Zachary G.
Yelp
It pains me to do this!!! I've been coming to this store since I was a Midshipman back in 1996. I now live in Los Angeles and I make two immediate stops when I come into town; Faidley's and Bagels And... (If they're open). When I come into town with guests, I take them here, and they love it too! The bagels are great and so are the sandwiches, though I do wish they would bring back the pâté I understand it's not a hot ticket item... Hell I even digged the Maryland sass from the servers. It was always a compliment between sweet, and get the hell outta here.
However, I'm back filming a movie in town, and the past few times I've been in the store... to say the service has been bad would be a grossly misleading understatement. I've had to send back bagels more than once on the simplest of orders and have order just made flat out incorrectly. Maybe it's because the kids working the front were texting the entire time, or they just didn't give a shit, I don't know. What ever it was it's happened over and over again. Why do I keep coming back? Valid question. I'm a creature of habit and like I said, I've been coming here for 20 years.
Today it ends, as do the recommendations and what could have been years more of business.
Why? So I'm out to run a few errands and I called in for a whitefish salad bagel. That was it. The gal on her phone says she can't take an order for one bagel on the phone - mind you she just did. I told her I didn't understand that, and she sort of laughed it off and said it's a silly rule but next time just be mindful. Fair enough. Copy all. I told her I'm in a rush and didn't want to have to wait; just grab and go.
Not a problem, or so I thought.
When I arrived I asked for the pick up order, no gal in sight, only two affected guys who hand me a massive bag of bagels.
Not my order. I had the whitefish.
Oh... that was the one so and so was talking about.
They look at each other and laugh. And just stare at me. For a while. I felt like I was in a Sergio Leone shootout it was so long.
So it's not ready? But she took the order.
Yeah but we're not allowed to take them over the phone. Again I don't get it, but I'm more confused why she took the order, knew I was coming in in a few minutes and made it seem as if it were taken, only for me to arrive and no bagel. I say this to these two doe-eyed kids and they only stare back at me blinking like I'm speaking Pig Latin, or Yiddish, which granted, they should know because they work in a bagel store, but I digress.
Then, Flock of Seagulls we'll call him, breaks the silence and pipes up, so... can I take your order? The only response I could muster out of my disbelief was, "You already did."
Blank stares.
I'm sure there's some reason for the not taking a single sandwich order over he phone rule that I'm not smart enough to understand. Common sense would dictate you probably shouldn't take large orders over the phone since you'd want to make sure they'll actually come in, or you can ring them up before you waste 12 bagels, but what they hell do I know?
I don't know what you guys have to do to change the service at this place but do it and do it fast. If not, Navel Bagels!