Service members can leave reviews of military barracks and dining facilities
The internet has websites where customers can review facilities and services. Restaurant and hotel reviews are common, but other customer service areas are also subject to review. An Army Reserve veteran has added to the list of websites where customers can leave a review. The app, Hots&Cots, allows service members to post barracks and dining facility reviews under the cover of an anonymous name.
From The Fayetteville Observer:
“Knowing that I’m third generation military, my dad and my grandfather were in the military, he asked me would I ever be OK with my kids if they wanted to join the military,” Evans said. “I said, ‘I wouldn’t feel that comfortable based off the situation with the barracks and things that we see within the dining facilities.'”
Soon after the conversation, the Government Accountability Office released a 118-page report in September detailing concerns about barrack conditions at 10 military installations across the U.S., including problems with mold, bedbugs, sewage and broken heating and air conditioning systems.
Evans said that in further discussion with his friend, the idea for the Yelp-like app to review barracks and dining facilities was born.
Leaving feedback
Evans said that while the military has processes for reporting issues, the general public doesn’t have access to the military’s reviews, and the issues still seem to continue.
At the same time, Evans said, Hots&Cots is a place where positive feedback can be left, too.
“People go to dining facilities, and they get really subpar food and to pay for it, they don’t have a choice and we wanted to raise awareness on OK, these are some really great dining facilities and these are some not so great dining facilities,” he said.
Evans said the app is for all military branches and has barracks and dining facilities from 240 military installations worldwide. It is free, and users can anonymously leave reviews, he said.
The Fayetteville Observer has the rest of the story here.
Category: Military issues, Veterans in the news
How soon before the whole thing is shut down due to “treason against Teh Gooberment” and everyone arrested?
(sorry for the grump mood…..)
You know- You just know some CO or 1SG is going to move heaven and earth to find the ‘reviewers’ who gave a less than glowing review of their facilities.
Very true…
“Minus 5 out of 5 stars! I recently reported to the unit and was placed into a 20-year-old barracks room with mold issues and worn-out furniture. When I asked my NCO about this, he said ‘just sign the hand receipt’, then when I refused to, my 1SG called me into his office. I missed lunch [fortunately] because 1SG was so irritated that I refused to sign for the room that I was in the front-leaning rest position for the next 2.5 hours, when he finally got tired. When I went to dinner, I was told I could have one protein, which ended up being a withered chicken wing that seemed boiled, and the condiments consisted of congealed mayonnaise and watery ketchup.”
Following day. CSM: “1SG, have SPC Johnson in my office at 0900 tomorrow! He reported just yesterday and someone happened to give my DFAC a bad review at the same time!” 1SG: “SFC Yessir, I want SPC Johnson in my office at 0400 tomorrow!” SFC Yessir: “SSG Eatsalot, Get Johnson here time now to explain himself! We all have to be in at 0200 to meet with the 1SG.”
Meanwhile, the civilian in charge of barracks maintenance is teleworking, the Garrison Commander and CSM are golfing, and the DFAC Chief and NCOIC are both just relaxing, knowing that the unit’s NCOs will handle SPC Johnson. Army Cybercommand will figure out a way to “fix the review”. 😄
Don’t forget the salad dressing packet.
Always random, never the one you wanted and better suited to making the peas taste better.
And this, boys and girls, is why Ft Hood can’t feed or adequately house their Soldiers.
Hahahaha……..
This is exactly accurate!
Yuck, Guess I shouldn’t complain about the roaches i had to room with (bugs, not fellow soldiers 😁) 30 years ago at Fort Stewart.
When I served we didn’t have civilians doing our maintenance. We also didn’t have mold or bedbugs. We did have some old furniture but nobody was offended by it. We also had great food and were just happy to be indoors.
There is a reason they are called mess halls.
“This place blows chunks and you will too– zero stars outta four!” (can see it no).
Yeah.
“The dude with the hairnet’s ass is so fat because it eats a lot of cocks”.
This is the kinda shit they will receive if its a subjective survey and not a Likert 1-7 scale.
This is going to go over like a bad fart in church.
I hope there is no mandatory identification being that it is “anonymous”.
Is this place better than an MRE (or vice versa) and, if so, which one(s)?
(Having once preferred a Tuna w/ Noodles entree made warm under my armpit to a unit MKT, I thought I’d contribute that. Folk will make comparisons and probably worse ones.)
Great idea. Not that SMs have much say in where they are assigned, live, and eat, but for those fortunate enough to get Station of Choice enlistment or reenlistment contracts, I can see this making some difference. Of course, we all know that certain units have a higher level of prestige than others. I doubt anyone is going to want to go to Fort Polk or Fort Drum if Campbell or Bragg are available. Screaming Eagles and All Americans have a little more esprit de corps than 10th Mountain units on installations with poor reputations.
Then, of course, there’s the fact that you can have veritable five-star accommodations in one Brigade and live in the poor house in the next. 4th (now 2nd) Brigade, 3ID had the newest barracks when I arrived in 2012. Each common area had its own washer and dryer, along with a mini kitchen that included a stovetop. Much better than the community laundry rooms and microwaves of most barracks.
I learned to work in a kitchen and make bunk in a barracks
at a YMCA summer camp long before Basic at Dix.
So I had a head start.
I found the military to be far more expectant of my skills and
they made that quite clear. What has changed? Do they still
teach how to operate a buffer? Make a bunk?
Doubtful. That would be “traumatic” for many today.
Wanna have decent chow and quarters for Service members? How about some decent health care? Put Kongress Kritters and ALL grubermint employees in the same situations. And on the same pay scale The $64 million spent by the “Re-Naming Commission” coulda helped. Or the raise Kongress just gave themselves…or the billions laundered thru the latest forever war…or the billions being given to illegal invaders…
Think I’ll go give my DD-214 a hug.
Preach it, Brother Battle Bang!
Amen!
Hey now, the Renaming Commission was important because it made all service members feel ‘included’.
Of course, most soldiers are still referring to the posts by their original names.
My CO is hoping that the reviews cause action to be taken. She is excited about adding a few complaints herself.
We had sewage leaking up from the floor in one building (tiles squished and brown water came up). We reported it, used the system and the contractors came out, mopped the area, pulled up two tiles, blocked off that section and left. Four weeks later “still waiting for parts”. We were told to move the soldiers into different rooms as we had extra since we only had placed one per room and the rooms are officially two man rooms.
But I’m sure the contractors got a nice paycheck. (Well the company anyways, probably not the workers)
And said Company is owned by some local “Boss Hogg” who has the right politicians paid off to keep the contract.
FWIW, Every mess hall and dining facility I had in the Army made good food, good coffee and often had a pretty decent decor, within their means. Even in Basic Training I thought the food was good.
The mess hall at Walter Reed AMC was particularly good, Ft. Harrison as well. Colorado Springs was good but pretty much ordinary.
I took a Tiger Cruise some 20 years or so back, well more than 20 years ago and was amazed at what the Navy did with perfectly good food. Fortunately, my brother was Senior Chief and they were able to fix the problems.
You need to bring your own black pepper and Tabasco Sauce, just in case. 🙂
Vilsek, Germany. Went there for some training in ’73. Best damn food I’d ever had in the Army. Cooked your eggs the way you liked them, fresh baked pastries, Rad cooks (overseen by G.I.s). Great place.