Public Zoff in the online comments
Now a guest of the controversial Uetliberg host is speaking
The landlord of the excursion restaurant Uto Staffel on Zurich’s Uetliberg likes to publish the name, employer and place of residence of his guests online – if they write a negative Google rating. Simon B. also commented and fell from all clouds.
Published: 5:57 p.m
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Updated: 37 minutes ago
1/5
Landlord Dirk Luttmann goes on the offensive when there are negative online reviews.
Martin SchmidtEditor Economics
Landlord Dirk Luttmann (56) polarizes: Anyone who rates Luttmann’s excursion restaurant Uto Staffel on Zurich’s Uetliberg negatively online will get their fat off. Luttmann does not shy away from revealing the name, place of residence or employer of his guests.
Simon B.* only gave the restaurant one star in his Google rating three months ago. Among other things, he found it unsuitable for prams. Shortly thereafter, he received the tit-for-tat: “You and your wife should leave their comfortable office chairs at Credit Suisse or KPMG and spend a Sunday with us. I assure you that you will revise your opinion afterwards, »Luttmann replied to the negative assessment.
B. is flabbergasted when he reads this: “The fact that the landlord researched where I and my partner work is a big number. But it shows what kind of person he is, »he says to Blick. B. does not want public attention and therefore remains anonymous.
“Wanted to warn other guests”
The negative rating was preceded by a visit to a restaurant last autumn. «We were two couples with prams and were shown to a table by the staff in the half-empty restaurant. But then the landlord came and told us that we had to stay outside with the prams, »he describes his view of things. Otherwise he hardly ever writes reviews. “But I wanted to warn other guests about this unfriendly boss,” he explains.
Luttmann presents the situation completely differently: “We still had outstanding reservations,” he writes in his online response. This was the reason for the free tables. He has no problems with children and prams. Word agains word. Which version is correct can hardly be checked.
Outing the guests legally tricky
As Luttmann writes in another comment, his answers are about describing his view of things. That’s his right. However, he is not allowed to put the names, employers or even telephone numbers of his guests on the Internet. “It smells like a violation of personal rights,” says digital lawyer Martin Steiger (44). Luttmann could have answered the inquiries without disclosing the data of his previous guests.
But Luttmann is fed up with anonymous reviews, as he says to Blick. That is the reason why he outed critics. How is that even possible? If the host remembers the incident, he compares the online reviews with the reservations made on that day. Then he googles the names and, with a bit of luck, finds the address and employer.
With the media hype, Google ratings for the Uto Staffel restaurant skyrocket. Many people express solidarity with the landlord and are convinced that online reviews are often unfair. But there are also some negative reviews, which lower the Google rating from 4 to 3.9 stars on Thursday afternoon – the maximum would be 5 stars.
* Name changed