MELBA Karaka — Restaurant in Papakura

My colleague and I stopped in on a Friday at around 2pm (an hour before closing). The restaurant has these collapsible security gates around it that make it look like it’s a secure facility and unwelcoming. I think these are mean store hours and locked after hours. Upon entering there was a rather disinterested server with blonde hair. No smile, no expression just a “table for two?”. We were really looking forward to trying this place having just enjoyed three meals across two days in the Manukau location. Hence we were happy chirpy and chatty. What we received in return was a staff member who seemed disengaged and disinterested in us a customers. Upon receiving menus, being seated and receiving water, we returned each three actions with a warm “thank you so much”. We were met each time with a blank, cold and frankly angry demeanour. In fact in four interactions she said nothing. We then had a second guy serve us who was friendly, and behaved as you’d expect which was awesome. I provided him with feedback on the First Lady and I asked him if that girl was okay and explained the weird behaviour she displayed. He shrugged his shoulders. I ordered the Chicken salad with extra chicken. The salad was $26.50NZD and an additional $9.00NZD for extra chicken for a total of $35.50. The chicken was not nice at all and seemed sparse. It was served perfectly cubed and had a sweet sauce covering the chicken, it was dry. I suspect that the chicken was cooked then cubed and then reheated. Not enjoyable. Upon leaving I paid, and showed the cashier a photo and asked if they had in fact added extra chicken which she said they did. I also provided her with feedback on the first server to which there was no real explanation or acknowledgement. I asked if the owner was onsite and she said she was. My feedback was provided to two staff members but not addressed. Complaints and feedback are useful and I would have expected at least some sort of acknowledgement. My feedback was provided in a calm and reasonable manner. I don’t know if the owners know what customers are experiencing from that first staff member so I was keen to simply provide that feedback. It’s chicken salad was a disappointment compared to the $35.50 price tag. The restraunt was almost empty and had a fair number of staff. At the manukau location we had impeccable service and it would have been at least four times busier than the Karaka location. The person I went with had the eggs been which were okay. The tab was $71.50, which were just two lunch time meals and extra chicken. No drinks. For that price it...

0/5 stars - Disappointing Experience at Melba Karaka

We visited Melba Karaka in Auckland with high hopes, but unfortunately, our experience was a letdown. Our group of five ordered a variety of dishes, including fish tacos, Melba Big Breakfast, fish and chips, and chicken waffles. The service started off slow, with a noticeable oversight - our table lacked serviettes and cutlery, which had to be requested.

The wait for our food was about 30 minutes, and when it arrived, we were shocked to find that most of the dishes were overcooked or burnt. My fish tacos were burnt, the chicken waffles were burnt, and the kids' fish and chips were overcooked. To make matters worse, one of the waffles had an unknown object on it that looked like a piece of fluff, possibly from a cloth, or fine hairs. It was visibly disturbing, and when the sister brought it to the staff's attention, one of the waiters made a rude comment suggesting that we might have put the object on the waffle ourselves.

The staff's response to our concerns was unprofessional. So we escalated it to the manager.

The manager tried to explain that the burnt food was caused by new oil, but we weren't convinced, especially since we've had better experiences at other Melba locations.

Given the state of the food and the staff's attitude, we decided to pay for what we had eaten and leave. We lost our appetite and didn't trust that they would remake the food properly (or possibly do something worse to our food.) And we vowed that we will never go there again.

Unfortunately, our experience at Melba Karaka was a disaster, and we wouldn't recommend it to anyone, especially families.

Key Issues:

Slow service Overcooked and burnt food Unprofessional staff response to concerns Lack of trust in food quality and preparation Unpleasant foreign object on one of the dishes

Recommendation: Avoid Melba Karaka and stick to other options...

Staff seemed friendly enough, but need to improve on their level of customer service and being clearer on their menu descriptions. I ordered an iced matcha but could not taste the matcha as it was overpowered by another flavour in it. I asked a staff member who advised it was made with sweetened matcha powder (not my favourite but I can accept it) and a vanilla syrup shot. Unfortunately I am not a fan of vanilla and would not have ordered the drink if I knew there was a vanilla shot included. It should've been clear from my disappointed expression that I didn't like the drink, and I was going to ask him to replace it, however he walked away quite promptly. I decided not to pursue the matter as I was with some friends, but did not touch the remainder of the drink.

My friend ordered a fried chicken waffle which came with peanuts although it was not specified on the menu description. My friend has a peanut allergy and it was lucky we noticed the peanuts before she started eating. We informed the staff of this, and let him know that the menu description didn't note the inclusion of peanuts. When he brought back a peanut-free replacement, he said to her "sorry, I didn't know you can't have peanuts" but to me, that sounded like a non-apology considering the consequences could've been fatal. Peanut allergies are one of the most common food allergies, and most dining places I have been to often check for dietary requirements and/or list food allergens on the menu.

Food was good taste-wise, with a nice range of variety. It's in a nice location with plenty of parking and seating, and place was very family friendly. So it's a shame that service was not up to par today, and hopefully Melba Karaka will take on these suggestions for...