Critical Reasoning

Source GMAT Club free test question

A negative review of a popular restaurant claimed that the wait staff was rude and the food was overpriced. This review caused sales to drop precipitously which, in turn, forced the original owners to sell the business. The new owners revised the menu and dismissed most of the wait staff. After three months, however, sales had improved by less than 1%.

Which of the following, if true, forms the best basis for at least a partial explanation of why sales at the restaurant have not improved?

The new owners could not determine who were the rudest members of the wait staff.
New menu items offered by the new owners are now more affordable.
The new owners neglected to advertise the fact that the restaurant is now under new management.
The new owners began managing the restaurant during the summer, when sales are unusually high.
Another restaurant with similarly-priced menu items opened across the street.

Can anyone explain why A and E also cannot be options giving 'partial explanation' to the paradox ?
The stimulus says The new owners dismissed most of the wait staff. So some of the rude ones (one of the reasons why sales dropped in the first instance) may have been left behind and causing the same issues? So why not A?
Another restaurant with a menu with similar prices is close by, so since the sales gets distributed, hence the sales of this restaurant 'have not improved' ?

The OA is C which is also a possibility, but why not A and E ?

hmmmm......Out of C and E (both of which seem correct) my pick would be C as far the logic of the stimulus goes...

Which of the following, if true, forms the best basis for at least a partial explanation of why sales at the restaurant have not improved?

A negative review.....that the wait staff was rude and the food overpriced.....caused sales to drop......The new owners revised the menu and dismissed most of the wait staff....but sales improved by less than 1%. why?

it was the negative perception created by the review that led to decline in sales as less customers came......the new owners neglected to advertise the fact that the restaurant is now under new management(C) hence did little to change the already established negative impression thus the sales failed to rise appreciably.

A explains only one factor that the review raised.....

Thanks gmatrix. Then going by the explanation that A counters only 1 aspect of the negative review = bad service, E also counters only the price and not staff? Hence these options are less likely to be right in comparison.

gmatrix wrote:hmmmm......Out of C and E (both of which seem correct) my pick would be C as far the logic of the stimulus goes...

Which of the following, if true, forms the best basis for at least a partial explanation of why sales at the restaurant have not improved?

A negative review.....that the wait staff was rude and the food overpriced.....caused sales to drop......The new owners revised the menu and dismissed most of the wait staff....but sales improved by less than 1%. why?

it was the negative perception created by the review that led to decline in sales as less customers came......the new owners neglected to advertise the fact that the restaurant is now under new management(C) hence did little to change the already established negative impression thus the sales failed to rise appreciably.

A explains only one factor that the review raised.....

Personally I don't think quality of the question is at GMAT level.

https://gmatclub.com/forum/v06-105051.html....
Kaplan instructor says that the question stem is wrong!!!.
This should have been an except question. So accept it.