Ripped off? Stunned by good value? Write, text or blog your experience to us

Not in such good taste

Kieran O'Hare went to the Taste of Dublin event in Dublin Castle recently and was underwhelmed by the overpriced fare he found there. He had admission-only tickets which cost a not too shabby €25 but once he was through the gates of Dublin Castle he started wondering what exactly he was getting for his money. To buy any food or drink, visitors first had to exchange their real money euro for fake money "florins" at a one-for-one rate of exchange.

"The use of this currency saved time by reducing cash handling but it also made one less conscious of the amount being paid for produce," O'Hare writes. Some people, perhaps, but not him. He and a friend decided to stop for sustenance at a Dublin wine bar stall, where he had the least expensive wine on the menu. First off he was appalled to be charged five florins for a 125ml glass of Côtes du Rhône. His friend selected the aged ham and rustic bread on offer. "The portion was meagre and he was charged seven florins," O'Hare fumes.

Another exhibitor was selling "a sub-fish-finger-sized piece of deep-fried fish, 5½ chips, and a thimble of mushy peas" for six florins. "Aren't these events supposed to offer better than normal value to people as a way of giving them the chance to try haute cuisine without the associated haute prix?" he asks. "I appreciate that exhibitors probably pay handsomely to be at the event, but something is badly wrong if I spend €55 overall and leave feeling distinctly underfed."

Post office boxing

It's safe to say that in recent weeks readers, such as Helen Kahn from east Cork, have not been happy with some of the service offered by An Post. In recent years, she says, "the few post offices that are left" have taken to attaching "a little green gummed label to parcels addressed to places outside Ireland". These labels are about two inches square, she writes, and are supposed to carry the value and description of the parcel's contents plus the name and address of sender. "As it is almost impossible to get all this info on to the label, considerable time is wasted," she says. Inquiries as to why this label is necessary are met with incomprehension or with the statement that it is necessary 'for security reasons'," she writes. "Does someone's job security really depend on the recycling of customs declaration labels left over from the 1960s? I think I'll sent Uncle Paddy in Boston his Semtex some other way," she says.

SuperValu, super service

We seem to spend all our time on this page giving out about rip-off prices and brutal customer service, so it is nice to draw readers' attention to how it should be done. Joyce Puech from Dublin sent us a mail which allows us to do just that. Last Monday, she nipped into SuperValu in Churchtown to get milk and "of course ended up with a full basket, tempted as I was along the way". She was not alone in her foraging and was accompanied by two wayward and wriggling toddlers, so the two-minute errand turned into a 20-minute expedition. It was, however, "rendered tolerable by the friendly and helpful staff who whisked us through the checkout in record time and carried my shopping bag to the car," she writes. "Friends have enthused about this shop and I will be quick to recommend it to others. All it needs is an "e" at the end of its name," she concludes.