Patissez — Restaurant in District of Canberra Central

Surprisingly the wait we braced for wasn't incredibly long! As much as I would have been happy to wait 1/1.5hrs as we were told for a table (I considered this very good, compared to previous reviews) around 10:30am on a Sunday morning, we opted for Take Away, which was estimated 10-15 minutes. We 3 hungry (and mildly hungover) travellers were directed inside to the counter where there were plenty of staff in a flurry, trying to make a smooth service flow. They were all run off their feet - and credit to them - from observing them they were handling things as well as they could. Some had better "customer service faces" than others, but hey... We are all human :)

I got the "Salty Nutz" #FreakShake and was quite the yum! I didn't know you could have them hot or cold - I had mine warm and it was a great choice :) ... I guess I expected them a little thicker in the actual milk bit, but it was more about the novelty I guess :) and don't get me wrong. I loved it! So much more Vanilla Bean in it than I expected so that was a definite plus!

We also got the Max Pât breakfast roll Take Away and HOLY MOLEY it was MASSIVE. If you want to finish both of these, PACE YOURSELF. Don't expect to finish them both really fast. You will fail... Unless you're a competitive speed eater... then go for your life!

They have a text message "MyBuzz" system which let's you know when your order is ready. What we didn't know that it would buzz twice. Once for Drink, and once for Food. Naturally, the drink was faster, but once we clarified, all was good. We ended up waiting about 25/30minutes all up for all of the orders (three of us paying separate, remember?) So we were pretty happy with the timing.

I must give my mentions to Dimitri and Louis, who were our Front of House people: calm, professional and helpful, with a nice dash of fun. They were reassuring other clients that their tables would be available soon, and they checked up on our orders too, which they didn't have to do. Loved your services!

Confession: seeing reviews previously on here and TripAdvisor, I was interested particularly on the customer service aspect today, and I was impressed. Considering it's a tiny café, they deal with the pressure well.

And a PSA to all clients at any venue who aren't in the Hospitality Industry, just a friendly reminder that we are all human. Mistakes are made, and this place is not Buckingham Palace. Problems rise, just like any other Industry, and Businesses deal with them in what they think the best way possible is at the time. This is a Café, not a Michelin Star Award Winning joint - if things are popular, expect a delay. And remember, look at the way you're treating the Waitstaff (before shooting your mouth off), because chances are if you're not treating another human with respect and kindness, it's a lot harder for them to treat you the same :)

OK. I got a little passionate, so I will try and attach a picture :)

Oh yes, and I do recommend...

I don’t normally write reviews, but growing up in Tijuana I was really excited when I heard of a place in Canberra that did “Tijuana tacos”. Upon arriving at Patissez, all the signs of its success were there—people waiting out the door, filled seats inside and outside, and smiles all around.

Growing up in Mexico, the prices of a taco are vastly cheaper, but these loaded $12 tacos were well worth the price. I ordered four tacos: Huevos, Carne, Chancho, and La Gamba. The tortillas were beautifully done. Crispy and thick in order to hold the entirety of these massive tacos. The Huevos (think breakfast taco), Chancho (pork), and Gamba (prawn) were what I expected. Tasty and filling, but the one that I was there for was the Carne, or beef, taco—a staple Tijuana taco.

I was not disappointed and it greatly exceeded my expectations. So much so, that it completely blew the rest out of the water. This is THE taco. I quickly snapped a photo and sent it to my father back home, letting him know that as soon as international travel is allowed again I’m taking him to Patissez. The crispy and cheesy tortilla, the beautifully done beef, and the delicious guacamole made for an amazing quesataco. If I had the option to do it again, I would order the Carne taco over and over.

While my food experience was great, my one complaint has to be its customer service. The staff was lovely, but spread thin to handle Patissez success. So busy, that a waitress overlooked blood from her hand and brought my coffee with blood on the saucer, which dripped blood on the table and my new jeans. I was a bit unsure if what was on my table and saucer actually blood, but my partner who works in the health industry confirmed it was blood and later pointed out our waitress’s hand, which had a cut on it. While this normally would be a health concern, our busy waitress apologized, wiped our table, and went back to serving tables as if all was normal with a bleeding hand.

What would have otherwise been a perfect review was brought down due to this health concern. I’m sure next time will be better, but busy or not, staff should not overlook...

Food was average, but service was absolutely terrible. We were seated outside with our dog, and there were plenty of indoor and outdoor seating available. We (two people) ordered two meals and one drink, and the server was very eager to take any semi-empty plates, like we needed to leave. We were definitely not being loud, because we were each reading our book. There were a lot of seats, and I didn't feel the need to leave as I was going to order another drink soon. The server told us that there is a reservation for the table we were sitting in, so we needed to leave in a few minutes. There were so many seats around, so I was quite confused. I talked to the owner/manager about this as I didn't feel comfortable and she said that there is a reservation for the table we are sitting in, but we can move to a different one if needed. I believe the reseating option was given because she could feel that I was not comfortable. The first server just told us to leave, so I said that it's not sitting too comfortably with me and the manager apologized. Anyways, I was already feeling unwelcome so I left in a few minutes. I've frequently been to the bigger popular cafes nearby here, and there are people chatting and enjoying brunch for two hours each when there are people waiting for seats, so I really don't understand what the whole situation was, but I have never been kicked out of a cafe before. There were barely customers in here, and at this state, this place won't have revisiting customers because I am definitely not...