Toby's Estate Coffee Roasters — Restaurant in Makati

I'll be relaying facts. What we've experienced.

2 female waitstaff. Both short haired. One has eyeglasses. One doesn't.

It's our first time to visit Toby's. We assisted ourselves to a seat. Short haired woman waitstaff - I Asked for a menu. Said we should order in the counter. Asked if we could keep an open tab. Said we couldn't. We complied.

Ordered potato chips so we could have some finger food while waiting for our mains. Asked for mayo, said there's only ketchup

Checked if anyone is around the dining area. Lahat nasa bar/counter. Went to the woman w eyeglasses. POLITELY Asked for the lady in eyeglasses to take a picture for us. She EXACTLY said, "Ahhh. Picture....." in a voice that is not sure if she's happy to assist or not. While she's taking a picture, there's a "face" from her. Afterwards, I said thank you miss. NO RESPONSE MADE FROM HER.

Food was served. We asked for extra tissue. The reason we asked for tissue: sa isang table, tatlo kami. At isa lang ung can of utensils. Sa isang can of utensils, ISA LANG UNG TISSUE. Ang ginawa ni Ms. Short Hair, kumuha ng isa pang can from other empty table. Total of 2 cans sa table, 2 PIECES OF TISSUE NAPKIN. We ordered dishes na slightly oily/oil based. KAILANGAN PO NAMIN NG TISSUE PARA SA TATLONG TAO THAT'S WHY WE ARE POLITLEY ASKING

I asked for hot sauce, salt, and pepper. Sabi ni Ms Eyeglasses, may iba pa po kayong kailangan para mabigay ko na? I said, yes, another bottle of water please. Mind the tone and face. You can check it sa cctv. (sa tono ng salita and facial expression, it's like her subtle way of saying, may iba pa ba kayong inuutos? Nakakaabala kayo eh. - Ganyan ung naramdaman namin. It's not us being sensitive. It's us feeling na hindi kami welcome)

Several foreign guests arrived. They said, "Good morning" with a wide smile in their faces. Pero nung kami, Wala kami nakuhang smile and greeting.

The foreigner behind us billed out. Bill was given to their table. And we said to ourselves, kala ko ba? Pay as you order?

In summary, we felt like minamata ng dalawang waitstaff nyo. We felt there's no fairness sa pag trato ng guests. Leading to subtle rudeness. Ung kasama ko wants to ask for more ketchup, PERO NAHIYA NA. Kasi parang nakakahiya naman na talaga mag ask ng dining needs. To think there's even service charge, tapos ganito.... What's my purpose why I'm relaying these: 1. First time namin maexperience na "matahin". May we ask why? Kasi ba filipinos kami, or hindi kami regulars, or hindi kami foreigners? Kasi ba we looked...

TLDR: The service is appalling. Management probably to blame. Edit: A dog wouldn't eat this hash brown.

I sat for a couple of minutes at the table and waiter passed by and adjusted the adjacent table and left. Ok, I thought he's busy. So I sat there for 10 minutes watching 4-5 of them moving around. Only 4 other tables occupied, hence, them not being overly busy but nobody still coming over. Feels crap, right?

So I walked to the cash desk and inquired how long one needs to sit there until served (and there's zero possibility i wasn't seen). Only to be told that in fact it's a cash desk order and not table service. When asked how one could know that when entering for the first time - no answer from 3 guys.

There's no sign at the cash desk, no sign on the table, pretty impossible to know.

Yesterday when I was there, the service was also off. Now I know why.

Btw eggs benedict are excellent. If you have a stomach for poor service. And 30 minutes wait.

Edit: Decided to give another chance and went on the weekend. The menu is about half of what it used to me. Got corned beef on hash and eggs. See what this soaked-in-oil and burnt hash looks like....

All is well here except two things:

1. The small bathroom chronically smells like dirty diapers (I say chronically because I’ve frequented this location for years). This is likely because of the plumbing. It could be a building issue except Elbert’s (another building tenant) doesn’t have this problem. So is the culprit that Toby’s doesn’t know how to clean their pipes? Perhaps.
2. The music. How in the year 2025, when a simple Spotify account could provide endless songs are we stuck with 2-3 very tired, basic and uninspired playlists on repeat? Stop letting staff choose the music, it’s never a good idea and no actual serious establishment allows it (again see Elbert’s or even Starbucks or Omotosando). Here’s a revolutionary idea: play instrumental music instead! Don’t force everyone to listen to the same 20 pop songs that peaked 4 years ago. Ambiance should serve the customers, not the staff.

Other than these two issues, the food, coffee, location and service are all great....