I've been an avid fan of The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, most especially their African Sunrise tea latte, since it arrived here in Manila. They offered great tasting high quality coffee and tea, and the service was amazing. The staff were all very friendly and would go the extra mile just for the sake of helping.
Recently though I've been shocked and disappointed with the service, and dare I say it, the quality of their coffee! Hygiene is also fast becoming an issue.
The staff has greatly changed from smiling, friendly and helpful to brusque, inefficient and frustrating. Maybe it is because of the holiday rush or maybe they are just tired after a long day's shift. Service with a smile?
Last Wednesday I was in the Fort with my family and decided to visit The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf there for our daily dose of coffee. My husband and I both ordered The The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Mocha and Vanilla respectively. After getting our drinks we joined his brother and his friends outside so they could smoke. Halfway through with his drink my husband complained that he was having a hard time getting the drink through the straw because there were large pieces of ice in it. Surprised and wanting to prove him wrong I sipped from his drink, lo and behold several pieces of ice the size of a mongo bean! Perfectly blended?
Wanting to salvage the drink and reputation of The The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, I went inside and explained the situation to one of the staff. She said that it was already watery and half finished. I showed her the bottom of the drink where several pieces of ice can still be seen, and smilingly explained The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf's policy of smoothly blended The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf drinks. She took the drink, dumped the whole thing into the blender, reblended it, returned the now smooth drink into the same cup and handed it back to me. I was horrified and almost speechless, the only thing I can utter was, "That's your solution? Wow...". I was in a daze when I returned to our table. Helpful and hygienic much?
After a thorough talking to from my sister in law, they finally conceded and offered to replace the drink. Needless to say, my husband did not touch it even with a ten-foot pole.Such a waste?
Oh, and the person who re-blended the drink was the shift supervisor. Who supervises her?
Thursday I was craving for my favorite tea latte, African Sunrise woot! so we went to visit The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf in Greenbelt 3. It was served in a mug and I was really savoring it until I spied the pink lipstick mark in the area where I was drinking from. I felt so violated, I unintentionally kissed a girl. Which I guess is okay if she was really a girl, but this is Makati for crying out loud! This area has the most beautiful transgender ladies around... well, I guess its okay as well because they are really beautiful. Something wrong with the dishwasher?
What is happening to The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf? Does this matter?
-Xine
Recently though I've been shocked and disappointed with the service, and dare I say it, the quality of their coffee! Hygiene is also fast becoming an issue.
The staff has greatly changed from smiling, friendly and helpful to brusque, inefficient and frustrating. Maybe it is because of the holiday rush or maybe they are just tired after a long day's shift. Service with a smile?
Last Wednesday I was in the Fort with my family and decided to visit The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf there for our daily dose of coffee. My husband and I both ordered The The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Mocha and Vanilla respectively. After getting our drinks we joined his brother and his friends outside so they could smoke. Halfway through with his drink my husband complained that he was having a hard time getting the drink through the straw because there were large pieces of ice in it. Surprised and wanting to prove him wrong I sipped from his drink, lo and behold several pieces of ice the size of a mongo bean! Perfectly blended?
Wanting to salvage the drink and reputation of The The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, I went inside and explained the situation to one of the staff. She said that it was already watery and half finished. I showed her the bottom of the drink where several pieces of ice can still be seen, and smilingly explained The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf's policy of smoothly blended The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf drinks. She took the drink, dumped the whole thing into the blender, reblended it, returned the now smooth drink into the same cup and handed it back to me. I was horrified and almost speechless, the only thing I can utter was, "That's your solution? Wow...". I was in a daze when I returned to our table. Helpful and hygienic much?
After a thorough talking to from my sister in law, they finally conceded and offered to replace the drink. Needless to say, my husband did not touch it even with a ten-foot pole.Such a waste?
Oh, and the person who re-blended the drink was the shift supervisor. Who supervises her?
Thursday I was craving for my favorite tea latte, African Sunrise woot! so we went to visit The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf in Greenbelt 3. It was served in a mug and I was really savoring it until I spied the pink lipstick mark in the area where I was drinking from. I felt so violated, I unintentionally kissed a girl. Which I guess is okay if she was really a girl, but this is Makati for crying out loud! This area has the most beautiful transgender ladies around... well, I guess its okay as well because they are really beautiful. Something wrong with the dishwasher?
What is happening to The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf? Does this matter?
-Xine
