Grill'd Galeries — Restaurant in Sydney

Really confusing layout and process - paper menus on a table outside the door, people queued outside the door to order, so far it's less even less welcoming than McDonalds, but at least they don't have those annoying 'the chips are ready' beeps every 15 seconds. Apparently you are supposed to know that somebody will show you to a table, but in the absence of the typical 'Please wait here to be seated' sign, a newbie has no idea and just joins the queue. An elderly couple struggle to understand the process of a restaurant without table service, are taken to a table then leave, presumably on realising you have to queue to order. I engage with another guy my age who agrees the process is whacked, but he says the burgers are worth it. We'll see, I may not hang around that long either.

They've run out of Slider buns (6:45pm Sunday night of long weekend), but offer to cut a normal burger in half (seriously!), as though that's somehow equivalent??? So then the queue stalls while I review the menu to make a new choice, and settle on the first thing I see (/w bacon & cheese) so I'm not holding things up further. If not rushed I'd have chosen something less predictable. This process of having just 2 order-takers seems suspiciously intentionally designed to actually create a queue, which to Gen Y might mean 'buzz'. To me it means 'never, ever again'.

No forks, so eating like a caveman. Glad I didn't order a salad.

Could probably go another drink, but that presumably means rejoining the queue while my stuff is left at the table, so I don't bother.

No dessert or coffee, the waitress tells me there are plenty of places close that do that, but couldn't identify any. Again, the strategy seems to be not to have you lingering, get you out ASAP and get plenty of table turns.

Just a really, really memorably disjointed experience all round, and friends have since in equal quantities confirmed and disagreed with my experience, so clearly Grill'd is an acquired taste.

This business feels like a monster dreamt up by some marketing boffins who figured that even a few % points of the global hamburger business was worth creating a niche that equally enthralled and alienated different demographics. Clearly I'm not in the former.

The food? The sweet potato 'chips' were more like under-done baked potatoes with very little crisp or the flavour that is possible from a sweet potato, and the burger was consumed with only slightly less ambivalence than for a McDonalds equivalent. Didn't sense the bacon was there at all.

On the plus size, if there were glossy photos of the burger somewhere, it probably would have looked like the photo - it was generously proportioned. This is the only thing stopping it being 1 star. Bottom line however is that I almost NEVER take the kids to Maccas, but would take them there...

Unfortunately not a positive review, despite being a loyal customer of Grill'd. My partner and I brought a couple here for the first time as we love the food...unfortunately it was a terrible experience at this restaurant. We ordered on the QR code as we've done multiple times and the friends we were with graciously paid for the whole bill for 4 of us up front as a thank you. The food arrived in drabs and the drinks didn't arrive. A young, new staff member arrives to check in on us about 5 minutes after the food. We advised that the drinks hadn't arrived yet and he asks what we ordered & we confirmed. He leaves to seemingly get it fixed. A further 10 minutes passed and nothing. We flag another staff member, and they were polite & said they would sort it....more time passes and we have finished our food. We flag the original young server and ask about the drinks and was met by the most disgusting attitude and service. Instead of apologising & getting the drinks, the tone was hostile & accusatory. He asks us if we even ordered them..to which we reply yes, we ordered X,Y,Z. He then asks us to prove it. We ask him if he can't just check as we've already put the order through and confirmed our table number. He continued to be hostile and derogatory, asking us to prove it, speaking down to our friends (They are immigrants, like us and English isn't their first language). We were in shock but showed him the order on the phone. He then asks to take the phone...we weren't comfortable with this, and asked to speak to someone else. He was looking our friends up and down and giving a really awful attitude, being accusatory and completely unhelpful. We were politely asking for our drinks that we ordered, which is a very reasonable request. We then spoke with the assistant manager who was understanding helpful, and genuinely apologetic and got us our drinks. We asked to speak with the manager, as this really ruined the whole experience; not only not getting drinks after asking 3 times and finishing our meals, but the server also having a disgusting attitude, service, and an accusatory tone. Unfortunately, the managers attitude was just as bad and couldn't care less, he just stated that the server was new. I responded that being new does not excuse bad service & especially bad & accusatory attitude and asking to take a customers phone. The manager asked us if that was it, and also had a terrible attitude and service, looking our friends up and down (they are a male couple, and of colour and I highly suspect horrid biases from both the server and manager). Despite the good burgers, it has left a terrible taste in my mouth and my friends deserved much better. Will not be returning to this...

Today, I had an incredibly disappointing experience at Grill'd Burger Galleries in Sydney, and it pains me to say this because I have had positive experiences with this branch in the past. However, my most recent visit was far from satisfactory. Here are the reasons why:

Lack of Transparency with QR Code Menu: The QR code menu failed to indicate which options were unavailable until I added them to my cart. This lack of information made it frustrating and time-consuming to navigate the menu and choose my desired items. It would have been more helpful if the unavailable options were clearly marked before I made my selection.

Poor Customer Service: One of the staff members brought our drinks to the table, but instead of offering any assistance or asking about our preferences for glasses or straws, they simply slammed the drinks down and walked away. This kind of abrupt and inconsiderate behavior was quite off-putting and showed a lack of basic customer service etiquette.

Delayed Service and Lack of Communication: We ordered two burgers, and while one arrived promptly, we had to wait for 15 minutes before inquiring about the second one. The lack of proactive communication from the staff regarding the delay was frustrating and left us wondering what was happening with our order.

Inadequate Accompaniments and Cutlery: When the second burger finally arrived, we expected that as it had been ordered without a bun, it would be necessary for us to use a knife and fork. However, the utensils were not provided initially, and we had to specifically request them. Furthermore, there were no napkins provided on the table or with the order, which made the dining experience messy and inconvenient.

Inedible Chicken Burger: To make matters worse, the second burger, which was a chicken burger, was dry and overcooked, rendering it inedible. This might explain the delay in its preparation, but what was truly disappointing was the lack of follow-up from the wait staff to check if everything was alright with our meal.

Overall, my experience at Grill'd Burger Galleries, Sydney, was incredibly disappointing. The issues I encountered, including the lack of transparency with the QR code menu, poor customer service, delayed service without communication, inadequate accompaniments, and an inedible chicken burger, greatly tarnished my previous positive impression of this branch. I hope that the management takes these concerns seriously and works towards improving their service standards to ensure a better dining experience for...