This has been my go to pizza place for the last couple years. That is why the service I received tonight was so stunningly disappointing. I was told it would be a 35 minute wait for my order, which is reasonable on a busy Friday night. I called at 5:33pm and arrived early, having my card swiped at the Covid friendly takeout window at 6:04pm. The woman I dealt with at the counter was clearly flustered, and very busy, but did not provide any estimate on an additional wait before walking away. Only that it would be 'a while'. With no further discussion and the understanding that food would soon be on its way I stood and waited along with everyone else. A freeze warning is in effect this evening, and I was wearing a sweatshirt which was enough for a few minutes wait. Turns out it wasn't enough to keep me warm for a further 32 minutes. I was given no update, no apology, no explanation. Eventually, at 6:34pm, I asked if perhaps they had simply forgotten about my order or if I had missed my name being called. I was informed very curtly that they hadn't and I hadn't, and that my order was just one of many they were working on. Fortuitously, 2 minutes after that I was given my pizza. Success!
Or it would have been.
After I got home at 6:48pm I resignedly sat down to warm my frozen body with my hard won pizza. Except the Chicken parm pizza, very extremely obviously, had terribly burned chicken. They are in the image attached. I thought that perhaps they were just slightly burned and that it was a darker seasoning. I took a small piece and confirmed that it did indeed taste like ashes in my mouth, which was a fair analogy for the entire experience until this point. I called and asked if they could please prepare another pizza of the same type to replace my badly burnt pizza. The young woman I spoke with was very helpful, and offered a $10 coupon for my next purchase. I explained that I wouldn't be able to eat my current pizza, and why. She had to put me on hold once more, but agreed they would be able to make a replacement pizza. I returned to the store.
7:00pm I am back at Luigi's Pizzarama, where the woman at the window promptly walks away upon my return for several minutes, then returns huffily to hand me $22 and explain "I don't know what was wrong with your pizza, but here." I tell her what was wrong with my pizza and attempt to parlay the conversation into a discussion about my option for a replacement pizza rather than a refund, since a refund doesn't help me feed my wife or 2 year old daughter, but she clarifies that there would be no need for an explanation because "I didn't cook it". With a half step back, obviously prepared to retreat from what I think she must have imagined to be an epic confrontation, I see the writing on the wall and turn to simply leave.
I arrive home at 7:25pm, nearly 2 hours after ordering my pizza. Only now I have less gas, no pizza, and less of my life remaining to contemplate why anyone would ever allow such poor treatment at the window of their establishment. I have every single facet of this story documentable with timestamps as well! The joys of being a project manager by trade.
TL:DR - Delicious pizza! But you better pray that literally everything goes exactly as planned, or you are in for a very bad night. read more