Clark Street Diner — Restaurant in Los Angeles

The way the manager named Arda treats his employees is appalling. He has created a space for his employees to be afraid of him and he is unkind to customers needs. Part of this problem is the strict 3pm rule that the menu changes. Which gives no leniency if the order was already taken, but the server is still putting it in the computer at 3pm. As our server walked away from taking our order, he came up to us and told us we could not have that order because the menu was changing immediately. I looked at my phone and it was exactly 3 PM. I told him we had been there since 2:45pm and the only reason I came was to get the huevos rancheros’s, which is only on the breakfast menu. He said that is too bad. Even though it was only 3:01pm at this point. I’ve noticed before that the servers are afraid of him and he creates a hostile work environment, but now I was actually seeing it in action. There are usually only two servers for the whole restaurant (usually both kind females) and you can tell they are unhappy and stressed out working underneath him. I asked to speak to Arda and after 10 minutes of waiting I finally went up to talk to him and he told me he was “too busy working” and couldn’t have this conversation. I quickly explained the situation and if there was nothing he could do could he please at least comp our drinks since food was unavailable and we only came for the food. He did comp our $30 worth of drinks, so that was nice. I don’t think he realized the comp would be that much. But either way it seems like a bad business model to give away $30 worth of items when you could have made $100+ in profits. I have worked the line in kitchens for many years and when a menu shift happens it’s not a snap of the fingers and it’s done. If someone can put in an order at 2:59, the kitchen will still be set up for them to do the same order at 3:01. That’s facts. Perhaps the customers should be made aware the menu change is at 2:45pm, but the kitchen actually switches at 3pm. This leaves room for any stragglers and gives the servers time to put in their final orders. A hard 3 PM menu stop on the weekends is just unfeasible at a restaurant this busy. It is obvious this tactic is used to punish/scare servers. Which is completely unnecessary and inappropriate. I will be calling to speak to a higher up manager (whoever Arda’s manager is) about this tactic because it is very barbaric. The phones aren’t being answered today, (which makes sense, it’s a Sunday at a breakfast place, understandable) so I’ll come in sometime during the week to address this in person or via phone call. Last note for Arda– just because you are a hard worker does not make you a good business manager. You need to take time and care about your employees and their happiness. Otherwise it makes the experience awful for everyone involved, including the customer. Arda, they are scared of you and they hate you. That is not the way to manage someone. We are not boomers and is not the 1960’s. I can tell you are dedicated to your hardworking ethics, but I don’t think you should be working in a place that...

Response received from, presumably, Zack Hall, the owner; and I am very grateful to receive a response, the kitchen appreciation fee is simply another tax on the check and while the owner may see it as a good idea, if a couple of people are turned off by it, you lose customers. I find it a non-starter and will not return to any restaurant with mandatory tips for staff for small groups, we tip what we want. The workers' pay is the duty of the owner, if the severs do not share tips with the kitchen, then pay them more. Without getting into math, it does not take very many lost customers to realize the juice isn't worth the squeeze on these added fees. As for the food quality the food is okay. Not great and there is room for improvement. Perhaps take this as a opportunity to evaluate. Charging extra for jam or butter on a ala carte biscuit is not a good business decision. It is not about the $1.50 it is the idea that is not so good. The biscuits are fine but there are no layers, they are not buttery or flaky and just seem like flour, water, fat and baking soda, perhaps look at working out some layers to make the biscuit more amazing. Just an idea! $5 total for a biscuit and jam, I would want something better. As for the hollandaise, I celebrate you make it in-house but that is even more concerning. It isn't great either. Just my opinion. The eggs were poached perfectly. And I really enjoyed the service. *

The hostess was perky and friendly as was the server.

The hollandaise on the eggs benedict tasted and looked like it came from a jar ($20 purchase).

The hash browns tasted like they started from a freezer bag and were not tasty, just mushy. I recommend shredding your own considering how much you charge for the food. Hold them in water to prevent browning (chef here).

The beer was tasty ($5) and served from a can and I liked it very much.

The biscuit was horrible ($3.50) and you have to pay $1.50 for jam (total $5 purchase).

Next comes the 9.5% sales tax the government gets so this is why it is hard to comprehend why any restaurant is asking for a 4% mandatory "kitchen appreciation" tip on top of their 25% default recommended tip.

In LA, minimum wage is now $21.01 for hotel workers (this is a hotel restaurant) so all this seems a bit pushy to me. Breakfast for two, one beverage each, was $69.39 with tax and kitchen tip before tipping the server.

No offense intended to the server, but with all this padding, I only tipped 15% and moving forward and the 4% kitchen tip is going to keep me from returning. The food is very, very average. Service is...

We loved the 101 Coffee Shop and were so excited that the diner would re-open even if under new ownership. Have been to the Clark Street Diner 4x. The 1st time we arrived at 2pm on a Tuesday and was greeted by a snarky server who said they closed at 3pm and we couldn’t sit down, so we left. The 2nd and 3rd times were great experiences with awesome food, the eggs are seriously the best we’ve ever had. Today was our 4th and maybe last visit. We had to wait for a table which we didn’t mind but once seated, it took nearly 20 minutes to order. When the server finally arrived with two glasses of water both glasses had lipstick on them. She took my glass and our orders but never brought a new glass of water. I had to ask several times for the tea I ordered. Then our food came, it was great but the server never stopped back to refill my tea, my daughter’s water or ask if the food was okay. She brought the check after we waited another 15 minutes after finishing our food and the table was bussed only to be given a check for $97 plus and additional percentage added to the check for the kitchen (pay your kitchen staff a livable wage without adding to the check!) We ordered a veggie omelet, Reuben sandwich and iced tea so the check was obviously wrong. It took her 10 minutes to bring a new check and she never came back to take our money. We finally went up to the counter to be told by a very rude guy that the server would take care of it at the table. By this time we had already been there two hours and were running late for an appointment. It took him another 10 minutes to figure out the check and make simple change. Needless to say, if you like good food don’t dine in. Just order take-out. The check was $56 for lunch with the added percentage for the kitchen. The service was the worst I’ve experienced, not to mention we were seated toward the back where a cleaning lady was waving around a filthy broom while using the handle to get dirty rags cleaned up off the floor. But, the restrooms were clean, so that’s a plus. They also have a jukebox with super loud music so everyone around us was basically yelling in order to have a conversation. The guys sitting next to us were trying to have a business lunch and ended up scooting as close as they could so they could hear what the others were saying. Glad the restaurant is open and serving great food but they seriously need to retrain their staff, pay their kitchen staff better and turn down the music. Wish I could have given the service 0 stars but you’re required to give...