Some cafés do not provide free drinking water. Illustration photo by Pexels
The café charged me VND15,000 (58 U.S. cents) for bottled water while many other shops provide and even refill drinking water or iced tea for free.
I recently had a meeting with a partner at an outlet of a popular coffee chain, where I ordered a regular drink. After talking for a while, I felt thirsty and asked the staff for a glass of drinking water. However, the person told me the shop does not serve free water and that I had to buy a bottle of water for VND15,000.
The product was of a very common brand that usually sells for just VND3,000 at supermarkets, just a fifth of what the shop is charging. This made me feel uncomfortable.
These stores sell tea and coffee that are already priced much higher than their raw material costs, yet they refuse to provide even a basic glass of water for their paying customers. Even if I am not too demanding and willing to buy bottled products, the rates they charge are way higher than acceptable
I understand that businesses need to cover operating costs like rent, staff, electricity, water and air conditioning. But is a glass of plain water really such a big burden that it must be sold separately at such a high price?
I have visited many other coffee shops where drinking water is provided for free to make customers feel more comfortable and respected. And I believe they do not lose much money because of that.
Getting charged VND15,000 for bottled water made me feel the shop was trying to squeeze as much money out of me as possible. This profit-maximizing mindset can negatively affect the customer experience. That day, I left thinking: “I don’t want to come back again.”
*This opinion was submitted by a reader. Readers’ views are personal and do not necessarily match VnExpress’ viewpoints.
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