Thai Oishi — Restaurant in Lakeland

I would have given this resturant four stars, but the following happened:

I've been a regular customer at Thai Oishi for about a year now. On average I order $80-$120 a week in take out, and sometimes sit in. They've messed up my order a few times, but I was gracious about it and never gave them a hard time. So last week we ordered a big order again about an hour before closing. They gave us some wrong items again. I called to let them know, and they said they were closing so they couldn't exchange the order, but next time they would give us a free order of what we had asked for. We said thank you and proceeded to eat our dinner. 10 minutes later we get a call back saying that the manager says we have to bring back the food that was wrong if we want the food next time. We said we already started eating because you were closed and this was our only dinner. The man on the phone said ok then don't worry about it.

The next week we go back in and place another take out order for around $130. My girlfriend asks if we can get the free order of Chicken Satay. The guy says he can't do that without the manager. So the manager comes over and says you never brought back the food, and it was your fault the order was wrong because you said chicken satay wrong, im from Thailand so I know the proper way to pronounce it, etc...so I tried to explain to her that

a) You were closed and did not initally tell us we had to bring back the Pad Thai. You called us back after we started eating to tell us we have to exchange the food.

b) It's inconvenient to make a customer not only have to drive back to bring food back on another day, but to have to store that food in his refrigerator until that time.

c) It is rediculous to expect customers not to eat their dinner because you made a mistake, and then nickel and dime them on a $130 order when they are loyal customers who spend a lot of money with you.

d) It is extremely rude to guilt your customers and try to make them feel culturally insensitive for not knowing the exact pronunciation of words on your menu. I had verified my order several times before hanging up. This was a mistake on their end not my pronunciation.

The manager did not care one bit about any of this. At this point for us it was a matter of principle, not about the free order of food. If they are willing to go to these lengths of rudeness and accusations to avoid hooking a loyal customer up with a freebie to make right on a promise that resulted from their own mistake, then I do not wish to be a customer. I love their food, but that kind of treatment is reserved for crackheads and winos looking to scam free food, not weekly customers for almost 52 weeks straight who have been nothing but...

I had been to Thai Oishi a few times before, and we always loved it. A few months ago, I had ordered takeout and went to pick it up at the quoted time. They were busy, and their pick up area was over flowing. The staff was running around like crazy, and I saw my bag in the pickup area with my name on it. A lady walked by and she said "Picking up?" And I said Yes and told her my name. She grabbed my bag and told me to have a great day. I drove the 30 minutes back home and began unpacking my food only to realize I was missing half my order-two sushi rolls to be exact. I called Thai Oishi and the woman that answered the phone was extremely rude. I explained what I was missing and she told me that my order was sitting there waiting for me. I explained my interaction with the server and told her I was under the impression I had all of my order. She asked if I checked the bag there, I told her no, because my order was handed to me and I assumed everything was there. She told me it was my fault and asked if I was coming back for the rest of the food.

I explained it was a 30 minute drive and asked if the food would be made fresh, because it would have been sitting there for an hour at this point. She told me no, they already made it and would not waste more food. I asked for a refund and told her I would not feel comfortable eating food that has been sitting out for an hour, so I would not be driving back. She told me that was my choice and no refund would be offered, because they made the food.

She hung up the phone, and I was obviously very upset. I disputed the charge with my bank because I did not receive the food I had paid for. I did not dine there for months because of this interaction, until yesterday when I decided to get some takeout.

I placed my order online like usual, and as I was walked to pick it up I received a phone call from Thai Oishi. The woman on the phone told me that I was banned from ever ordering from Thai Oishi again because of the chargeback, and my order was refunded. I am honestly in shock. In my opinion, the restaurant didn't do the right thing with the original issue. I'm not paying for something I didn't receive but you refused to refund me. I did what was necessary to remedy the situation-an opportunity I gave to you initially. Now to be banned from ever ordering/dining again?

I cannot, in good faith ever recommend this establishment to anyone, ever again. I hope no one else has to go through what I did, and I hope Thai Oishi takes some time to reflect on this and re-evaluate their reaction to...

So I’m giving this place 1 star for customer service not food. I have been a loyal customer of this restaurant for over a year now- sometimes ordering 2 or more times in a week. Over the last several months service has gone down and quality a bit too. There have been increasingly longer wait times for to-go orders with many taking 40+ minutes even for cold items and non- sushi items. However, I have been operating with grace , patience and understanding because folks are having a hard time restaffing as everything has opened back up. I also think we are all struggling with the effects of COVID. But grace can’t be one way and customer service should still be important. I ordered online a Kasio salad (which I order every single time because it is one of my favorite items on the menu) along with the tuna tower and an eel roll. I waited 40 minutes for these three items since the sushi chef had a lot of tickets apparently. Not a problem, except I finally get home and open up my order to see the Kasio salad made incorrectly and the taste left much to be desired. It was missing cucumber and lemons, it had some type of noodle in it and I could tell there was a lot more seaweed as a filler rather than the portioned amounts of crabs and seaweed I normally get (and had gotten just yesterday when I ordered the same things!) So I called this restaurant to give them a chance to make it right. I was told in no uncertain terms that they wouldnt refund me unless I drove all the way back to the store. I said that didn’t make sense for me at this point but was happy to send them a picture of this item to show it was a hot mess and that I hadn’t eaten it. I would have been happy with a credit but was told I had to bring it all the way back because that was there policy and there was nothing else they could do for me. I am incredibly disappointed and don’t believe I will be returning there. You would think during these times that this restaurant would be trying to retain customers not lose them. A little bit of creative problem solving and customer service, especially when you are in the wrong,...