French Market Cafe & Gourmet Shop — Restaurant in Cornelius

This experience was absolutely horrible. If I could give 0 stars, I would. I am going break this review up because there are so many issues.

AMBIANCE, SPACE, and CUSTOMER SERVICE. The owner was so rude and refuses to accommodate. This is my fourth time being there and I left so upset and angry with the way my family and I were treated. The owner boasts about how she is highly trained yet her tea room is crowded with overstock, her hours are limited, the tables are too close together, and she sets ridiculous rules. She told us that we were not allowed to remove our tea steepers from the pots because she was worried about her table clothes. However, this caused the tea to become over-steeped and bitter. My grandmother made a comment that we would not be returning and the owner spun around, came back to the table and told us we were being extremely rude and were not allowed to say that. My grandmother expressed that this is how she was feeling and the owner continued to fight with us, stating that she is the owner and can do what she wants. This is true; she is the owner and can do what she wants however, she made no attempt to fix the problem we were having and simply resorted to arguing. We had taken the tea steeper out and placed it on a small dish, being careful not to spill on the table clothes but this was not allowed. She literally forced us to put them back into our tea pot. The table clothes were plastic and festive, meaning that she changes them out for the season. I would understand her concern for the table clothes if they were sentimental or high value but they most likely came from Walmart. Her shop is not accommodating for anyone with disabilities, due to the lack of space which she has created. Her space could be disability-friendly but she stuffs so many racks and random knick-knacks that customers are constantly apologizing to other customers for simply standing up, sitting down, trying to get to the restroom, or exiting the building. Additionally, she claims to have a dress code but her waitress was wearing leggings, a tshirt, and sneakers.

QUALITY OF FOOD Nearly all of the food is pre packaged, not homemade, and something you could get much cheaper from any local grocery store. These are the foods not homemade: mini quiches (Aldi brand), chocolate petit fours, croissants, all mini desserts, cream cheese, chicken salad, and probably many more. Once again, the tea became over steeped due to being left in the pot. For those with stomach issues, do not go here and expect to be accommodated. I have anxiety induced IBS, which was flared up after eating a few things. Although they offered styrofoam to-go boxes to other customers, I was not given that option because we were told to stay and eat or leave without our food. Given those options and the fact that it is $50 per person and gratuity is automatically included, I was forced to make myself uncomfortable eating food when styrofoam to go boxes sat being unused.

OTHER TEA ROOMS IN THE AREA (and beyond) If you are in the area, save yourself the frustration and go to the Ballantyne Hotel and have their tea. It is a thousand times better experience, ambiance, and food. I have been to the following places to attend their high tea and all of them are significantly better: Disney World- Epcot, UK pavilion, Rose and Crown (here you are taught how to properly steep tea, time tea, and much more), the O’Henry Hotel in Greensboro NC, the Lady Elegant Tea Room in St. Paul, MN, and the Carolina Inn in Chapel Hill NC.

As I stated before, this is my fourth time attending. The other three times were in Spring 2020, December 2022, and Summer 2021. We never had the same issues, except for the food becoming...

Our table was waiting for us as we had to make reservations. The tea choices were varied and gave a good selection. The tea came out quickly but had to steep. Crème was not brought nor offered and only sweetener was artificial. The food selections came next one by one. I had discussed vegetarian plant based options when choosing my tea sandwiches when I made reservation but was unaware that this added a $10 vegan up charge. The tea sandwiches appeared to have been made prior to our arrival and possibly refrigerated as the bread was dried out. Nothing was so good that I wanted more or would eat again. The sweet selection was varied and I presume the Oreo cookie was the vegan option. Cannot lie that I was disappointed. There was no offer for additional hot water for the tea. Service was good but I thought the offer of crème and sugar and additional hot water could have been made. When the check was brought a 20% gratuity had already been added. While my norm is 20% a gratuity I feel is something I decide. I was not told that I had to tip 20%. Oh well. I think the experience and food did not justify the price. Sadly only other option for tea in clt is a precocious spot with the dress to impress crowd. I’m not looking for that experience and hoped the French market would deliver but they fell short. I have been to other tea shops so I do...

My boyfriend & I stopped in today at 1:30pm. The young ladies at the counter were nice. We asked if we could order ice tea & pastries. The counter girl said she had to ask & we saw her go over to an older lady sitting in the back booth. We were told the kitchen was closed. We asked a couple of other questions, which the same girl went back & forth to ask the lady. All the answers were no. We asked if we could just order and sit outside. We were told that they needed to close on time, but could order an ice tea to go. We ordered 2 teas. While we were waiting, the market area is so small & over merchandised, that we felt we were in the way. There was nowhere to stand & several times had to move so staff could get around us. We were very disappointed. And won’t return. It just wasn’t a good experience. Tea was ok, but not worth the drive. I love all things tea & enjoy visiting tea rooms. This by far, wasn’t up to par with any other tea room I...