Worst customer service I have ever experienced in my life. I am not one to complain about customer service nor am I one to return a food/drink item even when my order is wrong. The past three times I have been to this Ava, my drink has either tasted poor, taken forever to be made, or never was made until I asked where it was. The customer service has been lacking significantly more times than not as the staff has not been welcoming and they rarely smile (yes I get masks are required but their eyes are not friendly). I feel more like I am an inconvenience to them then a customer. I have not complained about these experiences as I keep hoping things will improve but today I have decided to share my experience as it was horrific. I hope that this review can encourage the owner to make positive changes to promote a welcoming/friendly environment where there is communication when things don't go smoothly. Honestly, with this experience, I would love it if an Insomnia replaced this location as that is a welcoming environment.
I usually go to Ava when I am looking to walk around the shopping area/pond with my toddler as it is not my favorite coffee place and based upon past experiences. Upon ordering, the female (who I later found out was named Sydney who said she was the manager?) who took our order advised us that the sandwich would take 20 minutes to make since there were 4 sandwiches in ahead of us. I told her that was fine and I very much appreciated the forewarning. Well 20 minutes pass and I go to the sandwich maker (who I found out was Collin as I appreciated his service) and asked about it and he said he didn't have my order and asked who took my order. I pointed to the female who took my order. He said he would look into it. A few minutes later, there was a sandwich on the bar and I asked Sydney if that was the sandwich I ordered. She said it was a sandwich with turkey and not bacon (which I ordered). She did not exactly answer my question so I wasn't sure what to do. At that time, another customer asked Sydney if it was her sandwich on the bar and Sydney said "no., it's with turkey and not bacon." Again, that was not an answer to the question so this customer, seemingly looking for some sort of additional information said, "okay....I guess I will just wait." Still no communication from anyone about our order's status so I wasn't sure if I was expected to just take the sandwich I didn't order so I asked her if I should just take the sandwich on the bar. She said "No. Just give me a second." As she was making beverages, I heard her very annoyingly say (through her mask mind you), "I wish I could kick that baby out!" This was clearly my child as he was squealing by this point. I was not sure what to do so I walked away.
I am not one to allow my child to scream without taking him outside as I find it embarrassing myself so my husband took my toddler outside. Once my husband and toddler were walking out of the door, I went to the Sydney who was now taking orders and asked her if I could just get my money back since it is clear she wants us to leave based on the comment she made about wanting to "kick my baby out." Her response was "I was trying to get the order right." There was no apology whatsoever and only justification. I asked her for her name, which she gave me was Sydney and asked who her manager was. She said that she was the manager. I told her that it is really unfortunate that she is the manager and making comments about wanting to kick babies out. I told her that we would already be out of here had our order been made correctly in the first place. At this time, poor Collin came up to me with my sandwich and told me this was the correct sandwich and I could take it. I told him I appreciate how nice he has been and made sure to get his name. I fully believe in reporting any positive with the negative and I think Collin did an excellent job while likely being embarrassed by his manager's behavior himself. Sydney then said she refunded our money and it would show up in 5 business days. I told her thank you and walked out.
I do appreciate that she refunded the entire purchase amount, and not just the sandwich but I cannot believe she would make this comment about my child, especially as the manager. There were no apologies. None. Had there been communication about the status of the order and/or an apology for the inaccurate order, that would have made a big difference. Her actions and statements were the worst customer service I have ever experienced by ANY person, let alone a "manager." I hope that this review can be shared and can be an opportunity for growth and improvement. I understand things may be stressful in the given moment and this manager may not have been kid-friendly but perhaps she shouldn't be working in a place where children are present if she is that inpatient. read more