Everbean x BIBI'S — Restaurant in London

We have taken a tea, a slice of cake and a crossoint: everything was great, the teaset was lovely and the atmosphere of the place was wonderful. The service though hasn't been pleasant at all: we have arrived at 5:30, they have told us we could sit but they were going to close at 6, which was absolutely fine. We were ready to drink for half an hour and then leave when the issues started: first they wanted to serve us in takeaway cups and I have had to ask twice for normal ones. They didn't give us the menu and when I ordered tea they asked if English breakfast was OK, to which I had to ask twice if that was the only type of tea they had and succeeded in ordering a jasmine tea only at the second time I asked. Finally, when they served us they asked if we 'had ever worked in hospitality' (!?!?!?!) - which I assumed it was a passive aggressive way of trying to make us feel guilty  but despite me asking the reason for this question I couldn't get an answer (the guy just told us 'because a lot of people who work in hospitality stop by', which is an even meaningful answer than  the question). I have felt very unwelcome in this place, which is a shame because it seemed very nice and cozy, but this type of service has been really ridiculous. I am a very chilled out and rational person, I don't mind being told that a place is closing but you need to decide how to run your business: you can either not let people sit because you are about to close and you don't accept last minute orders or you let people sit and you serve them properly. You cannot have it bothways. I don't 'work in hospitality' but I have never even dreamed about saying to any of my managers 'hey look, you can give me stuff to do in the last half an hour of my working day, but I'll do it worse and with far less commitment'. One of the guys serving us told me they have never received any complaints so well...glad  to be the first one. I hope this will be taken as an opportunity to learn and not repeat this kind of absurd mistakes with the public...

Among the hustling and bustling area, normally it is occupied by big chain coffee stores and posh cafes and restaurants, independent coffee shops with fine coffee are bereft. However, if you are willing to explore the local area, there is always something hidden place where people could enjoy a piece of peace. So does Mayfair, near Oxford Circus station, just 7mins’ walk distance, hidden down a quaint cobbled street, a coffee shop named “everbean" is such an oasis.

Coffee Shops Each Tube Station For Digital Nomads 46th Stop: Victoria Line-Oxford Circus Station

everbean

Category: Independent Coffee Shop

WIFI: Reliable and free to use (a code is needed)

Seating: The shape of the building is interesting, a massive semi-circular window, which quite attracts eyeballs. It is said this place used to be a hairdressers. There is a window ledge with stools, a communal table with 6 chairs on the ground floor, and a mezzanine level with 2-3 rows of small tables. The outdoor seating area is very popular when the weather is nice. The seats are very limited and handy, about 21-25 seats totally.

Charging Spots: yes. Bathroom: One for Unisex

Ambience: Due to the special building shape, the semi-circle window dominates the whole coffee shop, and the mezzanine level is quite close to the ceiling, which makes people feel a bit cramped when it is full. Normally the mezzanine level is more quiet and has a good view, but this one is opposite, especially a big project hanging nearby, which makes the place comparatively dark. On the contrary, downstairs is much better despite having constant traffic.

Staff Friendliness: there are 4-5 staff which is quite a lot for a coffee shop but they are really needed. However, 1-2 of them are not so friendly.

Cost: Coffee £2.4-£3.7 Tea £2.5-£3.2 Soup...

Dear Owner,

The other day, I and a few of my colleagues came in for a quick meeting and cup of coffee at your cafe based in Mayfair.

I came in and ordered first as a few of my colleagues were coming in a few minutes later. However, I ordered for them. After ordering I sat down at a table. My colleagues came in shortly afterwards. As we were engaged in a conversation, we started noticing that the drinks weren't arriving any time soon. So my colleague went to enquire as it seems like our order was forgotten. About 15 minutes in and we still didn't have our drinks. Finally, our drinks got delivered. But me and colleagues weren't impressed to say the least as some cups of our drinks were somewhat dirty and some drinks were rather cold than warm and not up to standard quality that you would expect at a cafe. One of my colleagues tried to go in and ask for their drink to be remade but the staff seemed not to pay attention and no to address my colleagues request. Which was rather rude. The staff seemed to consist of 2 females and 2 males, one of which appeared to be a manager or supervisor as he was dressed differently. The staff seemed overall very disorganised and very loud and it seemed that a lot of activities were not work related while they were not attentive to customers. Our coffee was supposed to be a secondary part of our meeting as we met up to quickly discuss business matters but the rest of the experience was really distracting and left poor impression on us.

From my own experience in business my educated guess would be that disorganisation within cafe was at least partially because of the poor management and disorganisation that trickles down from owners and overall management.

I hope that can be addressed...