Hammond Providore — Restaurant in Moama

Circular shard of plastic in kids milkshake - they really didn’t care

I don’t usually make negative reviews (as my review history shows) but in this case it’s justified. Purchased a kids milkshake and when my kids had gotten through two thirds of it my daughter pulled out a large semi-circle shard of plastic that appeared to be from the mouth of a milk carton or container. I immediately went back in and politely showed them the piece of plastic. A woman, who appeared to be the owner or manager, simply responded that it was probably from an almond milk container and told the cashier to give me a refund. I then responded that my children had already drunk most of the milkshake which is a concern - to which she defensively replied “we can pour the rest out and look through it if you like”. Not sure where the logic is in that if my children have already consumed most of it. The owner was not apologetic or sincere, despite the fact that if my kids had quickly drunk the milkshake (they weren’t using a straw), a semicircular plastic shard about the size of an oesophagus is an EXTREME choking hazard which potentially would have had dire consequences. I was then given a $7 refund (pretty sure the milkshake cost $7.50).

I appreciate accidents can happen, however perhaps their staff should take more care when preparing milkshakes for children. I also appreciate that the only realistic outcome in this situation is a refund, which is fine. However something which is in their control is to show even the slightest level of concern and provide a sincere apology - in which case I wouldn’t be making this review. The owner dismissed it like I was being an unreasonable customer and an inconvenience. Also no offer to remake the milkshakes - my kids were already upset that I had taken them off them - she just told the cashier to give me a refund.

Another complaint, though certainly not as severe. When ordering the milkshake I asked if they could pour it into two cups as the kids milkshake is still pretty large and too much sugar for my children. The same woman who was standing next to the person serving me gruffly said “no” without making eye contact. Fair enough if they don’t want to muck around with doing that, it was only a request, but a polite response would have done.

All that aside, the coffee is passable - but not great. I suspect the only reason they do so well is due to there being no competitors around them. Far better coffee in Echuca - The Wren Courtyard...

As someone who spends their life in search of the perfect Ruben, I found one that is as close to as possible in, of all places, Moana (just neat Echuca).

Hammond is a well built brick providore and cafe that prides itself on making a lot of items in house, such as their corned beef for the ruben, as well as establishing trade relations with exceptional local and wider Australian food makers.

In today’s visit, we had the finest coffee imported from Melbourne, followed by a 9.9/10 Ruben and 9.5/10 salmon bagel.

The thing that made both so good is that the care and thought that has gone into every ingredient, which results in a quality sandwich, not one that has just been thrown together because the ingredients list suggested it.

The service was more than friendly and professional, and the owner was available to engage with us and other customers, and she was more than happy to share the background on all the suppliers and methods of making their food, as well as the ethos of the venue.

Absolute stand out venue for anyone...

Had my second bad experience at Hammond recently and won't be going back. About a month ago I visited and ordered coffee and a muffin which the guy offered to warm up and bring out for me. Waited just over an hour and had to ask 6 times (asked 3 different people too, even got my cousin to go in and ask where it was) until it got bought out as we were leaving. Today I visited again with the local run club and an older lady served me. The line was about 20 people deep behind me. I ordered my coffees and asked if the date scone on display was any good (I always ask the staff what they think of their food) to which she sarcastically quips "no we only sell bad food... of course it is, we wouldn't sell it otherwise". This left my feel humiliated to say the least in front of such a long line, and rubbed me the wrong way. An extremely rude, condescending and totally unnecessary interaction. Definitely won't be going back. And for the record, the...