Nakau - Karasuma Imadegawa — Restaurant in Kyoto

I've been here 3 times. I came yesterday and ordered almost exactly the same thing as today but the experience was different.

Yesterday the non-human machine that I had to order from asked if I wanted to eat in or carry out, and I chose carry out. I handed my ticket to the human staff and sat at the counter next to the takeout area to wait with my back to the counter facing the takeout area. I got my food to-go in about 10 minutes, slow for fast food but no problem.

Today I go in, the first machine was being used by a staff member. He quickly left, but I noticed that the machine was not at the initial screen, so I moved to the machine next to the takeout area to place my order.

This machine, as I later realized, was also not at the initial screen, but it was at the menu screen, and I started my order. I ordered almost exactly the same thing as yesterday, except today my order was 10 yen more. I handed my ticket to the staff, as I did yesterday, and I sat down with my back to the counter, as I did yesterday; same seat.

The staff brings tea to my back. Strange, but ok, I say thank you and remain facing the takeout area with my back to the counter. About 10 minutes later, the staff brings a tray to the seat where my back is facing, and it looks like my order only not take out, like I expected, just like yesterday. I say (in Japanese) sorry, I wanted take out, and the machine didn't give me the option. Can I get it to go?

They were kind enough. The staff member I was talking to talked to the cook, and it was ok. I was asked by the non-cook staff to wait a little longer, and I expected they would toss it in a box and give it to me, so I said no problem.

They didn't throw it in a take out box. They remade EVERYTHING; soup and salad included.

I ended up waiting an extra 20 minutes. The initial order took 10 minutes, and the same order in a box took 20 minutes. They served EVERY customer who came in after me before me, regardless of how long that customer came in after me as long as it was before delivering my order to me.

If I had simply spoken to a human from the beginning, this wouldn't have happened. They would have asked "for here or to go", and I would have replied "to go". The machines were not on the correct screen for someone who just walked in, but both machines were on the same screen, probably due to the staff touching them before I entered. This was my third time here. I don't know their system that well. I regret that everything went this way. I should have just gone anywhere else since the food is really not very good, but I was tired after work and hoping to avoid the coming rain. I waited about 30 minutes in the end. Not the end of the world, but I was tired after work and wanted something fast and simple. Nothing was fast or simple.

Either don't go around touching your machines in the middle of the work day if you're not going to ask if an order should be take away, or get rid of the inconvenient machines that clearly caused this issue. I'm quite upset that they served every single person who came in after me before me even though I had already paid, and this was not my fault. I made a mistake due to having to use a machine that was in the improper state to take a new order. That seems to have been caused by a staff member. Don't make me wait 30 minutes for this.

That's enough. I'm done. I'm done with this review, and I'm done with this restaurant. I won't be going back, and I don't know if I'll eat the food they gave me. I don't know if I trust it after they treated me like that.

In my opinion, this restaurant is trash. I won't go back, and I suggest you don't go either. It's not hard to put stuff in a box. I didn't ask them to remake everything. They didn't tell me that was their plan.

What a terrible waste of my evening. Waiting for bad food and spending a bunch of time on a stupid review. What have we become?

Edit: (yet more time) I would just like to add, I'm not anti-technology. I would be plenty happy to talk to an AI interface that doesn't forget to ask "for...

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