Saigon — Restaurant in Gardens

It was busy that evening but not too busy. I was some minutes late and my friends already ordered. I decided fast for a starter and a main.

After 10 minutes or so one of our friends got his main.

He was waiting for the others who ordered starters.

10 min later the waiter showed up again and gave another friend her food and i asked for my starter. She was about to start eating when the waiter came back and took her food away again

He said the kitchen said he has to bring everything at ones!

What the? You can’t take away the food! Whats wrong with them? And its the decision if the customer when the food should be on the table

The waiter told me my starter will come with the main

I said twice that i want my starter before, because it is called starter for a reason!

He didn’t care

At some point the food arrived

For me starter and main at once so that one of them can get cold while eating the other....

He also forgot to bring everything that was ordered (rice)

All of us were pretty angry at the end.

They didn’t care. And no one asked in between if me maybe want to order something to drink or anything .

We ordered the bill and some of us decided that we definitely not giving tip or at least not 10 %, because the bad service doesn’t deserve it.

Instead of asking what’s wrong, the waiter came back to tell us that we made a mistake and he was insisting on “his” 10#

He argued for minutes! For this he had time of course, but not for doing his job properly before.

We went to the manager to complain about the whole experience, but he couldn’t care less

And! The waiter also went to the manager to defend himself and complain about that he only got 60 Rand tip.

If i would have been alone i would have taken the whole tip away for this behavior.

Tip is to appreciate the good service and let them know that you were happy and if you are not happy you tell them and show it also with the tip. How should they learn otherwise? But it seems this restaurant don’t care and is...

Before the food arrived: So nice I did it twice After the food arrived: Not nice

Two weeks ago I went to Saigon with my best friend and the food was good. Tonight we went again and it was not good. I showed the photo from last time to the waiter upon ordering it and said "Please make it the same way". They really didn't. Consistency is KEY and they FAILED.

My rainbow wok noodles didn't have broccoli or green beans. Not good. There was no topping of whatever that is or sprouts. Not good. The portion was smaller. Not good. The basil beef chilli initially was cold and tiny. I wish I took a photo before but was less than half the next portion so just imagine it. Terrible. The manager said they didn't have broccoli after I complained and said Sundays they run out of stock but they should have said upon order and given me options of other vegetables instead of charging R160 for noodles, tofu and cabbage with spring onion. They remade the beef dish but R185 for such a small portion is INSANE.

The flavour of the wok: Different to the previous time and one-dimensional The flavour of the beef: Sauce not coated evenly. Beef slightly overcooked but not dry. Not what is expected at Saigon and NOT Saigon standard.

I don't wish to return and I have been craving this meal ever since and even defended the price before. We ordered two glasses of Sauv Blanc (R65 each) and there was no offer of not charging for the wine because of the food mishaps. Took half of our food as takeaways and paid R575 including tip...

This was the most disappointing dinner for a long time... We were a table of four with a booking... You know that sparkle in the eyes of the hostess when she ask you if you have a reservation, just waiting that you say NO and she can send you home with the words "sorry fully booked"??? That's the start... We entered an invironment of a pre-war Vietnam where everybody is running around in uniforms and everything is dark... Nothing has changed at Saigon in the last twenty years... except the prices... They are two years ahead... Everything is cheap--the deco, the tables, the cutlery, the ceiling, the toilets, the rice, the espresso, just everything cheap and outdated.. We had two starters to share...a calamari salad for 135 rand with ten pieces of calamari, we had four different mains, all swimming in soy-sauce with some different ingredients, not proper cooked and taking more than one hour to arrive... 190rand for a Angry Duck???? The Sake we ordered was luke warm, the espresso wasn't that what it said on the cup and the Grappa wasn't a Grappa... The arrogance of the waiter was unbelievable... Where are this friendly people you find in Vietnam these days - definetly not here... So for what are you actually paying there... Mountain-view... Probably... When we go out we wanna enjoy ourself with good food and a nice talk in a nice invironment... This was just a waste of time... Please check the photos of the food... You will not find me there any...