Marcia
User's reviews
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The Royal Tea Room & Restaurant
This is my third trip to the Royal Tea House. My daughter and I have been each time and the food service has declined on each successive visit. I am going to go into detail in the hopes that the owner will review this and make the necessary adjustments to her tea house and staff. My daughter made reservations and prepaid for the 3pm Mother's Day Tea. We arrived early, and let them know that we would browse the shop and sit out on the front porch. A young lady said our table would be ready in 15 minutes. We were brought iced tea when we sat on the front porch, however, when it got too cold we went in. We arrived back in the entry room at 2:30. The tea rooms were empty and the staff was cleaning the tables from the earlier seating. We were seated at a table at 2:45 and were the first to arrive. The tea service was for 3pm. At 3:38 a waitress came and asked us what type of tea we would like. She went around to everyone in the front room and asked the same. About 15 minutes later tea was poured for us. No pot was left. I requested lemon. Ten minutes later, I stopped another waitress and asked her for lemon. About the same time the lemon arrived, the waitress made a second round with tea which was good because mine was stone cold from the wait. I asked if she would leave the pot, as that had been out experience in the past and she did bring us our own pot. The first fruit course arrived about 4pm. There was only one plate left for us and we had to stop someone to ask for a plate for my daughter. There was no sugar/sweetener, salt or pepper on the table and we had to ask for that. The soup was brought after that. We both ordered the wedding cake, and it was lukewarm at best with the meatballs cold in the middle. I did not comment on it, since my daughter was already uncomfortable with the service, and clearly embarrassed as she was the host on this occation. But she did ask me about it, and commented that hers was cold also. THe scones were good but hardly anything to write home about. The sandwich tray had some tasty tidbits, and some that had clearly been sitting out for a while as the croissants were stale and the crab was discolored. The desert dish was good, but once again, hardly worth the wait or the long service that we experienced. Each course was brought to all tables at the same time and there was no individual service to each table. Perhaps they had been so busy that they ran out of food, or time? It is hard to understand why we had to wait over 30 minutes for our first cup of tea....and had to waid so long between courses. As much as we have enjoyed our spotty visits to the Tea Room in the past, I think it is time for us to broaden our search. I wish the owner well as she/he tries to solve the kitchen and staffing problems. Clearly our waitress, Chelsea, I believe, is not suited to service to customers.
Tearoom response:
I would like to offer my sincerest apology for your experience. The young lady is new to our staff and was evidently somewhat overwhelmed. I will speak to her and we will work on her difficulties.
For yourself or any other customer please bring issues to my attention if you find either food or service to be inadequate. I can make corrections or adjustments to make the situation more equitable for the customer. As well as provide a training opportunity for an inexperienced employee.
We thank you for your past businees as a customer and hope you find satisfaction in future experiences whether at the Royal Tea Room or another venue.
For all customers we welcome reviews both positive and negative to gauge our progress. As a general courtesy I would prefer that individual employees not be named personally in a review. I do share these reviews with them and some of them visit this site on occasion. If the customer wishes to name an individual we can manage that discreetly in private or with a phone call. The young lady in question is a bright and kind individual and wants to do well, and I will continue to support her.