I really hate to do this because I have been a loyal customer for years now and have so many beautiful pieces of art for my children that I cherish, but I have to leave because how my family and I were treated yesterday was beyond rude. It was a busy day, and my family of five came in with my two daughters and my husband carrying our son in a car seat. Only one table was left, and it was a six-top table, which we were so excited to see was available because it would have been perfect for us, as we are a family of five and had a car seat with us. However, upon arrival, we were greeted with a glare from one of the staff members, who was seemingly guarding the table. I looked up and asked politely, "Is it okay if we sit here?" Even though I know the rules are that you can sit anywhere, she said, "We are really busy right now, so I would like to reserve this for another family, but you can use this one," and pointed us to the tiny four-seat table right beside it, which was covered in paint and needed to be cleaned. It was still in use, as we saw the person stand up and walk away to get supplies moments before.
I then said, "That's too small for us," and she responded, "I can pull up another seat," while my husband just wanted to put down the heavy car seat and baby he was holding. I asked, "So we aren't allowed to sit here?" and she replied, "No, but you can sit here if you would like," again pointing to the four-top table covered in paint that was still in use. This left us no choice but to leave. She saw us all leaving disappointed and did not once try to correct her mistake or her behavior.
After we put all the kids back into the van, I came back in to talk to the manager about what had just happened. While I was speaking to the manager, the staff member continued to stand behind the manager, glaring at me with a mean look--without apologizing once. I told the other two women how I was unable to celebrate my one-year-old's birthday and make him a plate, and how we were planning on spending at least $70 or $80. They were very respectful and kind, apologized for her mistakes, welcomed us, and said they would love to have us back to paint. They tried their best to correct the other staff member's mistake. While they were apologizing, the staff member stood silently behind them, giving me a mean look! I am only giving a two-star review instead of one star because of those two women, who were kind, receptive, and tried to correct the situation.
I went back to the car afterward and asked my husband if he wanted to go back in. He said, "No, I got a really bad vibe as soon as I walked in there," and when I asked if we could try again next weekend, he said, "Maybe we should go somewhere else." I just felt terrible because all of us were so excited, and that one staff member ruined everything for everyone by refusing to let us sit at the last table and treating us terribly. I really think she needs to be fired if she doesn't learn how to treat customers better because if it weren't for her, this would be a five-star place for kids. She went out of her way to refuse us service, saw how much she upset me and my family, and could not have cared less. She was given several opportunities to correct her mistake, but she chose to glare at me from the moment I came in until the moment I left. I was super polite! This woman needs to be spoken to--I wish I had gotten her name. Everything and everyone else was great, and it's a shame how much damage one person can cause with their attitude toward customers.
I will be returning, and if things go back to the way they were before I met that staff member, they will be receiving a five-star review from me, as I have always raved about them. But you need to make sure your staff treats customers with kindness and respect, not push out paying customers and make up rules that don't even exist while refusing to let people sit down and guarding tables for families that don't exist. We were the perfect-sized family for that table she refused, and I'm sure no other family came to fill that table that day that was a family of five or more. So what she did was very unnecessary and unkind, acting as if we weren't good enough to sit at that table and pointing to a dirty one we kept saying we did not want to use that was in use. She acted as if there was arranged seating and deliberately refused to let us sit down, even though we all stood around the table and she saw my husband holding the heavy car seat with the baby, and could not have cared less when we left.
I hope they find a better replacement for this staff member,
Sincerely,
April Perkins read more