(PART 1)
I want to first pay credit and praise to whoever the chef is working here - because the food is the ONLY redeemable thing about this place.
With that being said I have NEVER been more APPALLED by a complete disregard for customer service, ever in my life. It's obvious from the owner (Roberts) responses to the poor reviews here - that he regards his customers with contempt and distain. But to hear actual disrespect and ridicule about a customer, come from the owners mouth WHILE WE WERE SITTING IN THE ESTABLISHMENT - is why I am here today to write this.
When you enter ThaiThai you will be greeted by a sign blocking off the dining area, stating they are "only taking to-go orders due to being understaffed" - there is no mention of this on their Yelp page and if you call the waitstaff will not inform you of this either (unless prompted otherwise).
After ordering our food (to-go), we sat in the waiting area across from a couple other patrons who were eating their to-go lunches (in their laps) waiting for their plane to depart. After about 5 minutes the server walks over and abruptly informs the two "You cannot eat hear" and then walks away. NO explanation, NO apology, NO trace of any compassion or sympathy. The statement and manner in which it was delivered left all of us completely STUNNED.
Health code violations or policies would be an understandable explanation - IF one had been offered. However, it was not, and the two patrons shuffled off with their food and luggage to eat in the airport terminal instead.
Shortly after this awkward exchange, the owner comes out to his makeshift desk / table in the middle of the blocked off dining area AND BEGINS TO EAT HIS LUNCH IN FRONT OF US. At this point I really didn't think it could get worse... it did.
While still waiting for our food - the server received a call from a customer inquiring about (what I deduced was) the lunch closing time and ordering policies leading up to it. After hanging up the phone, the server went to the owner (who was still sitting in the middle of the dining area - eating) to discuss the call they'd just received. Given our close proximity, it was not hard to overhear the conversation - it went something like this...
SERVER : "Someone just called wanting to ask about ordering etc etc etc"
OWNER : "(laughing) No! Why would we stay open later for them??"
SERVER : "Yeah! I want to go home!"
OWNER : "(still scoffing) What makes them think they are so special??"
It's hard to completely convey the tone from this exchange, but after hearing this transpire I had to do everything in my power to not turn around and give this owner a big ol piece of my mind. The absolute disrespect and disregard toward the customer was beyond upsetting. And to disparage and berate a potential patron (behind their back) IN FRONT OF other customers was disgusting.
The owner has made sure to include in the "About the Business" section here on Yelp, that "What makes ThaiThai unique is that we do soft closings 30 minutes before closing time. This benefits our staff by allowing to have the last half to better service the last few tables and begin cleaning up work areas so they can be home with their family at a reasonable time and not have to worry about a group of people who show up 5-10 minutes before "hard closing" to be serviced upon.on"
If this is what ThaiThai claims is most unique about itself, this speaks VOLUMES to the mentality of this establishment. It is apparent from not only the responses to reviews here on Yelp but from the manner in which the owner OPENLY speaks - that the needs of the establishment come first and the customer comes second. If the owner is SO concerned about the well-being of his staff - WHY is the place chronically understaffed and why is he having such a hard time finding new hires?? What is "unique" about the "soft closing"? Aside from creating negative experiences for your customers - this seems to only benefit the staff and management. If you want you and your staff to be out the door at 3PM - close at 2:30PM - its that simple.
(See Photo for Part 2) read more