This has been a rocky road. Sit back, and I'll tell you the whole story.
My oldest son is finally getting married this November. It was originally scheduled for last year, but the pandemic brought those plans to a screeching halt. Now, the day is quickly approaching, and I needed to have my suit pants altered. For some unfathomable reason, I actually needed to have them taken in. Usually, my experience with alterations goes the other way. Anyway, I called my favorite place, told her what I needed done (seat taken in, cuffs removed, and suspender buttons added). She said it was no problem.
I asked my wife to go with me, since I expected to have to try the pants on. Tailors get pretty friendly with your nether regions, and since this would be a woman, I just felt better having my wife along. We headed over to Bandera using Siri to find the place. Unfortunately, I chose the wrong business. I knew it as soon as we walked in. But, since we were there, I decided to stay.
I put the pants on, the tailor pinned and chalked the alterations he was going to do, I paid my $48, and left with a claim ticket and a promise that the pants would be ready four days later. I told him I would be out of town, but would pick them up on the following Monday, three days after they were scheduled to be ready.
I came home and almost immediately came to Yelp to see what others said about the place. I was not exactly happy with what I saw. Part of me wanted to drive back and get the pants before anything could happen to them. I only own one suit, and it is a nice one that I REALLY like. I bought it several years ago and spent enough money on it to make my wife unhappy. She didn't think I needed such an extravagant suit, but was okay with it when I told her it would be my only suit for the rest of my life and needed to be high quality to last. She can even lay me out in it before they cremate me. Unfortunately, I didn't listen to that side of my brain, and did not go back and rescue the pants.
On Monday, I called the tailor. I waited on the phone for about ten minutes listening to him opening and closing cabinets in his shop. He finally came back and said, "You come tomorrow afternoon. I have for you then." I politely agreed, hung up the phone, and felt the nausea creeping through my body. Many of the reviews mentioned items that were never found. I was now concerned that my pants were gonners.
On Tuesday, I called again. Once again, I listened as he went on a search through cabinets. Then, he finally came back and asked for my phone number. He promised to call me back soon. I politely agreed, hung up the phone, and felt the nausea creeping through my body again. But, the phone rang almost immediately. He had found my pants. Then he asked me if I still wanted the cuffs removed. At least I think that is what he asked. I really couldn't understand that one thing he was saying and felt foolish asking him to repeat it over and over. I finally asked, "No cuffs?" and, he excitedly responded, "Yes. I take off and have for you tomorrow." Before I could politely agree, he said, "Bye-bye" and hung up. Yes, I was definitely nauseous.
Today, Wednesday, my wife and I went to pick the pants up after being reassured that they were ready. The front of the shop was covered in scaffolding and tarps. I think they are painting it. I don't know. The workers held back a tarp and let us enter.
The tailor took my ticket and commenced looking for my pants. I watched him go from cabinet to cabinet digging through messy stacks of clothing trying to find my pants. I started looking for a restroom door, as I was convinced I was now going to hurl. Finally, however, he found them. I declined trying them on. I had already told my wife that, if they were wrong, I was going to take them somewhere else to have them done correctly. As I inspected his work, I noticed that the suspender buttons had not been added. He apologized profusely and promised to add them right then in under ten minutes.
My wife and I hesitantly took a seat and waited. I could hear him working away in the back room. Then, after just a few minutes, he came out with the pants and showed me that he had indeed added the buttons. I thanked him, took the pants, and came home.
I immediately went up to my bedroom and tried the pants on. They fit nicely. I even put the suspenders on to test out the buttons. Everything was good. I turned the pants inside out and inspected his handiwork. It was very professionally and neatly done. I was really happy with his work and the fact that my only suit pants were not missing nor destroyed.
That left me with a dilemma. Do I give him 4 or 5 stars for the great quality work he did for me? Do I give him 1-2 stars for the horrible and stressful service I suffered through? That is why I gave him a 3. I think the story will help anyone who is trying to decide if they should use him or not. Personally, knowing what I know now, I would never have risked it. read more