Adam C.
Yelp
So this is an update to my review I wrote 8 years ago (December of 2015 which I gave this place 5/5). Mom and I shared a homemade apple crisp and then I got the Cottage Omelette and subbed the toast out for a pancake while mom got the Denver Omelette. We also had a surprise tax of 4% added to each item we ordered on our receipt and then the normal 8.1% tax after everything was added up. I'll explain at the end of my review.
So the good news first. The pancake still tastes amazing and is one of most satisfying pancakes I've eaten at diner or breakfast place. Still warm, soft, moist, airy, buttery, and like last time, after a drizzle a syrup it just melts in your mouth. Delicious and I highly highly recommend getting them!
I ate half of mom's Denver omelette which was also fantastic. They really stuff the omlettes with toppings and the cheddar cheese compliment the flavor very well. That's also a solid choice!
And now for the bad news. First, with my omelette, the swish cheese just was not a winning combo. Could have been because I never use that kind of cheese with eggs when I make something myself, but the flavor of that specific cheese degraded that the sausage that was actually pretty dang good on its own. The apple crisp was still good but it came out more warm than hot so it was cooled to room temperature soon after. The topping wasn't the crunchy topping I remember but a soft, almost bland topping as it really just soaked into the apple crisp instead of being a topping for it.
And finally, the 4% additional tax per item. So both our omelettes were 17.99. Total on the bill was 18.75 each. The apple crisp was 7.99. Total on the bill was 8.31. The Diet Coke mom ordered was 2.99. Total on the bill was 3.11.
I'm looking at these numbers very confused as I knew the menu prices and could see the normal 8.1$ tax added to our total. I asked our waiter why these prices for each item were more expensive than the listed menu price and she said, "if you're using a card, we charge an extra 4% fee per item." or something along those lines. The point is, if you use a card here, which most people do I'm sure, you have to pay an extra 4% *per item*.
I did the math and to get 18.75 from 17.99, it's actually 4.2% (4.2% of 17.99 is 0.75558. 17.99 + .76 = 18.75)
To get 8.31 from 7.99, that is actually just 4% (4% of 7.99 is 0.3196. 7.99 + .32 = 8.31)
To get 3.11 from 2.99, that is also just 4% (4% of 2.99 is 0.1196. 2.99 + .12 = 3.11)
I docked a point for the food being a hit and miss this time around, but I docked another two points for this scummy business practice. Our waiter just said she was new and this was a new system so that was unhelpful. If there is going to be a 4% additional tax *per item*, it needs to be either shown on the front page of the menu or needs to be communicated to us before we order so we know. Even something as simple as the waiter saying, "Also, we've implimented a new policy with cards so nothing changes if you pay with cash but if you use a card, we charge an extra 4% per item ordered." I'm sure this place gets a lot of business from tourists visiting the area and this feels like a way to take advantage of them. The awesome pancake doesn't make up for this kind of hidden stunt. Please communicate with your customers better and don't hide extra fees or taxes until it we get the receipt.
And actually none of the receipts we had even had that 4% shown, just the new totals I listed above. The waiter asked if I wanted an itemized version as she said that would show the extra taxes but she came back and apparently once you print a new receipt off or something, you can't go back and get a previous one so we never got that. Sure, it's only a few bucks, but that's just bad business behavior so hopefully this review helps any future tourists.