Papa Johns Pizza — Restaurant in Kalamazoo

Humiliating

They use DoorDash. I ordered from the PAPA JOHN'S WEBSITE online and it didn't tell me a third party would be handling my food.

When the delivery driver (Jason) got to my house (20 minutes late), he refused to get out of his car and made me go to his car to get the pizza and breadsticks.

Initially he wouldn't give me the pizza and breadstick because I was upset that he made me walk out to the car.

He called me a "fatty". And told me he wouldn't get out of the car in my "poverty-stricken" neighborhood .

I turned to walk away and he offered the pizza and breadsticks through the window of his car, I had to pull it from his hands.

He proudly shouted through the window of his new-ish car that he was a millionaire; as I walked away, he said that he didn't need this job, and then wished me luck in my "poverty-stricken life."

I called the store, they said they would take him off their list (barely any concern as it was 5pm and busy there).

Then I called corporate Papa John's.

Then I called DoorDash. -good luck getting anywhere there to care. I DID spend a 40 minute phone call making sure that Jason was at least thoroughly investigated. They said he was, but who can really ever know?

Because if he is willing to insult my body and my home for just ordering a pizza, then what else is he telling people while on the clock?

Are you reading this, Jason?

So that was a Friday, and on Wednesday I had not heard anything yet. So I called the store.

They told me they couldn't give me a refund because they didn't do anything wrong and that it was DoorDash's problem/fault. I believe they are responsible because they are the ones hiring DoorDash drivers.

A total failure to accept any accountability. And I think that's the point of using DoorDash.

They did offer to replace my order and I said I would take the deal.

After an hour and a half the pizza had still not arrived, so I called and they said that DoorDash never came to pick it up

So I asked them to make it again and told them I would drive to pick it up. It took 40 minutes for that pizza to be ready.

When they handed it to me there was no breadsticks

Papa John's solution to me being called a "fatty" and poor was to give the "fatty" more pizza.

So I shamefully went into that store feeling like the fattest poorest scum of the universe

And when he handed me the pizza without the breadsticks I wanted so much to say "where are my breadsticks", but that's what they wanted, right? They wanted the "fatty" to ask for more food.

Humiliated and degraded. All I did was order a...

TLDR: The worst service I've seen in a decade, unsanitary conditions and practices, complete chaos, and I never got my pizza (even after it took me 20 minutes to get there and waited 40 minutes in the store).

I came in for a pizza. Waited 10 minutes to be acknowledged (by the manager of another store who was there dropping off boxes) who after a few minutes asked me if I'd been helped. I told her my name, and she informed me my pizza would be done in six minutes. She left.

A few minutes drag on, a random employee walks in and starts trying to work. She had her purse on the whole time and seemed disoriented. She asked me what the name on my order was, and I informed her of my name and that the other store's manager reassured me it would be done in six minutes.

The entire time I was there (about 40 minutes), I didn't see a single pizza leave or one employee wash their hands. I also noticed many heads of long hair with no hats or hair nets. I did, however, see an employee pick a couple of olives off of a pizza with their bare hand and fling them onto the floor (a dirty floor that looked like it hadn't been touched by a mop/degreaser in a week). The same employee was actively eating while handling customer food.

After another 20 minutes, it became apparent that they had lost my order. Not a rideshare or delivery order, but a pickup order that I placed through the website. I heard them calling out every name and order except for mine (all 3 that they managed to talk about in 40 minutes). I got frustrated and left.

When I contacted Papa John's support, they informed me I was to take it up with the store's manager. I would've been happy to do that if there was one on the floor. I overheard the other store's manager asking where the manager on duty was, and the response was "in the walk-in." I never saw them and didn't want to shout into the back of house to ask for a manager because there definitely wasn't anybody within arm's length of a register and I don't work there.

Side note, the employees had no problem cussing loudly in front of customers. Definitely not the worst thing, but it's wildly...

I decided to give the Stadium Drive Papa John’s another shot after avoiding it for a long time due to past customer service issues and inaccurate orders. Spoiler alert: it has not improved.

Ordered one large pizza online. Showed up exactly at the pickup time given. Was greeted with, “Your pizza got burned — we just realized — so we’ll have to remake it.” No phone call, no text, no apology. Just a shrug and a new 20-minute wait.

I politely asked if they could make it right since I’d be waiting much longer than promised. The short gentleman with a ponytail (who claimed to be the manager) said yes. Then, in steps another employee — a heavyset guy with short dreads — who immediately announces, “You’re not getting anything for free.” Not exactly the hospitality you’d expect from a place whose slogan is about being “Better.”

I pointed out that other customers in the store at the same time — who had the exact same problem — were getting their pizzas free. The response? I “wasn’t nice” like they were. Interesting logic, considering one of those “nice” customers had just marched in visibly irritated after her spouse had been given a hard time. She still walked out with a free pizza. I stayed calm the whole time and got… attitude.

At no point did anyone apologize for the inconvenience. No “thanks for understanding,” no “sorry for the wait.” Just a dismissive, almost proud, “you’re not getting anything.” This wasn’t about policy — it was about personality — and that’s a terrible way to run a customer-facing business.

In short: • Selective compensation depending on who they feel like being nice to. • Defensive, dismissive staff who act like they’re doing you a favor for fulfilling your order. • No accountability when mistakes are made.

If this location is understaffed, overworked, or struggling, that’s a management issue — and it’s painfully obvious the leadership here is the root of the problem. Until that changes, “Better Ingredients, Better Pizza” is going to keep being “Worse Service,...