Pavilion Columbia Road — Restaurant in London

Good (but pricy) bread and baked goods, ruined by (mostly) awful staff who create an unwelcoming atmosphere. It’s been like that for years so I assume this is a decision by the manager/owner.

Most staff are there to network/be seen: if you are a local customer (we buy bread regularly! we can afford your prices!), most of the time you will NOT be made to feel welcome unless your face fits an extremely narrow demographic (young, white, affluent, under 30; tech bros, influencers, etc).

Worse, I’ve experienced outrageously ageist/sexist treatment here a few times when trying to buy bread as (gasp!) a middle-aged woman. Yesterday I stood in the queue unserved for several minutes (with a queue building up behind me) because apparently it took 3 staff to serve the one person in front of me, a stylish older guy with silver hair. After several minutes – by which time I’d almost zoned out – the woman on the counter said ‘are you together?’ i.e. No one had bothered to serve me because IF TWO MIDDLE-AGED PEOPLE ARE IN THEIR SHOP AT THE SAME TIME AND ONE IS A WOMAN, ‘OBVIOUSLY’ WE MUST BE A COUPLE AND THE WOMAN DOES NOT NEED TO BE SERVED! Pathetic. The staff here need unconscious bias training (to put it politely), but I’m not holding my breath. Potential customers – please be aware there are other places on Columbia Road selling equally good (or better) bread and...

The croissants here look amazing and I had always wanted to try one. I ordered an almond croissant - and was really disappointed. The bake was hard and the ends almost like a biscuit. Instead of being baked with almond filling it was a normal croissant, cut in half, with almond paste spread on which rendered the croissant texture flabby. After my long anticipation and being starving hungry, I couldn’t eat more than half.

The staff were super friendly but when the toll screen suggested I should tip them for handling my transaction, that left a bad taste in my mouth. ...

I was mocked behind my back by your staff in the Colombia Flower Market shop. As I turned around to pick my ice cream, the two ladies behind the counter mocked me. My friend witnessed the entire scene from outside the window.

I used to get my coffee every morning at your Broadway Market location, but after this experience I feel uncomfortable walking into your shops.

I hope my feedback will be useful to you building a customer centric business and training your staff accordingly.

All the...