Well, I'm officially done with Christian's, the bar down on George Street. I don't often go downtown, but when I do go it's usually with Ash, and when I do go we usually visit Christian's at least once, mostly because we're just amused by the irony of the name. But it's really not worth it, all things considered. It's a dark, small, crowded bar and everything there is way more expensive than it really ought to be. Including forgetting your credit card, apparently.
But normal bullshit first. For example, when I'm downtown I usually drink sourpuss in pepsi, because it tastes like candy and I am basically a child who is for some reason everyone thinks is an adult. Every other bar on the street charges $5.25 for my usual drink. Or at least I think they do. Every bar I've been to and bought a drink at charges that much, at least. Christian's, on the other hand, charges either $7.25 or $7.50, I can't remember because after the first time they told me the price I didn't buy another drink any time I went there. I also have never used the ATM in the back of the bar, because it turns out they charge you ten fucking dollars to take money out there. I've never seen a store's ATM charge over three dollars on the outside to use their machine, so that's just highway robbery, it's obviously just to take advantage of anyone too drunk or distracted to read the screen as they put their PIN in. Especially since there's an ATM just a few feet from the door outside, not owned by the bar, that charges a perfectly normal small-change amount.
But still. Even considering the complete lack of atmosphere and the naked profiteering, I'd still stop in with my friends now and then just to see if we can find a seat and hang out to talk before hitting another bar when we get thirsty again. But after reading this news article, I'm so grossed out by the place I don't even want to do that any more. Apparently someone left their credit card at the bar one night, and when they came back for it the next morning Christian's straight up robbed and insulted them by putting a 25% "idiot tax" on the card. That bar officially gives zero fucks about their customers; that shit is credit card fraud at the very least, since the owner of the card obviously didn't authorize the charge, and the bar owner doesn't even act like it's a problem. He implies that the multiple people coming forward talking about the 25% charge are lying by claiming it's a (still unauthorized, and thus thieving) 15% charge, never apologizes, and then acts like serving drinks that they pay for is some special service. He goes on about how so many people cancel their cards so he's losing tons of money all the time over it, but like I was pointing out earlier, the bar is overcharging everything to a ridiculous degree (seriously, ten fucking bucks to use the damn atm wtf), and I haven't heard about any of the other bars (who don't act like thieving bastards and seem to get by well enough) complaining about this or charging people to get insulted for making an honest mistake. I even asked a bartender friend whether or not this was a common thing, and he was all "Wtf no way! That's insane, we NEVER do that, Christian's is the only place I've heard of that pulls that type of stunt." If people cancelling their cards is such a huge problem for the bar, there's a pretty simple solution: stop accepting credit cards with open tabs! Either it's worth it and you don't need to rip off innocent people for not pulling that shit, or it's not and why the hell would you do it.
Also dang, it has been like a whole month since my last post. I gotta work on that.
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