Mercantile & Mash — Restaurant in Charleston

I should probably preface this review by saying that Mercantile and Mash has a certain niche and certain clientele that they primarily serve (as evidence by the patrons and employees I witnessed during my visit). At the ripe age of 43, I was by far the oldest person in the establishment, so my review is written considering my generation, tastes, and interests.

I found M&M from doing a simple google search on best places to have breakfast in Charleston, as I know that Charleston is a bit of a foodie city. The reviews were good so I figured I'd try it out.

This place needs some work and in more ways than one. Upon entering, it was confusing as to what I was supposed to do (wait for someone to seat me, seat myself, etc.). The place was busy, so I sat next to the kitchen as I enjoy watching the chefs make things. Nobody came to counter to ask me what I wanted to eat, drink, etc. After about 15 minutes, I got up and started walking around only to discover that there is a counter which resembles that of a coffee bar, where apparently everything is ordered.

The kid behind the counter was nice, but told me that they would have to serve me coffee in a to-go cup because they were out of cups. That's probably not a good thing to have happen during breakfast, but it wasn't a big deal. He told me that I'd get one free refill, indicating that for $3, the amount of coffee served is limited. Ultimately, the coffee served was not very good. Maybe I just have a different flavor profile when it comes to coffee, but the coffee I was served had kind of a sour taste to it.

I asked if the spicy chicken biscuit was really spicy and he said, "No not at all". I thought, why call it that if it's not spicy? Since I no longer have the cast iron stomach of my 20s, I decided to get it. I sat back down at the counter, watching the chefs again, and think my food finally showed up 30 minutes later. It seemed a long time for such a simple order, but again they were busy so I didn't think much of it. The chicken I received was pink on the inside and it was difficult to discern as to whether it was a dark cut of meat that was used or if it was genuinely undercooked. I wasn't willing to wait for them to cook another as there appeared to be zero wait staff to bring a complaint to. So I rolled the dice and ate it anyway. The kid behind the counter was right in that it wasn't spicy at all. Unfortunately, the other thing it lacked was flavor. The chicken and biscuit were super bland and the biscuit was crunchy and overcooked.

Again, I'm sure that M&M appeals to a certain demographic that I just happen to not belong to and I can't fault them for that. It's not my cup of tea (or in my case, coffee). I probably won't be back but that doesn't mean that it's not worth...

Went tonight to celebrate and enjoy the music after a long night of work and service was terrible.

Approaching the bar I could tell the bartender with dirty blonde hair, beard and a hat was in a bad mood but I approached with kindness. After ordering a drink I wasn’t expecting it to be so strong so I ordered a glass of wine without a complaint, still expecting to pay for the drink that was made, but approaching the bar again he saw me with my drink and rolled his eyes. I set the drink down for a second and he instantly told me to not do that in an irritated manner (which I was going to throw out myself, just didn’t want to accidentally knock it over) and he threw it away for me which I appreciated. Then I asked about another cocktail in which I haven’t had before and he still had an attitude when I asked about if it was going to be on a more sweeter side.

Being in food and bev I understand having bad days especially in a fine dining industry but if having good business and a full bar is gonna bring out the bad side of you it’s probably not the right job for you. Many customers who saw my face after ordering my drinks made comments like “yeah he’s been angry all night,” or “yeah he’s just always like that”, and it’s embarrassing for the business. It’s absolutely no way to build clientelle, and everyone said he was fairly new.

Being that I was really looking forward to enjoying my night with my friends after having not been out in so long, I didn’t tip due to rude service and I always tip very well anywhere I go, I didn’t tip this time. Being rude and having a nasty attitude doesn’t make for good money. As I walked out the bathroom he passive aggressively said “that’s a very nice tip you left”, so I responded “well that’s a very nice attitude you gave me”. So I don’t know why he expected a good tip after the service I received. That’s like if the band that played tonight was giving a low-performance energy, but them expecting the crowd to be hyped up. Or me getting mad that a table didn’t like what they ordered, which I would’ve simply just got them something more to their liking. But the audacity to make a comment about it after blatantly being disrespectful was baffling. I would absolutely be fired if I made a comment like this to a table, much less had the attitude he had, and it’s not like this place was a dive bar where you could possibly get away with this behavior.

Keep in mind when people go out to enjoy their time you never know how long they wait to go to this establishment, so to receive this kind of service was highly disappointing, and this is coming from many people who also saw the...

I am a food and bev worker myself and I don’t normally leave negative reviews, but I was astounded by the rudeness I experienced at Mercantile and Mash today. After leaving my barista shift, I went to get lunch with my mother. She ordered an online pick up order and we didn’t know how to pick it up, so I went to ask the two employees that were chatting to each other and seemingly not busy where I should pick it up. I politely asked “excuse me” and the female brunette employee turned around and said “what?!” in an angry, abrasive tone. I then asked my question and she directed us to the pickup area. Also, we wanted to buy a couple of water bottles from the grab and go and there was a very long line for the food and coffee drinks, so my mom asked if we could check out with her since there was a cash register at her station. She rudely said we had to wait in line and pointed to the busy area and didn’t explain how we would procure some cups of water. We decided to take it to-go and leave because we were appalled at the negative environment. Also, my mom’s quinoa bowl was supposed to come with pesto, but there was no pesto on the bowl and it was very dry and not seasoned at all, and it cost like $20. Overall, I’m incredibly disappointed and am making this post in hopes that some changes will be made to the service, because I previously have always had great experiences at Merc and Mash. As a barista myself and someone who’s worked in food and bev for 8 years, I understand that everyone has off days, but there is no excuse for taking out your negative emotions on paying,...