DOJO NANYANG KOPI HOUSE KK TIMES SQUARE — Restaurant in Borneo

I still gave 1 star because the food was okay, but the service really needs improvement. We came here two days in a row, and the difference in service was huge. Our first visit was on a Monday night, and we noticed the owner/boss was around. Everyone was proactive, service was fast and efficient, and honestly, I felt like I was treated like a princess. They served everything before we even had to ask, and that really impressed us. The second visit was the next morning Tuesday, and the moment we walked in, the vibe was completely different. The table we sat at was still dirty with the previous customer’s leftovers and plates, we had to ask someone to clean it even though the place wasn’t busy. Some staff were just standing at the counter doing nothing. When my food came, I had to ask three times just to get the boiling water for cutleries (something they gave to everyone else beforehand to clean their cutleries). It was hard to even get their attention. What bothered me most was that when the boss wasn’t around, the staff clearly didn’t put in the same effort. I’m not asking them to be super fast robots, but at least don’t ignore customers when they’re trying to get help. I also noticed only two young boys were actually serving the whole restaurant, and they seemed new because they’re slow and inefficient, probably because they weren’t properly trained. Instead of using trays, they carried plates and cups one by one. Meanwhile, the more experienced staff just stood behind the counter doing almost nothing. For example, one lady kept wiping trays, and another just stayed at the cashier even when no one was paying. These things aren’t urgent and they should know that helping customers should’ve been the priority. It’s simply unacceptable to run service like this. Whoever’s in charge of staff training needs to step up and do better. Teach them to work together and actually support one another, not just stand there looking busy. On top of that, we were even charged a service fee, which honestly felt ridiculous given...

1st visit on a Sunday morning for breakfast: prompt service. 2nd visit on a weekday for lunch: prompt service 3rd visit on a weekday morning for coffee: service out the window

From my observation, when there's good business and things are happening, the staff are generally on the ball. When business was slow like the weekday morning, one of our drinks sat on the counter for 10 minutes while the staff just looked at their phones all the time. What's amazing is, the guy making the drinks sets the finished product on the counter, and instead of making sure his colleague who's serving the customers serves the drink, he busies himself with his phone.

Weekday lunch experience, the lady in the kitchen put our food at the window and rang the bell for server guy to serve. He was running around, in and out, and she rang the bell many times to make sure our food was sent. SHE is a good worker.

I think there's no supervisor at this place, so there's no one making sure service was carried out properly. If there was a supervisor, then he/she must have also been on their mobile phone all the time, as was the cashier when we went to pay. She was oblivious to someone standing in front of her because, you guessed it, her eyes were glued to her phone.

Food and drinks are good quality. We ordered through the QR code on the table each time we went there, no issues. It might be a KK thing, but no one looks happy...

The food is sometimes decent, sometimes disappointing, always inconsistent. The hot and sour soup tasted like someone raided a convenience store for instant noodles and dunked them in a half-hearted tom yum broth. Maggi might approve, but your stomach won’t. The upsized iced coffee, while decent, isn’t worth it when you can walk down to the Night Food Market at KK Waterfront and get three times the amount for the same price. But it’s not all bad. The matcha drinks get good reviews, and the laksa has its fans (when it arrives on time). The ayam berempah and passion slush get a rare 10/10 from some people.

Some staff hover like ghosts. Others move like they’ve got all the time in the world - because, apparently, they do. You press the bell. Nothing. You try again. Still nothing. You start to wonder if you’ve done something wrong. Eventually, someone shows up, and when they do, you’re not always sure if it’s a favour or an obligation.

It’s clear that the tourists are keeping this place alive. All aesthetic, no authenticity. Walk in on any given day, and you’ll see tables of unfinished bowls left behind by travelling families, lured in by the décor but not convinced by the flavours. I hope DOJO NANYANG KOPI HOUSE finds its way, especially since Kopi Ping Cafe and Guan’s Kopitiam is just...