In the search for good service and a bar to call my own, I have been visiting establishments around Hanoi.

Yesterday, a review of my experience at one particular pub stirred up quite a response from readers.

I never anticipated that an article about a bar would generate such emotion and feedback, but I received a massive amount of emails in less than 24 hours. The passionate responses, suggestions and criticisms from so many people made me realise that although this is not a life or death matter, it is one that concerns more people than just me.

After reading hundreds of emails and comments, I felt compelled to clarify a few things.

First and foremost, to all the people who took the time to read and reply, especially those I wasn't able to respond to personally, you have been a reminder of why I love Vietnam. Thank you. I have had so many people offer to show me a place, buy me a beer, or give me a tip, that it shows the true spirit of Vietnam as well as foreigners residing here.

I want to be clear that my article about 17 Cowboys was in no way a reflection of Vietnam or how I feel about Vietnam. I love Vietnam and feel blessed to be here. As I mentioned, it was one night at one bar. The same bar could very well provide another person with a totally different experience. I stated in the article that I would give this, and any other place another chance.

I also want to address the abundance of people who have apologised. I appreciate your words immensely, however, you did nothing wrong! There is absolutely nothing to feel sorry for or ashamed of. I have nothing but positive things to say about my experience in Vietnam. Every country in the world has good customer service and bad customer service.

I am determined to find places that provide good service and to share my experience with our readers. I hope that this in some small way encourages the entire industry to strive for better. The service industry is vital to the development of Vietnam. It is the cornerstone of tourism, both domestically and internationally. It is also the single most essential element of success for a business. Good service will reap rewards and it shapes the way people, especially tourists, view an entire country. I am not a tourist, I live here, and I wish the best for Vietnam and the communities within, therefore, I want people to strive for the very best.

Perhaps we can start changing the standard of service by finding places that provide good service, and getting readers to support it. If customers demand good service, businesses will be forced to provide it. That's what I'm hoping we can do. Vietnam is a wonderful place and Hanoi is an amazing city. A place is often judged by its service, so why not make it reflect the true kindness of the people here?

I would also like to address another topic that was drawn to my attention from our readers. I received countless emails that suggest the whiskey sold in some establishments is "fake". Apparently, many bars in Vietnam fill up expensive bottles with cheap whiskey. This is not a reputation that you want your bar, your city, or your country to have. If you are a bar owner that condones this method of business, I have some advice:

Anybody who drinks whiskey regularly can taste the difference between cheap and quality whiskey. If your customers find out that they have been cheated, you will lose a customer for life. Tourists, locals and expats, in particular, communicate with one another and have a wide reach. With the internet, the reputation of any establishment can determine whether a customer even decides to step foot into your bar. Foreigners and locals alike do not appreciate being cheated. If people start talking about places that cheat them, your reputation will be ruined. People want quality service and quality drink, they are also willing to pay for that. If you are cheating your customers, you are cheating yourself.

I have one final suggestion for bar owners and businesses in general, do not be short-sighted. A customer should be treated the same whether they order a Coke or a bottle of Johnny Walker Blue, you never know who your customer is, who they know, or who they might talk to. The best way to get repeat business and to build a strong reputation is to treat everybody fairly, you must think about the long-term!

Many readers agreed with my sentiments and some did not. I also had a lot of feedback saying they didn't like the translated headline of my article. In Vietnamese, the headline read "Cau Cuu" which if I understand correctly, means, "save me". Sometimes, things can be lost in translation, and the meaning isn't always exactly the same.

Finally, I want to elaborate on what I'm trying to do. I am in search of a place where I can relax, have a conversation, drink a cold beer, listen to good music and be greeted with a smile. I know these places exist, and with the help of our readers, I'm in search of my favourite one.

So Vietnam, here's to service!

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Below are some of the comments sent to me via email:

"Please, you MUST be with us or make us better. DO NOT only complain about us."
-I hope together we can all be better.

"I've read the article on Dantri and I feel so disappointed."
-Don't be!

"In Vietnamese, we often say "customers are gods", but in Hanoi, customers are ill-treated though we spend lots of money."
-In English we often say, "The customer is always right."

"My name is Jane. And yes I'm on my holyquest for a perfect bar too. I dress as sloppy as I can. In fact, I love sloppiness whenever I'm not working because my work requires me to be formal to the max, I hate formal attire to be honest. Unfortunately my sloppiness is usually associated with "low class", generating from how I've been treated at bars, especially SC."
-Jane, we will find a bar! I like your approach, don't judge a book by it's cover right?

"We are trying to change things to get better, I am trying to do that as well because I am a Vietnamese."

"I came across your review on SC (Seventeen Cowboys) bar the other day on the internet and what ran through my mind was 'Holycrap this is exactly what I've been through.'"
-I'm not alone!

"It's your story, it's your problem."
-Yes it is.

"David, please come to Saigon."
-Soon enough I will visit again.

"I read your entry on dantri.com.vn, it sounded like a call of "MAY DAY MAY DAY!" to me."

"I'm a Vietnamese but I have to say that I feel ashamed of those people."

"I have lived in Sydney for 1 year and I can feel the difference between Vietnam and Australia. Like me,when i go to a bar, if i drink liquor, i will be served very well absolutely, and otherwise, if i drink beer, you know what will happen... even though i am Vietnamese, but in fact im very sad about that..."

"I totally had the same experience when I went to that bar with a friend last month. He ordered Corona and the pretty waitresses there treated him like he was begging for it. He was only a tourist in Hanoi for a few days and as a Hanoian, I felt bad because it was not a good side of Hanoi that I wanted my friend to see."

"I feel so embarrassed after reading this article as it was written by a foreigner. Though we can't say all bars and restaurants in Hanoi are the same, such situations can be encountered in most of them. It's not just simply about the service of a bar, but about a common business culture here. They just want to have as much profit as possible, but they don't understand a simple thing which is that nothing else but customers are the main factor that bring them those profits. I would rather have dinner in a restaurant that has good service and makes me feel pleasant, though the food may not be good, than go to a restaurant that has good food with bad services."

"I am really sorry for the trouble which you met in Hanoi. I live and work in Hanoi tourism so I really know the level of service here. It's hard to avoid the service's attitude like that in Hanoi."

"The customer service in Vietnam is the worst of the world."
-Actually, I've seen much worse!

"I am a real Vietnamese, and I, myself, feel the same way when i enter to a bar."

"Customers come first! If they get this thing done right, of course they will be successful!"