Toby's Estate Coffee Roasters — Restaurant in Sydney

It was my first time to this Toby's Estate but I am not fully convinced that I will make my way back here because of the experience I had. Please note my review is for the coffee & the cafe itself. We didnt consume food, so wont be able to comment on how it tastes.

My experience, highlight and tips: There are 2 queues. 1 for takeaway only and another for dine in. As the sign to differentiate the queues are at the front and may not be visible which is which, do ask the people in the queue so that you are in the right line. Queued for nearly 25 mins before we were seated. During which the heater was on full heat mode even when the sun was shining on the queue spot. In the afternoons, the sun shines right onto the queue area. The store can get rather busy and coffees can take a prolonged time to arrive after the order is placed. Took nearly 20 to 25 mins for pour over coffee and even longer for flat white. We waited for nearly 45 mins before our order of flat white arrived and almost done with the pour over coffee when it arrived. Turned out they had forgotten the flat white and only realised when we followed up a couple of times. Pour over coffee tasted quite nice though do remember as it is black, it can be quite strong. The flat white was ok as there have been other cafes serving Toby Estate that I preferred more in terms of texture, flavour and strength. The staff are generally good and friendly. As they get quite busy, they may not be as attentive. Kudos goes to them compensating for the flat white by giving it to us complimentary because of the forgotten coffee but they needed a reminder of what they committed to compensating. There is the roasters at the back of the store and both sides of the store with their products for sale.

Though this may be a flagship store, I will have to think hard of whether the queue and turnaround time to get my coffee is...

I lived around the corner from Toby's Chippendale for 10 years and love this place. I came back recently and had a great experience, however this afternoon the service was very Bad.

The first waiter did not even make eye contact and vaguely asked 'do you know what you want?' while staring out the window and not offering a menu. She said the kitchen was closed and gave me water, which was fine because there was a packed display of sandwiches and it was nearly an hour before close.

The sandwich cabinet had no signage and a dozen+ varieties, so I asked another waiter if she can tell me about the sandwiches, but she cut me off abruptly and admonished me loudly about how they will "not be toasting any sandwiches because the kitchen is closed".

This is when I lost my temper because firstly, it is rude to interrupt and scold a customer and secondly even worse when based on an incorrect assumption. Thirdly, it turned out half of their sandwiches were 'only for display' and look completely different which is confusing. It was fair for me to ask about them.

It's clear that staff are not incentivised to sell their food because they can't be bothered to tell a customer about what they have as soon as the kitchen is closed, and this full cabinet of food is headed for the bin.

I'm not proud to have been caught off guard but then the chef was glaring daggers at me from behind the cabinet which is also a shame because she makes excellent food and it was the third negative interaction in 5 minutes in that shop.

Given another customer gave you a 1 star review for service today, there is clearly an attitude problem amongst your staff which will do well to...

I have been going to Toby's since at least 2013, when I used to live nearby and would visit at least once a day. Even when we moved away, I continued to order Toby's beans. It comes from the original Toby's approach to getting the best quality, experimenting to find new better ways, and looking after everyone in the process. Every single person we encountered at Toby's were authentically passionate about their work and genuinely good people.

Back then, I could never imagine writing a review that gives 1 star. Yet, in the last two years, spanning several visits, I have been disappointed, with unfriendly even arrogant service, higher price coupled with increasingly weird policies (like their 'free coffee' with a 1kg bag of beans - why offer a free coffee and then charge for the double shot?? And having 20% off coffee and not offering it at the flagship store/roastery). On top of all of this, getting takeaway coffee has been decidedly ordinary. Baristas failing to make a decent latte even in their own Toby's branded keep-cup. Every time I go, I think why on earth they got rid of 6oz cups - the original Toby's had pioneered this (in Australia at least). I guess it saves the company a few dollars. It certainly does not help make consistently great coffee!

Perhaps 10 years ago I could have entertained the idea of Toby's Chippendale being 'world's best cafe'. These days, it seems more like a desperate marketing ploy, to paper over the failings of the current regime. Maybe it's wishful thinking, but I hope the company changes hands again, back to being led by people who care about good people AND good coffee. In the meantime, I more than likely...