After picking up Princess from the kennel, we were looking for lunch. My wife said she either wanted noodles or a sandwich. I wonder how she would have liked a noodle sandwich. Am I being mean? No, I've often wondered whether or not it would be unreasonable to wrap spaghetti in a flour tortilla. Spaghetti Burrito, if you will. Makes spaghetti hand holdable. Otherwise it would be next to impossible to eat spaghetti while driving.
But I digress...
We looked at the menu for Yummy Hainan Chicken and they had dishes that we enjoy. So, we stopped by and placed an order and paid for it. When the order was ready, we got back into the van and drove to a nearby park. I got water for the dog, and we sat at a picnic table in the shade. My wife pulled the dishes out of the bag and immediately, I saw that we had a problem.
There was a small box of rice. We didn't order any rice. There was a rice plate. No, we did not order a rice plate. There were two small containers of broth which we also had not ordered. I looked at the receipt that was attached to the outside of the bag and it was Order #13, worth about $35. I asked my wife for our receipt, and it was Order #14, worth about $51. Arrrggghhh!
We packed the food back up without opening any of the dishes. We put the dog back into the van and drove back to the restaurant. As soon as my wife walked in the door, the server rushed up to her and apologized for giving her the wrong order. Then she told my wife to keep the incorrect order to enjoy and meanwhile, the kitchen would refire our original order.
That was above and beyond. Service the old-fashioned way. We goofed, we're sorry. Let us make it up to you. We ended up with $86 worth of food for only $51. Yes, they made a mistake. Yes, it was an inconvenience because we had to return and then wait. But the fact that they recognized and admitted to the mistake as soon as my wife walked in the door is impressive. The fact that they told us to keep the incorrect order tells us that they understand that once food goes out the door, if it's returned, they must throw it out for food safety reasons. However, by simply telling us to keep it built up tremendous goodwill that can't be bought.
Before we even got back to the park, we had already decided that the yelp rating would be a 5* just for the customer service. Then, we ate the food. We tried a little bit of everything that we got and it was all DELICIOUS! We enjoyed everything that we got and would happily order it again. Of course, we'd also have to try other flavors too.
We got:
Curry Beef Brisket & Beef Tendon - 5 - Not too much eat. Nice tender brisket and tendon. This dish was great over rice.
Hainan Chicken Noodle Soup - 5 - This dish is probably better in house than to go. Like all the better restaurants, everything came in three separate containers. Soup in a large bowl. Noodles in a smaller plastic container. Hainan Chicken with Green Onion/Ginger Sauce and Peanuts on the side. The problem was with the noodles. Once cooked, they're dropped into the container where they clump together. It took a bit of work to unclump them in the soup. One solution would be to leave some water in with the noodles but then they would absorb that water and that changes the texture. The real solution would be to eat them in restaurant to enjoy the dish as it should be enjoyed.
Broth - 5 - A mild flavored broth served with two of the dishes ordered.
Seafood Laksa Ramen - 5 - Super flavorful soup with Prawns, Mussels, Cuttlefish Balls, Calamari and Fried Tofu. Another yelper wrote that the noodles are made from fish paste. We couldn't really tell. They were very soft and didn't have much of a bite or flavor, however, as a complete dish, it all came together well. This dish was served in two containers, soup and noodles. These noodles did not clump together.
Knife Cut Noodles with Minced Meat - 5 - While this was not a dish that we would have ordered on our own, it is a dish that we will order again. For whatever reason, we have a fascination with handmade noodle because of the flavors and textures. There was just a hint of heat that we think may have come from spicy fermented tofu, but please don't quote us on that.
Braised Beef Brisket and Beef Tendon over Rice Plate - Order this to eat in house but not to go. It's served in a plastic three-compartment plate with a lid. Because the rice and the Brisket/Tendon are served hot, the Smashed Cucumber, Wood Ear and Bean Curd Salad gets "cooked". It would tastes much better cold or at room temperature.
The restaurant is small and clean. The people friendly and service, relatively quick. Parking is okay if you don't mind walking across a parking lot. It is shared with other businesses such as 99 Ranch and Baskin Robbins.
We will definitely be back! read more