PKL Social (formerly FM Kitchen & Bar) — Restaurant in Houston

Absolutely horrendous service. First while we were waiting for our table 3 of the 6 went to the bar to get drinks. We were told that we could not get a drink unless we had a table or sat down at the bar. We said that we were waiting on a table and they still said no. 2 sat down at different ends of the bar and I pulled over a chair as no others were there. They said I could not do that either. One ordered his drink and when he got it got up so I could order mine. Nope can not do that either. He said since I can not be with my friends I want a refund. That went back and forth and they eventually gave him his refund. When we got to our table we ordered and when the order came, the order of soup did not come with a spoon. 15 minutes later and after asking 2 other people they finally found a spoon. Guess what? Now the soup is cold. Another 15 minutes to get a bowl of hot soup with a spoon. When we get to the bill, which is only on a hand held device, we see that we are being charged and automatic 20% tip. We objected to it being added without our consent so the waiter had a manager Roberto come to our table. Roberto told us he would not remove the tip. We said we’re not paying a 20% tip for bad service. He said that we had to as it was store policy. We asked to see where it said that. He said it was an unwritten policy. We said we still were not going to pay it and he could call the police if he wanted. He said that he hoped we will pay so that it would not come to that. We said that we still were not paying 20%, that we would give her a tip, but not 20%. He left the table and had a 10 minute discussion with another MOD and finally came back telling us he removed the 20% tip. Then he left us, without giving us the check. When the waitress came back with the new amounts, they were still wrong and one still have the 20% tip included. So after another 10 minutes that got resolved. They did remove the charge for the soup after we complained about that. We asked for his manager only to be given a card with her phone number scratched out, but it does have her email. The food was good but if you want customer service, I would not recommend this place or at least bring your own utensils.

Response to Jason Mok

Jason,

Thank you for taking the time to respond; however, I will have to disagree with you on several points. I too will respond on google.

People were receiving drinks at the bar while they waiting, but they insisted that you sit down. Neither the chairs at the bar nor the tables were 6 feet apart. The outside was pretty full and although I do not know your inside capacity, the outside was above 50%. I do understand that mistakes happen, but 15 minutes to get one and another 15 minutes to get a new hot soup, is not what I would call prompt. I guess we have different ideas on what customer service is. In your own words, "we apply a 20% gratuity to large parties of 8 or more", so please explain to me why we, a party of 6 with one not eating, was charged?

Additionally, I would also note that per your rules you do not take cash, and yet you did. So as you can see, you have many rules that are not followed. That makes me wonder what other things are...

Since my original Yelp review of FM Kitchen & Bar, I was contacted by a Partner of the company who addressed my concerns and provided solutions to the matter. He was very understanding and welcomed us back for another visit, which we are looking forward to.

It is no doubt that Covid-19 has disproportionately affected everyone, businesses, and among the worst - restaurants. There have been cuts in staff, full-on closures, the current Texas mandated capacity limits; all among the normal challenges that come with operating a restaurant.

I’m hopeful that with a little patience from staff, operators and patrons, restaurants will come out of this stronger. Bc.. I mean... we love food.

Now, onward to the review!

#1st time here

Entrance - Patio was full - covered and not covered areas. TV screens outside. Faux turf on the covered patio area. Fans going. We were greeted by the hostess and manager who was coming from the patio with the ipad (waitlist). Was crowded so we had to wait for a table of 5, but roughly ~10 minutes

First vibe - awesome! The weather was so pleasant (a break from the normal Houston humidity) so a lot of people were sitting outside. Music not too loud, but a great playlist. I can't imagine what this place looks like in a non-covid, summer atmosphere. Packed, I'm sure.

Time to table - you are asked to wait inside your car. And for a party of 5, it was around 10 minutes for a table inside.

Menu - It was national cheeseburger day so that's what we all got, had specials they were promoting on IG. The menu - American: sandwiches, burgers, hot dogs. The drink menu is where it's at. Very impressive cocktails - and tasty!

Server - She was nice, helpful and patient!

See photos! Pretty boozy, generous on the pours, but they made for great drinks. Not watered down at all.

The food - I will admit it was fresh and hot once we did receive the food.

No dessert for us this time.

Management: My concern for the ticket times for our food was addressed by management. I was assured and believe that they take this very seriously and are rectifying the situation. Kudos to your upper management staff!

Cleanliness - Clean, all staff wore masks, and the restrooms were clean for how busy it...

Went to this place last Saturday to celebrate my best friend birthday. The place was nice and the food really tasty. We were a large party 10+ with kids (from 3-12 years old). Everything was ok and we were having a great time until we had some trouble with the checks (they messed up eventhoug we were very clear about who was paying what) anyway, this was ok because our waitress was very nice and patient so we didn’t care that much. When they already “fixed it “ there was a remaining amount to be paid but we didn’t know from where since we all have paid it all. This waitress call the “manager”and when this lady came out, she was with and attitude like “I’ll give you shots and a Margarita but I need this to be paid” let me clarify we never had a problem about paying, just wanted to understand why if we had already done it. We ended up paying and she brought this shots with that attitude but honestly we were having a great time. Later than this, we (the moms) saw her talking to our husbans and we noticed something was going on. When I approached them, I was told that we needed to leave. She said to them that our kids weren’t behaving so we needed to leave now. I didn’t understand at first because she didn’t say a word or someone else while we were there. She was mad because our kids were playing in the place right next to it and said they weren’t allowed, but the man in charge of that place said they were good. Anyway, she brought this plastic cups and in a very rude way was standing by us like we were criminals. No one else came to say anything, it was only her! She claimed that she had told us so many times (no even one) and that we needed to leave the place. She was rude, she had no respect at all, she made us have a really bad time which is sad because honestly the place was very nice and we went there because it was a “kids friendly “ place and all we wanted to do was to celebrate my friend! I never write reviews, but at this time I felt the need to do it. So sad to have to say this, but not returning to this place while still in charge of zero prepared person. (She never...