JM
Julie Mango
Aug 10, 2026
Extremely disturbing interaction with the manager. We will NOT return.
I placed a pickup order at this Bertucci’s on Saturday, August 8. Among the items I ordered were three Gold Peak Sweet Teas for $3.49 each. The online ordering page showed individual bottles of Gold Peak tea. Instead, we were given three small fountain drinks in short cups, placed inside a food box rather than even being provided in a drink carrier.
My husband returned them and was told that a refund would be processed back to my card. When he came back to the car without a refund receipt or any other confirmation, I went inside myself because I wanted some documentation that the refund had actually been processed.
The young woman at the register, Talia, was perfectly pleasant. I explained that if a refund receipt couldn't be printed, I simply wanted the employee/manager's name, the refund amount, and a short written note confirming that the refund was being processed. Talia immediately got a piece of receipt paper and was willing to help. I then asked if she could get the manager so that he was aware of the situation as well.
Unfortunately, that's when a very simple issue turned into an unnecessarily hostile encounter.
The manager explained that the refund had to be processed in a way that meant I would receive confirmation by email. I said that was fine, but again asked if he could simply provide his name and the refund amount in writing so I had a record in case the refund never appeared.
Instead of calmly addressing that request, he became defensive and refused. He then mocked me for pursuing the refund, saying, "You're doing all this for $3!" with a chuckle.
First- it wasn't $3. I purchased three teas at $3.49 each. More importantly, the dollar amount is irrelevant. If a customer pays for one product, receives something materially different, returns it, and is told a refund will be issued later, asking for proof of that refund is completely reasonable.
When I explained that I didn't know him and therefore had no way of identifying whom I had spoken with if the refund didn't appear, his behavior became even more troubling. During the exchange, he repeatedly told me, "You don't want a problem with me."
I found that statement intimidating and completely inappropriate for a manager to make to a customer over a routine refund request.
Eventually, rather than processing the promised refund to my card, he angrily decided to give me cash. When I pointed out that the refund should include the applicable tax rather than merely the menu price, he quickly slid $11 across the counter. I just took it and left.
I'm Black, and I would be dishonest if I said this interaction didn't leave me wondering whether I would have been mocked, belittled, and spoken to in such an intimidating manner had I looked different. I cannot know what was in this manager's mind, and I am not claiming to know his motivation. What I do know is how I was treated.
There was absolutely no reason for this encounter to become confrontational. I wasn't asking for free food or special treatment. I was asking for documentation of a refund for products I had paid for, returned, and did not receive as advertised.
A manager mocking a customer over the amount of money involved is bad enough. A manager repeatedly telling a customer "you don't want a problem with me" crosses a line.
Needless to say- this was our first and LAST time at this Bertucci’s.