Flashback Diner — Restaurant in Hallandale Beach

Let me start by saying that customer experience is everything. I’ve been visiting Flashback Dinner for the past 10 years, and it’s always been one of my favorite spots for traditional American food. As an Aventura resident, I’ve been a loyal patron, dining there at least 3 times a month. However, something has changed over the past 6 months, and the customer service has gone downhill. But what happened today was simply unacceptable.

I arrived with my daughter for lunch and was assigned a server named Olga, who seemed more annoyed to be serving us than anything else. When I asked about the lunch or daily specials (which have always been delicious), she snapped at me with a straight, “NO, WE DON’T HAVE,” and turned her back on us.

The restaurant temperature was freezing—a chilling 52°, making it impossible to sit comfortably. We were literally shivering.

When Olga returned to take our order, I asked for the ossobuco. Her response? Another curt, “NO, WE DON’T HAVE IT.” I took a deep breath and tried to find something else on the menu. I decided on the Tres Amigos Steak Bowl—one of my all-time favorites that I don’t even need to look at the menu to order. I ordered one for myself and one for my daughter. Olga, once again rolling her eyes, said, “WE DON’T HAVE THE MEDALLIONS. Just ribeye.” While I didn’t mind the substitution, I also ordered a side of truffle fries. Guess what? “WE DON’T HAVE IT.”

At this point, we were freezing and just wanted to eat. But the temperature became unbearable, and the service was so unpleasant that we decided to ask for takeout boxes so we could eat at home.

When the check came, I was shocked to see that we had been charged for the Southwest Steak Bowl, which was $10 more per dish than the Tres Amigos Steak Bowl I had ordered. Olga claimed I had “agreed” to this when she told me they didn’t have the medallions. Excuse me? If you don’t have an item, you should show the alternative on the menu and confirm with the customer—not surprise them with a higher charge on the bill.

Miami is notorious for up-charging clients in beauty salons, clubs, and other establishments, but in a restaurant? This is the first time I’ve experienced it. Olga’s body language, arguments, and attitude while saying, “You have to pay,” were incredibly unprofessional. Of course, I paid—I’m not a scammer. But in this situation, am I the scammer, or is it the restaurant?

To top it off, the complimentary bread and butter, which has been a staple since the Reagan administration, was nowhere to be found.

I can’t help but wonder where the wonderful gentleman who used to manage this restaurant is. Under his supervision, this would NEVER have happened.

I am incredibly disappointed in what Flashback Dinner has become. Loyal customers like me...

As soon as I dropped the kids off to school, I decided to treat myself to breakfast at Flashback Diner. Located along Federal Highway in Hallandale, Flashback Diner feels like one of those layback diners that makes you at home. It has such a casual and comfortable atmosphere with pics of celebrities adorning every inch of the walls and oldie goldie 70's music playing in the background. I was seated very quickly and handed the menu, which offers a vast selection of dishes at decent prices such as:

Salads & soups Appetizers Celebrity named sandwiches Burgers Lunch specials Wine/beer/cold & hot beverages Sides Seafood Breakfast items/ breakfast specialties Specialties & Mediterranean specialties Omelets Early riser breakfast specials From The Grill: pancakes, French toast, Belgian waffles

I ordered a large orange juice and a breakfast combo which consist of eggs (cooked the way you like), your choice of bacon or sausage, and pancakes or French toast. It looked amazing when it arrived in front of me. Here's what I thought about the food:

Orange juice - I usually don't like pulp in the orange juice, but it was so refreshing and I didn't mind it Bacon - very tasty & crispy Scrambled eggs - Nicely cooked. Just had to add salt & pepper to it for taste French toast - Six thick delicious slices with a hint of cinnamon, and I ate every last piece of it

It was a very enjoyable breakfast. I came in with an empty stomach and I'm leaving very stuffed. I also noticed that the servers in Flashback Diner gives exceptional customer service. Each of them are knowledgeable about the menu, and checks on their tables in a timely manner to see the customers need anything or if things are to their liking. Same can be said about my server, Larisa, who was such a sweetheart. I'm definitely gonna come back to this...

So sad. My 88 year-old mother, brother and I were so looking forward to going to lunch together for the first time in many years, and I was looking forward to what I remembered from my childhood to be one of the best diners. The Reuben came out barely room temperature with extremely dry, tasteless corned beef, congealed Swiss cheese, saurkraut and Russian dressing on the side (not in the sandwich) and was served on soggy cold rye bread (seemed previously grilled). The pickles had no crunch (not the good ones I remember), the potato pancake was cold and hard....such a disappointment... entire lunch tasted like leftovers!! We all ordered matzohball soup which was tasty but was served room temperature with cold matzoh balls. The waitress delivered food nonchalantly, never asking how it was or if we needed anything (or refilling water). Mom asked for the manager who, although nice and sharing childhood stories, made excuses of his checking the soup and it was 170 degrees. I told him the matzohballs were refrigerator cold. He smiled and offered nothing (not even to replace with HOT soup). The bill came and was paid with a tip in spite of it being a horribly disappointing experience . .$60 for a horrible lunch...most of our food was left over. We left and my brother bought corned beef from a nearby deli in Hallendale because Mom was so disappointed (and hungry because the corned beef was too dry...