Afghan Flame — Restaurant in Mississauga

We visited the Afghan Flame (Mississauga location( to celebrate Mother’s Day as a group of 15 and what we got instead was one of the worst dining experiences we’ve ever had. The service was not only unorganized but also shockingly disrespectful and unprofessional. Our food was brought out at random intervals, not just a few minutes apart, but 20 to 30 minutes between dishes. While some of us had already finished eating, others were still waiting for their meals to even arrive. This made it impossible to enjoy our meal together as a family.

Multiple items including naan and salad were completely forgotten from several orders. When we kindly pointed it out, instead of acknowledging the oversight, the staff claimed they had already served them while we were witnessing them bring others table their naan. This gaslighting behaviour was not only frustrating but disrespectful. They were defensive and dismissive, showing no accountability or willingness to make things right at first.

Several members of our family waited over 45 minutes without receiving their food. Eventually, they had to get up, go to the counter, and ask for their meals to be packed to-go which still took additional time, they ended up cancelling their order. What’s even more disappointing is that the staff, who seemed inexperienced, showed no sense of urgency, empathy, or professionalism.

We were surprised by a comment from the owner. They compared their restaurant to Bamiyan Kabob and Kandahar, saying, "This isn’t fast food," in a way that came across as dismissive. Frankly, I found it disrespectful to speak down on other well-known Afghan establishments that have built strong reputations in the community.

We chose Afghan Flame because we wanted to support a local business and have a positive Mother’s Day celebration. Instead, we left upset and deeply disappointed. This is not how any customer should be treated, let alone on a special day meant for family and appreciation.

We will never return to Afghan Flame, and we absolutely do not recommend it to anyone looking for quality service, respectful staff, or a basic level of hospitality. There are many other places that value their customers this is not...

Reply: You definitely need to work on how to handle criticism and learn to correct your short comings especially coz it is a new location and you are into food business. Sigh! And no I wasn't lucky to find a table infact very unlucky to have found a table there ,I should have sensed something was wrong when I saw the restaurant wasn't at full capacity. MY BAD!

Visited this restaurant for their Iftar buffet we had tried their Erin Mills location and that was nice but decided to give this location a try. Don't know where to begin with. We are seated n then when the time was to break the fast we find no dates or water on the table. We had to request the 3 waitress standing over our heads to give us some dates to open the fast. After breaking the fast we were told that we will have to wait for the buffet as they are sending people table by table. We had kids with us who were fasting and had to wait despite the restaurant not being at full capacity hardly 6 tables with small families no larger groups empty restaurant. We were asked to join the line and handed over plates and asked to move as instructed. The experience was more that of a detention room.The spread was not that great for the price of money they charge! One mixed platter,2 types of rice,cold naan,2 soup,1 veg and 1 non veg curry and one pasta dish. Desserts were fruits just 3 kinds , stale basbousa,baklava and weird looking gulab jamun. It was so annoying to have the waitress standing over our table seemed like they are watching us eat. We just sat down with our desserts and the bill was presented to us and they did the same with all the tables. Come on guys let us finish our food and then we ask for the bill ourselves. In the midst of enjoying our time we had to pay the bill n then the waitress insisted we can sit now if we want oh come on who would want to. No refill of water until asked and the we had 4 waitress hovering around us. Dined at many places but worst worst experience at this location. No wonder their this location is not doing well coz after all doesn't have the restaurant vibes thanks to the wardens like waitress...

The food tasted good but I was extremely disappointed with the hygiene standards at this establishment. I found a hair in my juice and, shockingly, a used band-aid in the Naan bread. Additionally, the plates and utensils were visibly dirty, and I had to request replacements. This level of cleanliness is unacceptable and raises serious concerns about food safety.

To make matters worse, they were filming us in the restaurant without informing us or asking for our consent, plus the manager was asking personal questions which felt like a serious invasion of privacy.

Customer service was equally poor. The waitress began clearing our plates and even asked me to hand her the serving plate while we were still sitting. That level of impatience is unprofessional basic courtesy would be to wait until guests are finished and have left the table.

Lastly, they added a 15% service fee to our bill simply because we were a group of six or more with service this disappointing, it felt completely unjustified. Not going back to this restaurant!!!!

Answering the manager’s response:

Thank you for your response. To clarify, we dined in at your restaurant and took the remaining food with us. When we went to eat the leftovers later at home my partner bit into the bread and unfortunately discovered a band-aid inside. We had to throw the rest away immediately. So the background is at home. This was extremely disturbing. Whether or not the band-aid came from your restaurant’s official first aid supplies is not the issue, it’s possible that an employee was wearing it from home. Regardless, the food was prepared at your restaurant, and this should not have happened under any...