Belmondos Organic Market — Restaurant in Queensland

I buy organic food in an effort to support sustainable and healthy farming practises, and minimise my personal footprint by avoiding packaging. At Belmondos, the fruit and vegetables are just not fresh enough to justify the expense - after giving the place several visits I have found approximately 1/5 of the food I buy needs to go in the compost bin the same day (I don't mind funny shapes or spots on vegetables, but this week I have brought home the only hard onion that turned out to be rotten, an inedible mango, slimy mushrooms and was unable to buy other ingredients I was hoping for because they were too far gone). Despite some visible effort there is still unnecessary plastic packaging throughout most of the grocer which makes buying a complete plastic-free meal difficult... you obviously cater to wealthy customers so you have the means to set a good example and lead the way by encouraging customers to reduce waste... but this won't happen if you sell better quality products beautifully wrapped in pretty plastic packaging. I feel that Belmondos has the potential to be an amazing grocer but at the moment it looks more like a fashion label to sell...

I shop here regularly however was just met with two of the rudest girls in the takeaway section. I bought a sausage roll and something else from the hot section, whilst having two frozen pies in my hand. I went to pay for it all and the girl told me I couldn't pay for the pies from the freezer in this section, so I said "no worries I'll leave them for today and get the hot things", then the girl rudely tells me the other line is just over there and gives me a rude look and shakes her head over my decision of not taking the pies. Then the other girl tells me to go put them back in the freezer. That's not the customers job, even at Coles or Woollies! Unbelievably bad customer service. Belmondos need to sort out their payment systems, if you have a few items in your hand it makes no sense for the customer to not be able to check out where they wish in the same shop. And that's how you lose $24 for two...

Belmondo’s is a fantastic health food shop/cafe which I have always enjoyed visiting. However recently on a Sunday I was served by a young female whose attitude really tainted the experience. I was lined up for the hot food and was from start to finish she did not smile once, look me in the eye, or offer any kind of friendly gesture as you’d expect from a staff member in a customer facing role. She tossed the container of salad on the counter at the end and was walking away already when saying an empty “thank you”. It may be that having worked in customer service for years I’m particularly conscious of these things, but I have to say, in such an impressive establishment it would pay to have people on the counter who can match the energy of the place and not dampen...