Nadia's Cafe Penrith — Restaurant in Sydney

I saw the place was packed and the meals being served looked great, though I have been to this westfield often this was the first time dining there and most certainly the last, extremely disappointing is an understatement. My toddler had to wait almost an hour for her nutella sandwich. I am happy to wait for an exceptiona meal and thought this better be the best sandwich to make a child wait, especially since our server had seen me administer my babys insulin. She rarely gets to eat sweets so it was to be a treat. When I asked why our food was taking so long she said the kitchen was slow that day but then a few seconds later appeared back with our food leading me to believe it had been ready to serve she just hadn't bothered checking. When our food finally hit the table, the sandwich was just nutella slapped on dry bread with crusts on. This is from the kids menu and from a cafe. My $20+ southern chicken burger looked great but tasted burnt and salty. To top it off whilst eating a wooden walking stick flew down from the floor above and landed on our table knocking over my drink and almost hitting me and my child. It was the most stressful dining experience I have ever had which could have been made less traumatic had the customer service treated everyone equally and accomodated my child promptly, who waited so patiently for a sandwich which left her still very hungry. $37 I paid to a cashier that could not crack a smile.The entire experience actually left me feeling traumatised. My advice, as I have worked as a manager in a restaurant, serve the little ones first and ask if they want the crusts cut off. They are having a dining experience too and are eating a paid meal and if you see they require an injection or medication of some kind you would expect that their comfort is being catered to. If the staff are going to socialize with guests ensure all guests have the same hospitality, and have a quick sweep under the tables after each diner because the floor had food on it. If you see something thrown from the air onto a paying customers table, make sure they are okay and move them somewhere safer. The sandwich should have been free of charge to be honest. The whole meal should have been. No offer was even made to replace the drinks. I can honestly say it was the worst dining experience in my...

While the food here was alright, 2 of the staff here were rude. We had a catch up with friends and they highly recommended this place. We are only here for the holidays as we live interstate. When we arrived, we got a table. Since we were a party of 6, we were seated near the entrance. We had a trolley with some valuable items in them. The older wait staff who seated us (along with another staff a bit older than the rest), wanted us to leave our trolley more towards the outside of the premises. There was a reason why we wanted our trolley closer to us. There was also enough space for them to maneuver around and serve other tables. When that older staff (she was tall and was obviously older than the rest of the staff) saw us moving it, I watched her speak to the other older staff (she was wearing a checkered shirt) and they at least had the decency to not move our trolley. You could see their dismay every time they passed our way and when they packed all the baby chairs beside us, she was even slamming them. While the whole experience and the other staff were lovely, mostly young and one lovely older lady in glasses, this was a let down. My wife and I work in hospitality and while this is only a cafe, there is never any need to make diners feel they have been inconvenienced. Those 2 older staff seemed a bit miserable and were not thrilled they were working that day. Because of diners, their wages are paid so they should learn how to be respectful; otherwise, more complaints, and I am hoping they get fired for their behaviour. I remained calm because our friends took us out and raved about this cafe. If our valuables got lost, I am most certain those 2 won't be liable and will not be able to afford...

We walked into Nadia's Cafe in Westfield Penrith feeling a bit flat with the worries of the day - hoping for a boost of energy from a hot cup of coffee.

We were greeted by Michael - ready with a smile and endless energy, he had a very distinctive way of taking our coffee orders ... and gave us a few minutes to ponder what 'treats' to have.

Shortly afterwards, the lovely Jess came along to follow up on what we wanted to order ... (Fruit tart and an apple and blueberry tart - warmed up with cream on the side :))

Needless to say, we left with completely different energy than when we walked in. Combined with great coffee, and a little treat the visit to Nadia's Cafe Penrith made our day.

That's why this post is dedicated to the people that can "make or break" a hospitality experience - the staff! Your attitude can literally have a flow-on effect that changes someone's day / week / month.

Thank you Michael and Jess for making our day - we really appreciated your fast service and wonderful conversation!

(OH didn't want to be in the photos - THANKS SO MUCH to the lovely team members that looked after the customers for a few extra seconds for us to take this photo - your generosity did not...