Beryl's Pepper Pot — Restaurant in Pickering

Overall the food is great from my husband's opinion he has been a regular customer at the Ajax location and tried the Pickering location for the first time 2 weeks ago. It's great to have authentic Jamaican food locally. I had to give a 3 star rating solely on the service I have received I'm usually the one going to pick up food and on almost every occasion at the Ajax I get served by a rude cashier no smile no customer service skills no appreciation that customers are choosing to still support them even during a pandemic, every so often Beryl is their herself and is very pleasant along with another older women (maybe cook) not sure but she's also pleasant. We decided to try the pickering location which was following pandemic protocols great and their overall restaurant was big and beautiful, however, again I had a unprofessional girl at the front counter taking my order. I don't live close so I asked to put all my food in separate containers (curry, rice, ox tail) and I would pay extra for the containers which I knew they charged for based on the ajax location. I waited 10mins just for her to find out if I could do that and there was only 1 person behind me in line so they weren't busy finally the cook came out and said of course I can and proceeded to prepare my food....well when the bags were given to me I tied them up to keep them intact but trusted that they packed my food properly only to realize while getting onto the highway curry was spilled all in the bag I was literally hold this bag up while driving home. When I got home and opened the bag it was a mess they packed my two orders of curry chicken in one styrofoam container I guess to save containers even though I paid extra for them and it wasn't even put in a sealed container with lids but in one that you would but rice in! So common sense to me would be make sure liquid foods are in a sealed container when giving to customers especially if they pay extra for it all of the rice was ruined with curry all over and inside there containers a huge mess....

Pickering location by far is the most unfriendliest, unkind, unprofessional restaurant out of them all. I went into order and after I paid for my order, I wanted to sit down and eat my food and was told that I would be charged extra (almost $10.00 more) to sit and dine. I shortly after found out that it was a "dine in fee". The cook who portrayed himself to be the "manager" tried to insult me by stating that I had an issue with paying for the extra fee as if I was a poor beggar on the street. I stayed and when it was time to leave I caught the unprofessional cashier/ host gossiping in the kitchen about what had happened. The waiter however was kind and professional. The food was bland and dry. The gravy was clumpy and looked like it belonged on a bunch of fries with cheese (poutine gravy). I couldn't even finish my food which is surprising because I have always enjoyed Beryls food (Ajax location). I spoke with the owner, who was very quiet over the phone and made excuses for the terrible service and professionalism of her staff. She did however apologize for what had happened in which I believe was a way for her to get me off the phone. My suggestion was for them to put a sign around the restaurant stating that there are separate charges for dine in verse take out. Also, the cashier at the front should ask customers if they will have it to go or stay and then further instruct them of the differences in payment BEFORE receiving payment so that this will never happen again! I hope they can work on their poor customer service and don't treat other customers like this again. I will never return back to this location ever again!!! The 1 STAR is for the waitress who was the only highlight of my...

A Disappointing Dining Experience

We visited this restaurant with the expectation of enjoying a meal that would justify the expense. Unfortunately, our experience fell far short of that.

First, the menu lacks clarity. It does not specify whether dishes include rice, which led to some confusion when placing our order. We opted for a Large Jerk Chicken priced at $16, assuming it was just the chicken since the menu has a separate section for Large Rice and Peas. However, when the order arrived, we were shocked to receive only three small pieces of chicken.

The portion size was highly disappointing for the price. To make matters worse, the chicken was extremely dry, with minimal gravy, leaving the dish lacking in flavor and moisture. For $16, we expected far more, both in terms of quantity and quality.

This was our first visit, and it will undoubtedly be our last. The experience has made us realize the value of traveling a little further to places like Yardy’s on Brock Rd., where we know we’ll receive better quality food at a fair price. A fancy-looking establishment means little if the food does not meet basic expectations.

This was a thoroughly unsatisfactory experience, and we hope the management takes this feedback seriously to improve...