were like rocks and the bed covers were like the lead blanket the dentist puts on someone during X Rays.  But I am used to down duvets and pillows at home, so I'm probably not qualified to judge your bedding.  And I'm on my way to 81 years old, so maybe I'm overly sensitive to weight.

The 31/1 was interesting.  When I booked in February there should have been a warning that there was going to be an old folks convention (some military re-union); I might have booked elsewhere. After taking my bag to my room I managed to find a seat at the bar and order a double Walker's Red on the rocks.  I really like your one big ice cube format; I've never encountered that and it's perfect.  After about half of the Johnnie, the guy next to me started selling me his book: he was a Vietnam vet.  Since I am also a Vietnam vet I tried to sell him my book.  We thanked each other for our service and departed comrades in arms, neither having bought the other's book.

You really need two restaurants: one more or less like the one you have, but with the addition of a BLT and a French dip, and one with steaks and stuff like that.  A long time ago the SFO Marriott had an embedded Schula's Steak House.  That was a nice touch.

In any event, the one you have is nowhere near designed to take the stress of 900 multi-war-vet 'Mericans and their spouses and hangers on.  At dinner time - 1900, or so, I was sharing the long bar adjacent to and parallel the real bar with a couple I had met - he was Vietnam also (an agent orange survivor - barely - but hasn't written a book yet) and we three were able to get our second or third choice. The restaurant had run out of a lot of stuff.  I had an exceptionally average Caesar's salad. On two occasions, once in Atlanta and once in Chicago - ice storm Atlanta, blizzard Chicago - I have seen restaurants run out of a lot of stuff.  I don't see that a known-in-advance stress on the system is justification for running out of what, after all, by design, is already a rather meager menu.  It certainly isn't the same as an Atlanta ice storm.

Your people, the bar/restaurant bunch were exceptional.  What could have been stressingly unpleasant was converted to mildly amusing.  Being out of tater tots?  The whole crew functioned as a team and, obviously, had each other's backs.  Great people. 

You have a nice property from a physical and cosmetic point of view.

Maybe some planning, and some upscaling, might be in order.