Moby's Coffee Shop — Restaurant in Inglewood

Poor quality food and even worse customer service. Would rather threaten to call the police then admit their mistakes and issue a refund.

I placed an order for takeout for a grilled bacon and cheese sandwich with an addition of an egg. That’s not what I received, I got an egg and cheese sandwich.

I gave the restaurant a call to advise them of the mistake. I was offered to drive all the way back to have it corrected or to receive an IOU.

I don’t frequent this establishment enough to have an IOU nor did I want to drive all the way back (hence the phone call). I asked for a refund over the phone I was met pushback.

The person who answered the phone advised that the cook said the bacon was on the sandwich and that I would need to prove it wasn’t, instead of the proving it was.I was now a liar, the cook couldn’t possibly have been mistaken. I was also told that to receive a refund it is typically required to inconvenience the customer and have them return in order to do so. I advise the restaurant that I would go ahead and follow their normal process and bring the food back and I wasn’t happy about it.

While en route to the restaurant, I was given a call and informed that they reviewed security footage, they already had available to them and determined that the cook lied. No apology was given for accusing me of being a liar or requiring me to come back. The refund that couldn’t be done over the phone had now been done and I was not welcome to the restaurant because they did not want an upset patron in their facilities and they would call the police.

I know the restaurant industry has low margins and $11.81 may be a lot to refund. I don’t this it’s good customer service to require a customer to come back or to submit evidence of a formal grievance. These are the same requirements the bank would have requested for a reversal, it was my hope that dealing with the restaurant would avoid such a tedious process.

I find it disheartening that a business who made an error, accused the customer of lying about error, advised them of normal protocol, and when the customer attempted to follow their normal protocol, however, let them know that they were not happy about it, then chose to Weaponize the police. Especially when they made the mistake and they always had proof of their mistake available to them. Given the political climate in the neighborhood in which they’re located one can only presume they meant to have their customer experience bodily harm.

This restaurant does not care about the community in which it serves, it would rather cheat them, than hold themselves accountable. And when someone attempts to do so then they threaten to weaponize the police. I can only presume the owner is prejudice against customers and this is why their business is failing so badly they’d take these measures...

It's incredibly important for businesses—especially those that are embraced by long-standing communities like Black Inglewood—to respect their customers, uphold fair business practices, and maintain both cultural sensitivity and basic hospitality. Here are a few key points that come across from your account: Cultural Exploitation Without Respect Displaying old photos of Black leaders to signal solidarity while failing to treat Black customers with dignity is not cultural appreciation—it's exploitation. It sounds like the restaurant may be trying to maintain a façade of cultural connection while eroding the quality and service that built community trust in the first place. Degrading Food Quality and Service Poorly cooked food, argumentative service staff, and cheap ingredients are a clear sign that the restaurant may be cutting corners while raising prices—this is a betrayal of loyal customers who've supported them over the years. You deserved better. Shady Pricing Practices Hidden surcharges, unexplained pricing discrepancies, and failing to post required notices (especially if the sign “fell down” and was moved somewhere customers can’t see) could potentially violate consumer protection laws in California. Many businesses transparently post any credit card surcharges and allow customers to opt for other forms of payment. What you describe sounds deceptive and disrespectful. Unacceptable Restroom Setup Requiring customers to walk through an alley to use a makeshift washroom while paying premium prices for basic food is unacceptable. This speaks volumes about the owner's disregard for customer comfort and basic...

Moby's is a 'ma & pa' shop among breakfast diners. The food looks more home cooked than standard plating you'd see at others like IHOP, Denny's, and the like. It tastes great in my opinion with my favorite irregular -one I do not often see at other restaurants- is the Corned Beef Hash. You can really taste the fat in the meat and mixed with rice or hasbrowns, you cannot go wrong.

I feel an unappreciated factor of the restaurant is the ambiance. The music choice is good family friendly tunes that does have swing, blues, jazz, and a small handful of popular sings for another era. The music is never overpowering unless you're used to whispering all the time. Not to mention it gives people inside an idea of how loud they are. If they cannot hear the music slightly over themselves, then they're too loud. From experience, I've never had a nearby family or group be incredibly rowdy, even during high time. Besides the usual ankle biter with grits on the face, crying about their dropped spoon.

The only downside comes with the M.O. of the diner; being breakfast only, the hours are notably short. With it is a small time window that you and everyone else will be aiming for. Plus... I don't recall the exact amount of seats but I'm pretty sure its in the 40-55 range for people. I'd discourage groups above 6 or you'll be waiting a long time for multiple tables, albeit the staff are very quick.

By the way, parking is tricky since you cannot park in the 7-11 parkway nearby and the restaurant is right on the street. There should be a spot besides the music store to the left of Moby's. Few in the number but worth the twenty second walk to...