Bacan Cafe Vientiane — Restaurant in Vientiane Capital

After reading so many positive reviews I must admit to being a little disappointed with the food at Bacan. First time I went I ordered a pork burrito which contained very little meat and barely a trace of cheese. But what really ruined it was the excessive amount of sweetcorn, so abundant that it actually tasted like a sweetcorn burrito rather than a pork one. I finished off with a coffee latte which was okay, albeit a little strong and bitter for my palate. At a guess I’d say it was a premium robusta rather than my preferred arabica. I thought I’d give the restaurant a second chance rather than judge it on a single visit - this time I ordered a beef enchilada. Once again it was crammed with sweetcorn and was virtually devoid of meat. As a borderline diabetic, sweetcorn is one of the worst foods you can eat and one that should be avoided for those with glucose intolerance. Even though I left most of the sweetcorn on the plate, the cloying aftertaste lingered for hours. Additionally, the burrito wrap was thick, but rather than provide steak knives ordinary blunt stainless steel which aren’t up to the job are supplied. When attempting to make an incision in the burrito with these knives, they only served to squeeze the ingredients out. Tastes vary I know - those with a sweet tooth may appreciate the over-abundance and overwhelming taste of sweetcorn, but I found it very sickly. What I would suggest is listing the ingredients on the menu with the option to omit; rather than the one size fits all formula. I’d also suggest the option to pay extra for more meat or cheese - as some other restaurants do. And of course the knives need to be upgraded with the emphasis on sharpness. And finally there was no internet coverage on either visit. The advertised Bocan Cafe network didn’t register on the network list - as though it...

Reply/Edited: Just to be clear, I'm not out to damage your good name. I honestly think your Maxican dishes are top-notch – the best in Vientiane and even beat some spots I've tried in the UK. That's why I was keen to show my friends what you offer. Seeing how you've responded to reviews and dealt with customer issues though, it's been quite disappointing.

You're obviously putting a lot of effort into your place, and it shows. But we can't just ignore how one of your team treated us. I reckon as a customer, I should be able to speak up about what happens. If you'd rather not get feedback, maybe it's worth thinking about whether you should have reviews at all. If what I'm saying doesn't ring true, people will figure it out on their own when they visit. Thanks for the eye-opener on the customer service front. Still, I hope things pick up for you. All the best with your venture.

First review: My first visit to this café was really nice because the staff were super friendly. But when I went back a few days later with some friends, we met a female staff member who wasn't as nice. I'm not sure if she was the manager, the owner, or just an employee. She took our orders but didn't seem happy to see us and kind of looked down on us.

My friend tried to order a dish called "ຊີສທອດ and pepsi" from the menu, and when she said it in Lao, she didn't understand and asked what she was talking about. Even though the menu had the dish listed in both Lao and English, she acted annoyed when we pointed it out. It felt like she judged us and made us feel like we couldn't afford to eat there.

Also, I've seen quite a few negative comments about this manager online. I get that you want to support your staff, which is important, but it's also crucial to look after your...

Food is good, but the services received from the short hair female staff who is always at the counter is very bad. My friend and me went there at a different time but we got the same poor service by her. Not welcoming at all, and very rude. Disappointing. Would be good to see improvement

*Reply to the owner: thankyou for your reply, im not sure if you realised which date I entered your cafe and my friend entered 2 mins after me? (Not sure how you do you know if thats me and my friends). I can clarify more of the details, its not non - welcoming in the way that ignoring to say hello because of full tables, but the wording used, the facial expression, the way communicated is not good at all and also, i dont expect you to fire the manager too, as mentioned above, would be good to consider having improvement. I am happy to clarify through phone if you wish too, as I never wanted to write any bad review if the service is not overly bad. i found a few reviews with the same comment as me (service of that lady), but it does seem its valid to you, so i have done my part in giving sincere feedback already, if you think its invalid to you, then I would say I understand why there is no improvement on this matter. Thanks

And also, why you mentioned about Japanese bookstore? Is it something related to me?? I dont think so, and I am local Lao and entered your cafe as a local customer (surprise to see the owner just replied to its customer mentioning about nation by just seeing the Japanese name, i dont know what...