Mai Vietnamese Fusion — Restaurant in West Jasper Place

Very bad service. Inexcusable in my book. It's been almost a week since I was here and I'm still too angry to let this one go. I ordered the Pork Vermicelli (Bun Heo Nuong) this is normally served with fish sauce usually on the side but sometimes it's already in with the noodles. This time, it wasn't. When i explained this to the server, she argued with me. I've eaten Vietnamese before, I thought I knew what I was getting, the menu didn't give any indication that this dish would be served absent the normal fish sauce, peanut & scallion accompaniment. Having explained this to the server she told me that I was given what I had ordered and she left the table. I was here with a large group and didn't want to cause a scene that would disrupt every one else. No one else had any complaints about what they received so when a different server passed our table I asked her to take away the uneaten meal.

Mistakes happen. I completely understand that. I also understand that I may have been in the wrong here. Maybe the chef here prefers to serve vermicelli dishes dry. Weird but, it's a fusion place. Maybe they're fusing good food with an absence of good food as a way of artistically describing both the pleasure and the pain that a restaurant experience can offer. That still doesn't excuse the server from arguing with me though. If I misunderstood the menu, the correct response would have been to help me to understand the error I made and to offer suggestions that would have allowed me to enjoy what I had been served. Maybe by adding something to my original order or by placing a new order for something different. If the error was a missed side dish of fish sauce that she didn't know about, the server could have offered to retire to the kitchen and ask what could be done to help me to enjoy my meal. In either event, arguing would be unnecessary.

I was upset by the service but to add insult to this, the server did not offer to remove the uneaten meal from the bill. Again, I was not the host so, no opportunity to discuss the bill was available to me. All I can do is write my experience down here so that I don't explode with un-vented frustration.

My dinner companions had no complaints about their meals. They also found the portions to be generous and the cost of the meal to be reasonable. If you chose to eat here my best suggestion would be to order something for take-out. If my host for this dinner left a tip, I hope the servers here understand that sympathy for the difficulty they've had during the heath crisis should not be mistaken as gratitude for poor service. This was one of the worst examples of customer service it has been my displeasure to experience.

Ticket#62 ...

I would like to share my horrible experience with their server name Khan here in Mai Vietnamese.

The food is great! The ambiance is awesome too. Other servers are okay too except for their server name Khan.

This is the 4th time we ate in this restaurant. Our experience for our 1st and 2nd visit were Awesome! Food is great, ambiance is quiet and relaxing and service is okay too. Simply because it is not Khan who attended our table

However on our 3rd visit we experience a terrible service from their server Khan. After we eat, I asked for the bill and take out box for the food that we didn't finish (spring rolls, so delicious). Then Khan came back w/ a terminal but forgot the take out box so I reminded her if I can have a take out box. We were shock when Khan responded with a rude voice, "is that everything? You should ask it a while ago". So we responded, yes we did, no need to be rude. We tried to understand her maybe she is just tired or not in the mood that day.

But after a week, on our 4th visit, my wife and our friends decided to eat lunch in Mai Vietnamese. Unfortunately, it is Khan again who attended our table. We told Khan that we are waiting for 2 more people, we will just order an appetizers for the meantime while waiting for them. After waiting for 15 mins, our friends arrived and we ordered. We were shocked again when Khan responded sarcastically "is that everything?" Rolled her eyes while crossing her arms. It makes us want to leave the restaurant but we really want our friends to try the Vietnamese food, instead we asked Khan if there is another server because she is being rude to us and makes us feel uncomfortable. She told us that everyone is busy, no other server is available. Then we ask her if we can talk to a manager. She proudly response back to us that, I'm the manager with a cross arms and and rude voice. So we ask her again, what is the name of the owner? Khan response back again that she is the owner.

Knowing from the other server that she is not the owner. So I hope the management sees this because it affects the business of this restaurant by hiring someone like that.

Server name: Khan, very rude server....

There was an active shooter right after we finished eating. There was an overhead announcement and siren for the whole mall to hear but it was very busy and noisy inside so we can barely understand what it was being said. My cousin went outside the restaurant to listen and when she came back, she immediately told us to get up and go straight to the back. The staff didn't seem to care as they continued to serve food and take orders from people! I know the mall have quarterly drills to prepare staff and guests when things like this happen, but the staff failed to do what they were supposed to do! The other restaurants immediately shut their doors, turned off all their lights and kept quiet. Ours were the complete opposite! We were the last ones to close the doors, they let other people from outside still come inside, none of the staff were communicating with us in terms of where to hide and what to do, staff kept on serving food and taking orders nonchalantly, all lights were on. It was very scary. All of us were obviously confused as we didn't know what caused the overhead warning, but the instruction was clear, "Seek shelter. This is not a drill." One of the customers even asked one of the staff to alert everyone to stay at the back and asked if the lights can be turned off, but the staff member just shrugged her shoulders! My whole family went upstairs and hid near the bathroom stalls, others kept eating and chatting at the tables while the staff served. Unbelievable, like how can you even eat and stay relaxed when there was an immediate threat going on? We were stuck inside for 2 hours. Most of us ended up browsing on all sorts of social media and news reports for updates. The staff finally turned the lights off 5 minutes before the overhead announcement told us that the situation has resolved. Talk about sense of urgency, people. I hope their staff have the proper training on how to handle emergency lockdowns such as that. Customers like us who are only visiting Canada rely on the staff in terms of the proper procedures. They should have known better. Would definitely not come back...