Sheila N.
Yelp
ATTENTION: ALEX AND VICTOR GARCIA
I dined at Tostada last night, and the service I received was completely unacceptable. To be clear, this is not about the entire staff, but our waitress was terrible, and it's important that the owners, Alex and Victor Garcia, are aware of this experience.
We sat for 30 minutes before the waitress even came to our table. When she finally arrived, we still didn't receive forks or napkins. I explained my food allergies and ordered an al pastor torta with no cheese, onions, tomatoes, or beans--just meat, lettuce, and cotija cheese. As I'm explaining this, she's looking around, distracted, and then suggests I try a quesadilla! I had just told her I couldn't eat regular cheese! I had to tell her to focus on my order.
20 minutes later, my friend's nachos arrived, but my torta was still missing. After another 10-15 minutes, we asked about it, and they said they'd check. 20 more minutes went by before I finally got my torta. By this time, my friend had already finished eating. When the torta came out, I was shocked--$15 for a giant piece of bread with a ton of lettuce and barely any al pastor. The meat didn't even cover the bread! I could have ordered two small tacos and gotten more meat.
Throughout this, the waitress never once checked on us after taking our order. I noticed her by the bar, socializing with co-workers instead of doing her job. It was clear she was more interested in chatting with staff than attending to customers. I eventually flagged down another waiter and a different waitress to show them my torta, and they were both surprised at how little meat there was. For pork, one of the cheapest meats available, this made no sense. They took it back, and when they returned with a fixed torta, I just packed it to go because we had been there for over an hour and a half. No chips or dip. We had to ask for it. It was like they are really skimpy on portion, chips, dip, napkins and utensils.
To make matters worse, I later found out the waitress was in training. As someone who works in HR, it's unacceptable that no one was properly supervising or shadowing her. Even if she was new, it's basic training to teach someone to check on their tables and pay attention to their customers.
The only positive thing I can say is that Tostada has great drinks, but unfortunately, I won't be returning. There are plenty of restaurants in San Jose where I can get better service and value for my money.