Apple Spice Box Lunch and Catering — Restaurant in Herndon

Edit: I updated my star rating from a 2 to a 4 because of the thoughtful reply from the owner. Also that they pointed out that the local office is not responsible for the website UX. The folks at this location seem nice. I do hope they can force some change at the home office regarding the website user experience.

Original review: Pros: First, the people. Norma, who I spoke with, deserves 5 stars and is the only reason this review has more than one star. Second, when I have had meetings catered by this company in the past, I really enjoyed the food. I was looking forward to having it again.

Cons: The online ordering process is deeply flawed. First, the interface is not intuitive at all. I had to download and read the detailed instructions on how to place an order, which shouldn't be necessary. An online UX should be simple and intuitive, and not require an instruction manual. In fact, my first order attempt got messed up. I had to delete it and start a second one.

My biggest complaint is that they deleted my order before I could finalize it. I had set up an online order about 6 weeks in advance of the event for which I was ordering. I sent the link to the 19 people attending, who filled out their orders (one of whom had trouble filling out his order and called me for help - again, a non-intuitive UX). Two weeks later (and 4 weeks before the event), I received an e-mail saying that the order was ready to process. I did not attend to it promptly because I was going to handle this and other event arrangements all at once at a later date. There was no indication that the order would expire. No message like, "you have XX days to complete your order." No reminder e-mail that my order was about to expire. The entirety of their e-mail communication to me was, "Your group order is ready for checkout / Hey Ian Slinkman, your group order is ready for checkout now, you can proceed by clicking the link below. [link: Checkout group order]"

A week an a half later, I went to complete the order and it had disappeared. I called the local office and a very nice lady (Norma) tried to help me out. She was polite, understanding, and went out of her way to assist me. But she couldn't - the record of my group order had been permanently deleted.

My advice to Apple Spice is to 1) revisit your online ordering system to find ways to make it more intuitive, 2) include a clear message that there is a time limit in your communications about the order, and 3) send a reminder e-mail if the time limit is about to expire.

Because of this situation, I have chosen to cater this event with...

I've been ordering here for about 5 years now. I've never had a bad experience up until today. I picked up my order and took it to my client's office. I was in a hurry and didn't double check the order like I usually do. Of course the time I forget to check there's something missing from the order, a cup of soup. I called to let them know thinking I would just get credit back on my card. Instead, Lou shows up to the office with soup in hand. Now that's service. Not only is the service always good here but the food... There were 10 people fed and 10 people had to let me know how good their meals were. Everything is fresh. Breads are delicious. Sauces are spot on. And the cinnamon honey butter is ridiculous. ASJ is my go to when I'm in the area whether I'm getting food catered or just need to...

I have been telling everyone here about Apple Spice’s incredible service and really wonderful food and options. Lou, Gema and team are phenomenal when it comes to customer service and totally bend over backwards for requests. They were truly amazing during the COVID “only essentials in office” lunches I had planned each week, with their packaging, delivery, and overall attention paid to the orders. The variety and really delicious foods, not to mention the generous portions they offer, are always requested for our working lunches. I am so happy to have a go-to caterer like...