Kenny ALLAN
Google
Typical works canteen style. Large, over lit, dominated by TVs and loud piped music. As usual in the ‘Land that Table Service forgot’, guests are expected to queue up to order and pay for their food, more like McDonald's than a restaurant. In general these establishments mistake service for hospitality.
Our group of four last Saturday night decided to venture out of the metropolis and try the Imperial in Eumundi. It ended up more like an episode of faulty towers or candid camera. On arrival we opted to sit upstairs, we felt there was a better chance of an ambient atmosphere there. The ground floor was dominated by the biggest TV screen on the planet accompanied by heavy metal music.
Once seated up stairs, difficult for me as I’m disabled, we asked a passing server to take a drinks order, no bar upstairs, to take an order. She replied that our choices were to walk back downstairs or order on the covid era QR code system. We chose the latter as the best of two evils. The drinks order took 23 minutes to arrive (needed to prompt the server to achieve this). The order of four drinks was incorrect (their fault not ours). Great start!
Our wives decided to trek downstairs to order our food rather than risk the complexities of the QR system. They ordered the food as one order, albeit splitting the cost 50/50. They also were explicit in stating what were starters and what were mains.
After about a further 20mins wait 50% of the order showed up (again after prompting the same server). The arrival consisted of two mains along with a starter. We were expected to have our soup and steaks simultaneously. We refused the soup and said we were going to ask for a refund. The steaks were delicious, but enjoying them was tempered by the fact that our friend’s food hadn’t arrived. My wife and I were finished our mains and our friends hadn’t even arrived. Our friends sought explanation. The server stated that mains had been ready for some time and were under the heat lamps, the problem was they were waiting for the soup!!!!!! a la Faulty Towers. Our friend’s food eventually arrived including the soup!!! One of the mains (chicken) being stone cold. We chose to leave at the point.
This is a rudderless, illtrained venue. We questioned three different employees, not one took responsibility or accountability, every one said it wasn’t their fault it was someone else. Not one felt they represented the venue, they represented themselves. In true local fashion, despite being sought by us, no apology was forthcoming. Our only offer of compensation being a free desert, seriously? Our evening, ruined up until that point, was partially improved by the professional and friendly staff in Matsos further up the same block.
PS $20 for pea & ham soup, really? Cost of goods less than $1
