I visited this coffee shop after seeing its 4-star rating and was excited to try a new place,…read moreespecially because I was looking for somewhere with spacious seating.
Unfortunately, my experience was very disappointing, particularly when it came to customer service.
When my party of three approached the counter, the woman in the black top with short hair, who appeared to be the owner or manager, finished taking the order of the customer ahead of us but did not acknowledge or greet us. I stood there waiting while my party and I looked toward her, but there was no acknowledgment or indication that someone would be with us shortly. Eventually, my mother had to ask another employee, who was working on the other side of the counter, for assistance with the pastries. That employee was the one who eventually assisted us and took our order.
I asked whether we could choose a seat and have our order brought to us, and she nodded yes. I also left a tip when paying for our order.
When our drinks and pastries were ready, the curt short hair black top woman called out loudly on our order at the pickup area. I found this a little odd given that I had specifically asked whether the order would be brought to our table, but I went ahead and picked everything up myself and brought it to our table.
About 30 minutes later, I noticed that the same employee personally carried a drink and pastry to another customer who had arrived after us and was seated behind us. At that point, I was confused about why service seemed inconsistent. We had been told to pick up our own order, and we also had to clear/manage our own table, yet another customer who arrived later was being served at his table. I initially decided not to make an issue of it because I had seen other customers picking up their own orders as well.
What bothered me most, however, was what happened with my elderly mother when she needed to use the restroom.
She knocked twice but received no response, so she asked a staff member for the restroom key. She was told that someone might be inside. After waiting a couple of minutes, it turned out that the person inside was actually a staff member. My mother asked why the employee hadn't simply responded when she knocked, especially since she was waiting to get access to the restroom. The employee in the black top ignored her and walked away without responding.
As a customer, I found the overall interaction to be extremely unfriendly and lacking in basic hospitality. I also couldn't help but notice that my party was the only Chinese/Vietnamese group in the coffee shop at the time. I cannot say what anyone's intentions were, but the inconsistent treatment left me uncomfortable and made me question whether we were being treated differently.
A business in the hospitality industry should make all customers feel welcome, regardless of their background or ethnicity. Unfortunately, from the moment we arrived until we left, the customer service was close to nonexistent and there was very little friendliness or acknowledgment toward us.
The space itself is spacious and looks nice at first glance, but the interior is not particularly well maintained if you look closely.
I'm honestly unclear how this place has a 4-star rating based on my experience. The poor customer service and lack of basic courtesy left a bad taste in my mouth. I came here intending to support a new local business, but based on this experience, I would not recommend this coffee shop and do not plan to return.
If you're going to operate a business in hospitality, customer service should be one of the fundamentals. A little acknowledgment, courtesy, and consistency would have made a significant difference.
