Fenton — Restaurant in Melbourne

I go to Fenton regularly. I like it...that's why I keep visiting. Their coffee is very good. I have had some very good meals.

The service is pretty good; I've visited a few times where it was 'too cool for school' but that's not been recently.

I don't like it's order at the counter, but that's minor.

Today the woman taking the orders was someone I hadn't seen before. Until today they've asked us to tap on a ipad screen to pay. TAP.

Today we had to use a small machine. They said they were having some technical problems.

The screen on the small machine came up asking for THREE options - TAP, SWIPE or INSERT.

I tried TAP..nup.

I tried SWIPE - twice. Nup nup.

I was thinking about INSERT ...gosh haven't done INSERT anywhere for a while and definitely not at Fenton.

The woman taking the order pretty much took my card out of my hand, pointed to the CHIP on my card, told me that was a CHIP and turned the card around and INSERTED it.

When I said 'I tried the the TAP and SWIPE options first' she was pretty dismissive.

I stood there thinking 'gosh, I've just been treated like an old person'.

Even the friend I was with was pretty incredulous at what this staff did and said.

There have been a lot of staff turnovers...I hope this woman doesn't last.

The food and...

Pleasant atmosphere. Comfortable seating. Good coffee. Small portions. Underwhelming flavour. Accessible toilet.

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Went in for a brunch. There is outdoor seating available, but we sat indoors. Already on the table were cutlery and glassware, and we were swiftly given tap water. There is a large accessible toilet towards the back of the building, however the door is rather heavy to open from the inside, presumably due to a missing door handle. A bus stop also exists conveniently in front of the store.

On the menu, there was a reasonable amount of variety to eat. We ordered flat whites, which arrived quick and warm. Although, it would have been preferred for the drinks to be hotter in order to last the long wait times for our food.

After waiting and emptying our cups of coffee, we were able to feast on three brunch dishes. Portioning was highly disappointing given the prices, and the eventual tasting left a lot to be desired.

The meats were nothing to write home about, with the salami, ham and sausage being too chewy and lacking depth. The preserved vegetables were unevenly pickled and some were too overpowering. The sourdough slices were nice and crunchy. Although we found the overall dishes to be underwhelming, perhaps that would be preferable if having a...

I have been coming in here with my niece since she was 7 and now she is 8. That is one whole year of me (and my niece’s) business. For most of this period I have enjoyed coffees, hot chocolates, and foods of many different types. And I thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere and the staff… or so I thought. Recently I have had some experiences in your venue that are, may I say, less than desirable. A staff member who I hesitate to name but will describe lightly (big earrings, short hair) has insisted on being rude to my niece and somewhat even myself on multiple occasions. I will be suspending my business until kind and forthcoming staff are reinstated. This said, the food is undeniably delicious and my niece always enjoys her brunch (hence my 5 stars). Thank you for reading and please contact me directly should you have any...