Chapter Three Espresso and Bar | All-Day Breakfast & Brunch | Coffee & Wine Bar — Restaurant in Melbourne

We have been here a couple of times previously and had a great experience, the food always being very good. This time however was very different. We were greeted by a very sweet polite young waitress who showed us to our seat. She opened the menu, showed us the specials and told us when we had decided, to close the menu so they knew we were ready to order. Before she had chance to finish, an older lady, blonde with glasses who we assume is the owner or manager, came and interrupted. She said something about the young waitress being new and apologised for her and told her that she has to tell the customers about the specials and leave the menus open. She gave her a hug and said "she's great though" as she started to realise the girl was upset and was holding back tears. It was insincere, patronising and actually made it worse. It was quite rude and we felt upset as it was so unnecessary. The waitress was clearly very upset at this point. I tried to explain that the waitress had done exactly what she had accused her of not doing. She wasn't listening and walked off leaving the waitress to serve us. My wife tried to comfort her and told her not to worry. She said she was doing great and not to listen to the other woman. At this point she burst into tears and ran into the kitchen.

We felt terrible for the young girl. Our breakfast was ruined as we just felt awful for her. She returned later to serve but was clearly still in bits. It was so unprofessional to discipline a staff member in front of customers. It just needed a bit of sensitivity, take her into the kitchen and mention in private if something was done wrong. She was very overpowering and didn't even give the girl chance to serve us before flying in and criticising her. She handled it terribly and the whole experience was awful. We got the impression a lot of things had happened prior to this.

The cafe itself is great and we would go back again but we really hope this feedback will be taken on board and the woman in question will learn how to be more considerate to her staff and deal with problems in a more professional way. It was very uncomfortable to...

So here's the story... Got hired to do some maintenance jobs for the cafe... Showed up on Melbourne cup day which is a public holiday! Was a bit late since wasn't feeling great when I woke up that morning but still showed up! Did text the owner SALLY to let her know I'm running late. When I arrived I was welcomed by a very grumpy woman that was complaining that I was late... I explained that I'm not feeling well but received no sympathy whatsoever. After spending 2 hours trying to fix a door closer to a cast iron door with a product that was not designed to be on cast iron doors(supplied by owner) I felt weak and drained and decided that it's best if I leave and come back the next day to complete the job. I texted the owner as soon as I got home to let her know that I had to leave and will return the next day. Instead of showing emphaty and being grateful I receive a VERY LONG text back detailing how much she was not happy with my work and that she DOES NOT wish me to come back! I said that's fine and sent her an invoice for my labour time charging her regular rate instead of public holiday rate but she ADAMANTLY refused to pay! She kept telling me that the job is not completed but everytime I offered to come back and complete it she refused... So let's take her action and put you as a customer in her shoes... Imagine that you as a customer order some food at the cafe that you're not happy with.. According to SALLY you have ALL THE RIGHT to refuse paying for it!! Even if she offers to give you something else instead (as I offered to come back) My tip is - Go to this cafe, order whatever you like, then after you finish eating tell her that you were not happy with it and DO NOT PAY! UPDATE: Sally posted a nasty review full of lies on Hipages trying to badmouth me... Tip for you SALLY. . If you decide to publicly badmouth someone at least stick to the fact and...

Chapter Three Espresso Cafe and Bar is the crown jewel of Maling Road. A cute, old-timey shopping strip in Canterbury, Maling Road has a lot to offer to both locals and visitors and Chapter Three is the perfect place to stop in the middle of a shopping trip down the road.

I have been to Chapter Three a handful of times and the service has always been exceptional. Staff is always very friendly and you can tell that the owners care about their customers by the way they treat them, especially regulars. On my last visit, a woman was celebrating her 80th birthday and the owner sat down with her for a few minutes to make sure she was having a great day, which happens far too infrequently nowadays.

As for the food, its exceptional. Especially when you consider the quality of the food for the lower price point. I had ordered the Chapter Three Chicken Burger the last time I had made a visit and it was probably the best chicken burger I have had in Melbourne. The chicken is home-cooked and fried in a homemade, seasoned buttermilk batter. When you bite into the burger, the chicken is juicy, tender and melts in your mouth like butter. Easily the closest thing I have had to southern-fried chicken around Melbourne. I also ordered their vietnamese iced coffee, which is always perfect and authentic whenever I order it. Their takeaway frozen meals that they sell at the shop are also always quality and are an easy fix for when I am short on time for dinner after work.

If you find yourself in the area, I highly suggest making an excuse to stop in at Chapter Three, even if it's just for a coffee and a friendly...