Eggspectation - Columbia — Restaurant in Columbia

I unfortunately had a textbook horrible experience here this past weekend. Our waiter greeted us warmly and eventually took our orders, but had to circle back to the table because he didn't write it down and couldn't remember what l ordered, which is fine. The person I was with ordered a meal that came with pancakes, and they brought french toast, so his order was wrong, but he didn't care to send it back. I ordered a Caesar salad with salmon, and the food came quickly which we were grateful for. I started to eat my food and around the 4th bite, I noticed the texture was off. When I looked down at the salmon, it was completely raw and slimy in the center. I kindly flagged my waiter and let him know, to which he replied "I'll have them make another one for you." I waited 10 minutes for another salad, while the person I was with was halfway finished eating their food. When the waiter brought the dish back to me, I cut the salmon in the middle, and it was just as raw as the first one they brought me, even cold in center. I flagged the waiter down again to let him know, to which he replied "wow, maybe the salmon we have today is bad. Do you want something else?" Frustrated at this point and worried about my stomach, I just ordered wings and fries. By the time those got to me, the person I was with had already finished eating. The wings were fine. When the bill came, to my surprise, not a single thing was removed from the bill. The salads, my wings, the smoothie I ordered, were all still on the bill. Not a single person, including our waiter or the restaurant manager came to speak to me for the 2 hours we were there about giving me raw food TWICE. No apology, no offering of a free item or anything to rectify the situation, nothing. I had to ask a host to call the manager for me and tell him that I would not be paying for raw food that was not edible and was sent back. The manager did remove everything I had from the bill which I appreciate, but was not nearly apologetic enough. The fact that no one came to apologize for sending out raw seafood twice is absolutely ridiculous. I was sick for the rest of the weekend from accidentally eating the raw salmon from the first salad they served me. I will not be returning, which is upsetting, as I live in the area and like to patronize the restaurants in...

All I can say is... Eggspectation.. we have missed you!

For those unaware, Eggspectation once served the Ellicott City/Columbia area with delicious food but closed down and I stumbled upon this new Columbia location by chance, so we very excitedly stopped by for late lunch/early dinner today.

Our server, Idris, was fantastic and lovely, truly an exceptional server and we'd love to dine with him again. We enjoyed the calamari, dinner salad with balsamic dressing (avocado, onion, tomatoes, walnuts and crostini bread with greek spread), Southwest burger (egg, fries, bacon), Eggstravaganza (scrambled eggs, french toast, lyonnaise potatoes and bacon), and cheese grits for $90 plus tip. The meal was incredible. The crostini bread with the salad was seriously delicious - my genuine compliments to the chef! The burger was messy and tasty, and the grits were cheesy deliciousness. The scrambled eggs were perfect and the french toast melted in your mouth, you didn't even need syrup with them. I was a little worried about the $14 salad but I was huge and filled with more than just lettuce, so thank you for creating a filling salad. Please consider a veggie burger option for vegetarians!

The atmosphere is upscale farmhouse hipster chic, is the best way to describe it. Very clean and comfortable. At first, the music was definitely too loud and we struggled to hear one another but it seemed someone turned it down because it softened by the end of our meal. To all restaurants - music doesn't have to be blasting, your guests may wish to engage in conversation. There are televisions as well for those who may wish to view sporting matches.

I noticed all staff seemed genuinely friendly and engaged with each table, which was refreshing and made me smile. The team seems happy to be there soon management must be doing something right.

The Merriweather area may have tough parking on weekends but it seems there are plenty of garage spaces as well, and the walkable area is quite nice. I'm not too familiar with the other shops but I suspect you could easily make a day of the area.

Eggspectation, we are SO glad you have returned. We have tried Jam Eateries, and the Gambrills Eggspectation location and they are alright but just not the same. Welcome back, we sincerely look forward...

We are longtime fans of Eggspectation and have visited multiple locations over the years. It’s one of our favorite chains, and we were thrilled when this location opened nearby. Since then, we’ve been coming here almost every weekend without fail – and that’s all because the food is consistently great.

That said, it’s been disheartening to see the service at this particular location fall so short. Nearly every visit has come with some kind of frustration. There have been times we were seated and forgotten, with no server assigned to our table. Other times, our server barely checked on us after taking our order. It’s either one issue or another, and it’s become a recurring pattern.

We truly want this location to succeed, which is why we’re writing this. The current service system seems poorly managed and uncoordinated. It doesn’t match the standard we’ve come to expect from Eggspectation elsewhere. We are loyal customers, and it saddens us to even consider going less often, but it’s hard to justify the repeat disappointment.

To the owner or manager: please take this seriously. You have a great restaurant with an excellent menu and strong brand loyalty. But without improvements in service and overall management, you risk losing your regulars. We’re rooting for you – please make the...