Dāku Coffee Kensington — Restaurant in London

I’ve been a regular at this coffee shop due to its convenient location, but the service has been consistently disappointing.

On my first visit, I ordered a filter coffee on a Tuesday without any issues. Later that same day, I was told they only serve filter coffee on Wednesdays and Saturdays. When I returned on Wednesday to order it again, I was then told it’s now only available on Saturdays! At this point, I started to question whether they even have clear policies. Confused, I let it go and ordered a cold brew, which wasn’t on the menu and cost an outrageous £6.50. Assuming this was the price, I paid.

The next time I ordered a cold brew, I was told it was £4.50. When I mentioned being charged £6.50 previously, the staff casually explained they were “trying prices” for new items. After paying again, the barista realized they were out of cold brew. I switched to an iced Americano (£3.50), but no refund was offered until I stood there awkwardly waiting. After what felt like ages, the barista finally asked, “Would you like a refund?” Obviously, I wanted my money back, so I politely said yes. Instead, the barista awkwardly promised my next coffee would be free and wrote my name on a random piece of paper.

When I returned the next morning, I had to explain everything again. The barista who made the promise hesitated, and the other barista tried to charge me £2 instead of giving me the promised free coffee. I had to uncomfortably insist on what was owed to me.

The lack of organization, unclear pricing, and refusal to resolve basic issues make this place extremely frustrating. I won’t be returning...

Edit: Reached out but so far hasn’t gotten any replies but it’s alright could be for show. I expected just as much. I forgot to mention on my review below that their matcha was supposed to be £4.5 but the cashier insisted on adding £0.5 into my order for whatever reason (according to the person who replied, there was a misunderstanding; one sided I must say or lack of product knowledge on their side). I paid for it nonetheless. Was gonna give them another try next month when I’m in the city but the lack of genuine sincerity compelled me not to.

Went in cause I saw matcha on their menu..usually in any other cafes when I see matcha latte it usually meant matcha + milk so when I ordered a hot matcha latte and I saw the server keying in extra shot of espresso into the system I immediately asked if I can do without it. The server asked “are you sure?” I said “yes, I dont drink coffee” so I assumed the guy understood. I was served a matcha latte with a shot of espresso anyway. Disappointed. Drank only a sip and threw it away. Felt like he couldve told me they dont do Matcha lattes without a shot espresso. Also if you google matcha latte it literally says matcha with milk. If you wanna mix it with espresso it’s usually called a dirty matcha latte....

The company in question demonstrates a clear pattern of exploiting its employees through an excessively toxic management style. The female owner frequently makes inappropriate and unprofessional remarks, such as implying that Fuji water should not be placed in the staff area to prevent theft by employees. One must question the intent behind making such statements openly in front of staff.

Employees are treated more like subordinates rather than valued team members, with pervasive surveillance including the use of cameras and audio monitoring. Furthermore, senior part-time employees are unjustly expected to train new managers, a task beyond their scope and remuneration.

The work schedule imposed upon employees is grossly unreasonable, with shifts varying from as little as four hours on some days to over ten hours on others, often with little to no opportunity for rest. There is virtually no provision for sitting down during these extended shifts. Any casual conversation among employees during less busy periods is met with harsh reprimands, accusing them of incompetence.

This constitutes the most toxic work environment I have ever...