Bluebottles Brasserie — Restaurant in Woolgoolga

I congratulate you on your many fine reviews. This is never an easy thing to attain from todays very expectant consumers. However, when you receive a bad review, instead of pointing to your rating and the amount of reviews you have received, I suggest that you take a small step back & appreciate that not everyone has been treated with 5 star service at a given time. Your responses to some of the review's are quite shocking- especially to Stewart Ross.Sure,he has not reviewed the place prior, when he was happy with the service,& has now complained,but to respond the way that you did is very disappointing. Having moved to the region last year,we have begun trying a range of different dining experiences.We noticed how busy your establishment was during the holidays and most weekends,so we chose to visit recently. On arrival,there apparently was a queue waiting for tables.We were not aware of this,& the couple that we asked about sitting next to,said that the table had been available the entire time that they had been there.As we went to sit down,I had another patron rush over to me & grab my shirt, telling me that there was a queue for seating.As you could appreciate,I had an issue with being touched by someone,who was quite obviously frustrated with waiting. The couple that had spoken to us apologised,as they were not aware of the queue either.They then went on to explain that the reserved table behind them, had been "reserved" for at least an hour,& that the staff had told all who arrived that it was not available.(A lady arrived as we stood there & sat at the table, saying she was waiting for a friend.The staff seemed to assume that this was the person that had reserved the table. It turns out that it wasnt.) After a wait of around 10 minutes (no problems with that),we were seated next to the couple that had told us that the spot had been available all along.(There was another 2 spots next to us on the bench table, & people began asking us if they could sit there). A simple suggestion, start a number system during busy times. Your waitstaff,especially the lady that "appeared" to be the manager on duty, were a shambles.Nobody seemed to know what they were doing and lots of people in motion (including drying cutlery), whilst diners sat & waited. As the couple who were sat next to us left,we asked how long it had taken to receive their food.The response was 30-40 minutes.(Again, given the circumstances,understandable).We waited about another 10 minutes watching the staff & trying to gain someone's attention to grab a menu. (We ended up grabbing the menu's off the table that had been reserved for over an hour). At this point, having been at the cafe about 30 minutes, we chose to leave. I will just repeat that,we chose to leave.As we made our way,the manager on duty (?) approached me and asked me if there was a problem.I explained that we had changed our mind,as it was a bit busy & that we would return at another time.I then had eyes rolled at me and in front of all of the other diners, "If you just wait, its not going to take that long". I chose not to respond. I have no doubt that your Cafe serves delicious food.I have no doubt that your staff are generally courteous & welcoming.I have no doubt that you have a loyal group of clientele. However, should you hope to keep it that way forever, some consideration may be given to staff training for all circumstances. We havent given up on your place yet, and will try again another day, at which point I will give another review. Congratulations again on so many happy customers. Please be mindful though, that it does not take much for the reviews to begin turning the other way. Your responses to those who do not feel as appreciated, needs to be more considered. Word of mouth in this area is a big thing. Thank you for your response. It is obvious that you are not open to criticism. Good luck in the future. Hopefully our word of mouth doesnt get listened too. We wont...

Cannot believe it’s been 6mths, and yet to review this institution!!!

We moved to the Coffs Coast 6mths ago and with the help of online reviews, directed us here shortly after. Brilliant!!

The joint owner Dan is about as passionate of the community and his Bluebottles team as any restauranteur, anywhere. He sets exacting standards then intertwines a culture of fun and ownership and lets his young team deliver on it, consistently.

An example of the goodness at this place. Lara is a long time star who, whilst I was having breakfast at a nearby table, announced quietly to a table of very friendly local ladies that she recently learned she was going to become a Mum for the first time and so they would not be seeing her as often as they typically do there. The joy amongst these ladies was palpable! One or two of them had tears in their eyes as they all hugged and congratulated her on her future bub. To witness that, was a very cool thing for anyone, but especially someone who likes to observe the positives that come from building a great culture amongst teams and watching the whole enterprise flourish.

Well done Dan, Renee and the whole BB team for hitting over 888 reviews on Trip Advisor with an almost unbeatable rating too. Very tough to do, but you guys deliver...

We stopped here for coffee and lunch on our drive down from Byron to Sydney. It was a good place for a break. Easy to get to off the motorway, and we easily found street parking in front of the restaurant on a Friday. The restaurant has outdoor seating in the shade as the building blocks the midday sun. Actually the building is on a corner block so there are two outdoor seating sides one that's in the shade and the other is in morning-ish sun, but they have sun umbrellas there. There's no view of the ocean but we could feel a sea breeze. Coffee was good. We got the fish and chips and that was good too. Simple good coffee and good food just what we were looking for as a lunch break on our drive. The staff team were very good here too. They all seem to be on the same page of providing great service. The owner Dan introduced himself and engaged in some friendly chatter. The waiter who brought out our food asked us if we wanted extra plates or salt & pepper. The waitress who cleared our table asked if I wanted more coffee. Bluebottles checked all the...