Paul — Restaurant in Etterbeek

I placed an order for tea and desserts and sat down to prepare and enjoy them. However, I realized that my order was given to me in a takeaway cup and paper bag. A lady who seemed to be in charge of the store stood at a distance behind the counter and, with a serious expression, explained that I couldn't dine inside because the price for dining in was different from takeaway. At the same time, some customers were watching this situation unfold.

I was confused and mentioned that the young girl who took my order didn't ask me if I wanted to "eat in or take away." The lady then asked the young girl, and she claimed she did ask me. The lady then explained that there may have been a communication barrier since the young girl didn't speak English well.

I expressed my willingness to pay the price difference for eating in, but the lady refused. I then asked the young girl for a tissue, but she didn't understand what I meant. This made me wonder how she was able to understand whether I wanted to eat in or take away if she had a language issue.

The language gap doesn't seem to be an excuse; in fact, the store lacks proper training in staff development. Because this wasn't the first time customers had complained about the same situation, indicating a lack of explanation about the price difference to customers.

Overall, as a tourist travelling in Brussels, I was unaware of the store’s rules since they failed to explain them to their customers. My experience was poor in PAUL due to the unfriendly treatment and lack of communication and...

Went on a Saturday morning with my son to pick up some goodies. A small "cake-framboises" of about 16cm, costs 23 eur. Way too expensive. We also took some cheese-bagels & some small raisins muffins - again, over the top expensive. At the same time, we were not oblidged to buy, as the prices were indicated & we could opt-out.

What I didn't appreciate at all, is the attitude of the young black employee there, that had the attitude of a Queen & was making rude comments when we were asking about the products, making us feeling awkward. At the end, she did not even warm our bagels, although we asked...

Would I go back? PAUL is a well-known bakery; we would go back, occasionally only, as it is quite expensive. But, professional attitude of the employees should definitely be updated & upgraded. I do not care what one thinks of the customer in their head, but politeness & respect from BOTH sides, is a must, non-negotiable.

Moreover, the client should not be treated as a pest when entering the shop; rather, being welcomed with a smile & a positive attitude (it helps with the...

Cafe focused on "to go". They have an ok variety of products one can choose from. You may choose to eat there rather than take the item "to go" but you will be charged about 5-10 cents extra per product. If you are Belgian or French, they seem alright. Nice prices, cosy atmosphere and friendly staff that may even crack a joke with you. Not very foreigner friendly however - when asked whether they spoke Dutch or English, they "couldn't" (to be read: refused to) speak anything but French. When a collegue of ours just started ordering in English and suggesting they will be eating there, suddenly they seemed to have no problem understanding or speaking English. While the staff cracked jokes with the Belgian customers, they tried to get us out before even packing our whole order (i would like a, b, c/ they pack a: yes, anything else? That would be.../ yes, i said a, b and c). The eclairs were a real disappointment too (while eclairs are probably my favourite treat of...