The Grumpy Baker — Restaurant in Bilpin

We have been the Grumpy Baker a few times, but unfortunately after today I just won't be back, because today was an example in how to absolutely ruin any customer experience and show that you are just being greedy.

So today was the Kings Birthday, and like many people, we found ourselves coming down Bells Line of Road down the mountain. Being exceptionally cold and this road what it is, there are very few options to stop for and to actually enjoy. Having been here before and finding the food to be good to enjoyable depending on the day, we decided to stop and heat our frozen bodies back up.

As we got out, it was clear that there was a line, and we decided that would be fine, because good things are worth waiting for. Queue waiting 30+ minutes in 3C weather to finally get inside the store. Only to discover virtually nothing on the menu is available:

"Can we have this" "Sorry, no" "Okay, what about this?" "No" "This?" "No" "What is available?" "Just these 3 items out of normally 11 item menu".

The problem here is that the business sells itself as baking on site and people are flooding in here all day - so either someone completely decided not to plan at all for anything, or it was just pure laziness. What really irked me though is that for dietary reasons, I couldn't eat any of the options left - but the staff are perfectly happy for you to freeze yourself half to death just for the privilege of finding this out. It's just a complete failure of service and exploitation of tired and cold customers who actually want to warm themselves up - something the staff fail to grasp as they stand around in t-shirts and shorts inside an extremely warm building, as wave after wave of jacketed, frozen customers trudge in.

To make it clear - it's not the lack of food that was the problem - it was the clear ability for the staff to be transparent about how little food was available before people stood there for hours and hours waiting - but then they know people will go down the street to one of the other 2 pie shops and then they will lose most of their business because people won't simply give in to defeatism.

Overall, a shameful experience, and a sign of terrible customer service and utterly terrible planning. Also, the absolute hide to charge a 15% public holiday surcharge to people who had waited so long, in the cold, for virtually nothing when you are absolutely raking it in is a joke - charge the surcharge when you're providing an actual service and...

I always love this bakery in Bilpin for years. It's a must visit shop when I go to Bilpin. I've been telling my friends how good Grumpy's pies and pastry are. In fact, I took my friends to Grumpy's on this Easter Saturday. Not to mention that we que for 45 mins. When it was our turn to order, most of the pies were sold out, but the staff had no courtesy to inform the customers who were queuing, of what was available. E.g like putting out a board, displaying what's available so that the customers can decide if they still want to queue for the pies. The only pies left were chunky beef, seafood pie and mushrooms pie. We had no choice but to order chunky beef for my friends and family and mushrooms pie for myself. Sadly, the chunky beef pies was terrible. According to my friends and family, the chunky beef pie tasted like sawdust, the sauce/the gravy was tasteless, no flavour at all. My mushroom pie was very ordinary. Those pies were one of the worst we have ever had, Those pies were not worth the money . It's a rip off for Grumpy to charge customers for a pie at $12.5/each + 15% surcharge ($14.38/a pie). It's a complete waste of money. My husband always says a good pie does not require any extra sauce, like tomato or BBQ sauce. That day my friends and family all drowned the pie in tomato sauce so they could swallow it. It's very sad to have such a horrible experience and very disappointing. Grumpy's pies and pastry are made in central kitchen. I also buy pies and pastries at Grumpy's in city (Sydney). This experience has got me to think twice before I buy any pie for my family from any Grumpy's shops again.

When the queue is so long, the shop should keep the customers know how long for the next batch of pies to be ready or how long the wait...

On our way home to Blackheath via Bells Line Rd, my son and I stopped to grab something to eat. Chose a sausage roll and a pie, and one sache of sauce. I was a bit surprised it cost $26, but I was tired from driving and just tapped my card. The $9 sausage roll was big, but a bit burned, dry and bland, and the $8.60 pie similar. About a km down the road, my son asked how much it cost. When I told him, he said it should been about $17. $8 isn't a lot, but there's a principle at play, so I said we would go back. Got there just before they closed, staff looked a bit sheepish, but even though we would have been their last customers, I was still grilled about what I had bought. They agreed to refund the $8 or so, and I said I would happily just take cash, as I just wanted to get going. The women agreed, then checked with the guy, who said no, do EFTPOS. Without checking back with me if that was ok, she just did it, then told me I couldn't have a receipt for the refund. I waited outside to see if it showed in my account. When it didn't, I went back to ask again for a receipt, but the door had been locked and the staff would not make eye contact, even though I tapped on the glass 😆 He then emerged from a side door, and quite easily printed off an EFTPOS receipt. I know how being rude and angry in such circumstances can just make a bad situation worse so I maintained a calm, polite tone throughout, I just wanted the problem fixed and be on my way. A truly bizarre sojourn on an otherwise pleasant drive with my son. Maybe they were just having a bad day.......but the food spoke for itself. I don't recommend...