The Toaster — Restaurant in East Hertfordshire

I’ll begin by saying the owner wished ‘I hope you have a bad day’. I can see where the Sour comes from…

I was with my wife and baby viewing houses in Bishops Stortford, with consideration to move there. Between viewings we thought we’d check out the town and grab lunch. Our baby is tube fed and generally quite unwell (after having several operations) which makes getting out difficult but we look forward to these rare occasions. Eat17 looked like a good option, it was busy and the variety of food was appealing so we decided to take a look inside. We waited roughly 10 minutes to find a free table. Whilst my wife used the bathroom I sat down at the only free table available which happened to be in front of the Sourdough Toast stall. I then asked a member of the sourdough toast staff if they could clear our table of food left by the previous customers. Unaware of Eat17 protocol I was told to ask an Eat17 member of staff to do this …Which is fine… however having waited 10 minutes for a table which I didn’t want to leave at risk of losing, and with my baby in hand and a buggy ladened with medical gear, I would have appreciated some help. The sourdough member of staff could have been more helpful and maybe offered to ask someone at Eat17 for me or at least apologised and said they were just too busy to help, which would have been totally fine too.

I think helpful criticism is useful, healthy and should be welcomed. When my wife returned from the bathroom I wanted to tackle this and express why I would have appreciated help. I started with “Can I be totally 100% brutally honest…” - I was interrupted by the owner who turned my question back on me. His response was irrationally defensive and extremely angry. Did I mention I was holding my baby at the time? Apparently he pays over £2,000 a month for rent, so he or his staff shouldn’t have to tidy up.

When I complained to the Eat17 manager the Sourdough toast owner came over to again interrupt me with an unapologetic response including telling me that he spoke to some other customers nearby and that they all agreed I was in the wrong and then walked off before I could say anything. If you’ve read this far I’m sure you can guess I left without buying any food.

I can see there’s some great reviews here and it’s a shame my family and I had such a poor experience. In any restaurant situation you want to be greeted by friendly caring and accommodating staff willing to provide a comfortable eating experience. Some people need a little extra help with little things, even when they might not look like they do. My wife and I face daily challenges caring for our baby, so it is such a shame that we had to come across such an experience on our rare day out together as a family.

I think the owner was having a bad day and possibly issues with Eat17. This shouldn’t have been made my problem. Customer service is just as important as good food, I hope this embarrassing episode is a good learning experience...

Visited here for the first time on a Saturday lunchtime based on the reviews on both Facebook and Google. Staff greeted us with a smile which is always nice. Had to wait a few minutes for a table to become free which wasn't a problem. However, staff didn't ask if we'd visited before or not so didn't know whether to order at the counter or if it was table service. Also wasn't asked if we had any allergies which seems to have become commonplace nowadays.

Drinks were the only thing I took a photo of. English breakfast tea was served in a glass mug (as you can see), personally this is a no-no because it doesn't taste as good as being served in ceramic/porcelain. I had a caramel cappuccino which tasted quite bitter. Sugar wasn't automatically brought over my staff with the drinks, nor were we asked.

Menu is quite limited and I couldn't order across menus. I wanted poached eggs on toast with some avocado, I wasn't allowed to do this because you can't mix across menus apparently which made the meal quite dry. My father wanted to substitute an extra sausage for removing tomatoes, mushrooms and a rasher of bacon but wasn't allowed. He had to pay extra for the sausage but was allowed to substitute for extra hash browns - this made no sense. Weren't asked by staff if we wanted any sauces with our food so I had to ask for ketchup. There was a lot of salt put on the food without asking. Took approx 30 minutes for food to arrive so if you have any dietary/medical needs then make sure you that into account.

The good thing was you can pay by a QR code on the table. The total bill was £27.85 for an English breakfast tea, caramel cappuccino, poached eggs on toast, full English breakfast.

Overall I don't understand why the menu is so restricted when the kitchen has all the ingredients and other cafés can be a lot more flexible. Ultimately, it felt like it was being run by very inexperienced staff.

I won't be returning but can see why some people like it here (good vegeterian options and being dog friendly...

I came in with my partner today to enjoy a meal and it was delicious! It was apparent that it was a hectic day today, especially as it was a Saturday afternoon, so my partner and I expected we would have to wait for a table. However, the girls were spectacular today, managing the stress with a smile!

Whilst waiting we had a look at their menu and noticed so many items that caught our eyes - particularly the smashed avocado with Halloumi (will have to get that next time !).

My partner decided to have the Chilli bacon meal which I was told by one of the staff it was a best-seller so he chose his meal well.

As I was looking around the floor it was very clear how family-oriented this cafe was, such as the toys propped up against the window sill and the colouring options they had for the children. As well as the high chairs available.

Overall, our experience was a positive one! Thank you to all the staff for making us feel so welcome! All the staff were such heroes, clearing the tables, making our coffees, taking our orders and checking how our food was when we had finished. As well as the behind-the-scenes heroes such as the kitchen staff who make exceptionally amazing food! From start to finish the service was brilliant!

I wish I had taken some photos of our food - however, we were just drooling by the mouth when the food arrived.

We will be...