Disappointing Customer Service at Coffee Bean in Keaʻau…read more
On October 11, my husband was locked inside the restroom at Coffee Bean in Keaʻau for over 30 minutes. My husband and I had purchased drinks from the establishment, and what should have been a simple visit turned into an incredibly stressful and frustrating experience.
The restroom door would not open because the bolt was severely stuck. Neither the door passcode nor the key worked, leaving my husband unable to get out. Even if my husband tried to push the door out, it still failed. My husband was trapped inside an enclosed restroom with no windows for over 30 minutes, and we were understandably worried and frustrated.
What made the situation even more upsetting was the supervisor's response when we asked for help. Rather than taking our concerns seriously from the beginning, she appeared to think we were joking and responded with an attitude. We felt as though we were being treated like children who did not know how to open a restroom door, rather than paying customers dealing with a genuinely distressing situation.
It was only after the supervisor saw how frustrated Kylie and I had become that she finally called the fire department to help open the door. The fact that it took the situation escalating to that point before the fire department was called was extremely concerning. My husband had already been trapped inside for an extended period, and the available methods of unlocking the door had failed. This should have been treated as a serious safety issue from the very beginning, not something that required customers and an employee to become visibly frustrated before decisive action was taken.
This incident also raises an important question: What if it had been a young child trapped inside that restroom? What if the person inside had a medical emergency, experienced a panic attack, or was unable to communicate effectively? A restroom with no windows and a door that cannot be opened using either the passcode or key presents a serious safety concern. Management needs to investigate how this happened and ensure that the lock is repaired and that staff know how to respond immediately if it happens again.
I would like to recognize Kylie if I remember her name correctly, for the compassion and concern she showed throughout this ordeal. She stayed with me and genuinely tried to help while my husband was trapped inside. She sincerely apologized for what was happening and took the initiative to contact her manager. From what I observed, Kylie had to push for her manager to come in because she understood how serious the situation was. Her actions showed that she recognized the urgency of the situation and wanted to make sure we received the help we needed. I am genuinely grateful for her kindness and willingness to advocate for us when we felt our concerns were not being taken seriously.
Unfortunately, the supervisor's behavior, I believe her name started with a Z was the complete opposite of the customer service we expected. Beyond the lack of urgency and empathy, she did not offer a sincere apology, ask whether we needed anything else after the ordeal, or offer a refund for the drinks we had purchased. After such a frightening and stressful experience, a basic acknowledgment of what we had gone through would have been the bare minimum. Instead, we were left feeling dismissed and disappointed.
Customer service is about more than simply serving coffee. It is about taking responsibility when something goes wrong, treating customers with respect, and prioritizing their safety and well-being.
I hope management takes this complaint seriously, investigates the restroom lock malfunction, and reviews how the supervisor handled the incident. I also hope the appropriate steps are taken to prevent this from happening to anyone else. Staff should be prepared to respond promptly to restroom emergencies, and customers should never have to fight to have a legitimate safety concern acknowledged.
I sincerely hope Kylie receives recognition for her compassion, initiative, and willingness to help us during this experience. She demonstrated the kind of customer service and concern that we should have received from the beginning.
This was an unacceptable and deeply disappointing experience. My concern is not simply about how we were treated as customers, but also about the potential danger this situation could pose to someone else. No one should be trapped inside a restroom for over 30 minutes because of a faulty lock, and no customer should feel that their safety concerns are being dismissed. I hope management takes meaningful action to address both the safety issue and the lack of professionalism we experienced.
