Harmony Restaurant — Restaurant in Alta

I have been coming to Harmony for years and years as a Marin resident. Though I have eaten in the restaurant on occasion (friendly service though slow sometimes), I generally grab takeout. Most of the time, I have arrived and wait in line at the takeout case. Last night (2/27/19) I pre-ordered as it was pouring down rain and I was on the highway, and I knew that Harmony would have a long line. I arrived, signed the receipt and went home. When I got home, I inspected the receipt. It was $25.00 more than the gajillions of prior visits to the takeout window. The bill was $67.11. I looked at the size of the food cartons, and the contents. I took a picture. The food was nothing more / nothing less than prior orders. The only difference was that I had ordered by PHONE as opposed to being there in person at the case. When I called to inquire about why the $25.00 premium cost, I spoke first with Mackenzie who kept telling me they charge by weight. She then got Norman, the manager who explained that for all phone orders they charge the flat menu cost because they DON'T weigh it. So.....fellow take-out orderers who care about their hard-earned money.......never ever order ahead of time by phone unless you want to pay through the NOSE. They will charge you a minimum of at least $25.00 MORE for the luxury. That's the cost of at least another entree! Insanity. We went around and around and got nowhere. Being charged $25.00 premium because you pre-ordered by phone and they don't weigh the food as if they would if you were at the case when ordering makes no sense at all, and total gouging if you ask me. And there was no apology or understanding whatsoever towards a long-term loyal customer. They know Marin has few options...their food is generally good and quick....and they have relatively next to no competition in the general area. So...what do they do to their long-term loyal customers? They gouge them with at least an additional $25.00 per phone order just because the person ordered by phone! You could go buy roughly 4-5 lbs of chicken with that at the grocery store. Insanity. Buyer beware....NEVER CALL AHEAD, if you...

The worst restaurant I've ever been to, bar none.

We arrived at the restaurant literally waited 10 minutes for anyone to show up at the front desk. The restaurant was half full. Finally we were told it would be 15 minutes before we could be seated. We waited. Then we were shown to a table, given menu's and water. 15 minutes later, after scanning the room for help, a waitress came over, took our orders and left.15 minutes later our food arrived. We ordered 4 dishes. A steak and veggie platter. Absolutely zero taste not even salt or pepper let alone asian spices. The orange chicken with mango and fruits and vegetables came with one piece of pineapple, zero mango, bell peppers and the orange sauce tasted like Orange Crush, with a fake orange after taste and was runny like soup, not a thick sauce as is usual. The silver noodle dish with 3 kinds of mushrooms came with regular brown noodles, onions, and one kid of mushroom with 5 small mushrooms for the entire dish. It was basically brown noodles and again, zero flavor. At the end the waitress came over and asked us if we liked our food, and before we could open our mouths, she pivoted and walked away. It was surreal. Don't go here, the staff hates their jobs, service is non existent and the food is a pitiful excuse for Chinese and how it got so many rave reviews if mind boggling. Oh and way over priced. Run...

The food was yummy which normally is the most important aspect of a restaurant review. However, the rest of the experience as a big disappointment. Here are my reasons for the low rating: A large section of the menu had no prices next to the entries. When i asked about this the waitress pointed to a small notation at the bottom right of the page with a range that about doubled from lowest to highest amount. Would I have to ask about every item I was considering? This is the regular, full menu. It should provide prices for all the items. I ordered an glass of glass of wine with dinner - quite expensive but it was a treat. Very chintzy pour - the glass was smaller and thinner than any other place I've been in years. One of the expensive shrimp dim sum dumplings slipped out from my chopsticks as I brought it to my plate and landed on the floor. When the waitress came by, I pointed it out so she wouldn't step on it. I didn't ask but hoped that she might replace it - as a good customer service gesture. It would cost them 'pennies' while making a very positive impact on a customer. They didn't replace it. Bottom line - food was good enough; everything else was a big...