Highly Likely — Restaurant in Los Angeles

Ok, so I've been going here on and off for a year, and I feel like I finally have enough info to review.

Why is this place so hit or miss?

One day the food is good, and the next day the same item is bland. There doesn't seem to be any standard of execution.

PHONES. Why are phones allowed on the floor? On top of it being rude for someone at the register to finish their text while standing in line, it's also very unsanitary. Today I spent 2.5 hours there (my veggie burger was burnt, so reordered a falafel plate), and I watched the barista make a drink, pull out phone, make a drink, pull out phone over and over, and I never once saw her wash her hands. This same gal was usually always at the register the other times Ive been there, on her phone in between every order. The guy working coffee before her at least washed his hands whenever he went off station and returned. The manager could see all of today's Instagramming, but never once told anyone to stow their phone, not even during the lunch rush; dirty tables multiplying as pre-rush left and lunch diners are lining up, but phones are more important I guess.

The place could use a polishing. They've recently redone the exterior, which looks great, but WHY do so many places with expensive food and drink allow the interior to look worse and worse as time goes on? Tables and chairs with dirty legs, scuffs everywhere, cabinets delaminating and with failing hardware, boxes of product [always] stacked in bathroom hallway, dogs allowed in even though they have a big, brand new sign about no pets except service animals...oh, and that barista gal rolling clean silverware in between checking her phone, not once washing her hands. Gross.

We can talk s about employees all day, but anyone who knows anything about restaurants knows that the blame goes UP. Management is ultimately to blame for poor behavior, hit-or-miss food/drink, and cleanliness, organization, or maintenance issues.

I watched today's manager spill orange juice on herself while making a mimosa. She stopped to clean herself off, clothes then a boot, then the floor, and went back to making the drink and opening a new bottle of champagne without ever washing her hands. At least she didn't take the cap from the floor and put it back on the jug, but maybe cover it with something before you put it back into the fridge?

It's like a script: a new, hip spot opens, clean and bright, looks/tastes great. Then the owners start making big bucks, and everything goes to shit because they lose sight of how they were making it in the first place: the employees (and a clean and maintained restaurant). If management doesn't properly train and hold standards, you end up with yet another high-priced but shitty-looking place to eat with hit or miss food and drink, where 98% of the employees are either so exasperated from not being heard by mgmt or completely lost because they have no idea what to do between customers besides look at their phone because they weren't properly trained.

Also: how are tips split up? I'll happily tip an employee who gives a shit, but if it's divvied up between everyone, then it kind of sucks that the person who cares has to split it with others who may not.

There was an employee who was kicking butt, though- they had dirty blonde/shaggy bleached hair with a few tats (took my order kindly and professionally, no phone in sight). They were jumping from station to station, filling in and getting things done, washing their hands in between duties and staying off of their phone. That's how it's done.

Oh, and the music is always good (but sometimes a bit loud, even for a music freak like me).

Look: there are cool people who work here, no doubt! I like being in a place where you can tell the employees like each other. But a cool person doesn't always equate to being a good manager or employee. That is taught and learned... and then you have a cool employee who is fun to work with and gets things done (with clean hands).

All said with love. But management better...

There were a few waitstaff who appeared to take issue with me being there (unsure if this was due to length of time spent, the table I chose to sit at, or a combination of both) but nothing was ever said to me directly. Instead I was met with passive aggressive looks and actions, such as one of the waitstaff semi-slamming a to-go bag in front of me when giving it to someone at the same table. Instead of apologizing because it was enough to startle me, she (or they) just thanked that customer and walked off. I was also told the cafe decided to remove their outlets to avoid people "posting up for 8+ hours," which surprised me because I've never known any other cafes to oppose this (until people on social media began making running jokes about it -- crazy what we choose to internalize and act on accordingly). As a graduate student and creative who does a lot of work/hobbies from home (w/ no functioning A.C. unit), I don't deserve to be shamed for wanting to switch up my environment every once in a while. I understand the cafe has little to no management of rush/crowd control, but being made to feel unwelcome in an establishment I spent a fair amount of money in is always a slap in the face, particularly when it’s coming from other women/femme presenting people who probably claim to “dismantle the patriarchy” in their everyday lives (don’t talk about it – be about it). It would be one thing if I had spent an extended amount of time there without buying much or anything at all, but this wasn’t the case (upon arrival I ordered a salad and a hibiscus iced tea and later ordered the chilaquiles and a glass of the house red --- left 20% tips both times, now regretfully.) I made sure there was more than enough space at the table for others to sit there if they wished to as well. I’m almost positive I would not have received the same unwelcome attention if I didn’t present the way I do, as several other customers had also been working on their laptops at the cafe for hours. If any of the waitstaff took issue with me sitting at a larger table as a party of 1, they had plenty of time to relay this or could have easily posted a sign specifying it's designated for larger parties. Cafe baristas/waitstaff reinventing work-shaming through judging and expressing dissatisfaction with those who enjoy working at cafes will always be hilariously ironic to me — how else would you guys make your tips? Genuinely curious.

BIG shoutout to the kitchen staff who are probably more than often overlooked — the food is always excellent and I deeply appreciate their attention to presentation detail (the chilaquiles and the breakfast sando are amazing --- my favorites). Nonetheless, my money spends the same as everyone else and it'd be nice to be treated/regarded as such next time (whenever that is, I’ll give it a few months again — maybe some new staff will be hired, seems to be a revolving door on that? didn't recognize any of the staff I've seen working there throughout this year). The kitchen staff keeps the wheels turning and I hope everyone knows it, so thank you to them! I loved my food, as always, and got plenty done despite the...

I wish I could be writing a better review but I have to post something that was a bit odd today. This place is down the street where I work and I wanted to give it a try. I order the Highly Burger with an Horchata Iced coffee and the food was GREAT. The customer service on the hand was awful. The parking to pick up is really bad I had to park on a side street. There was one guy working at the counter making the coffee and I told him I"m here to pick up my order and he said I'll be right with you. Again, it's my first time here and I don't know the procedures for Covid-19 since nobody was really directing traffic. Another employee came out we will just call her (Green Eyes). I notice there were bags of food on the left side of the café I wasn't sure if they were like Panera and just pick it up. I told Green eyes if I could just pick it up and she said wait i'll help you right now. I asked her do I need to wait outside. Green eyes didn't say anything so I assume I'll just wait right were I was at. She asked for my order number and I gave it to her and she picks up the bag and iced coffee walk passed me and sit it on the table outside. She told me because of Covid-19 we ask customer to stay outside. Again, this is my first time here and nobody at the door to direct traffic anyways. I wasn't sure if the order was mine or the 2 ladies waiting outside already ? ? I told her it was kind of stupid to just walk past me and not give me the order ? She just ignore me and the 2 ladies were asking her questions. The Food is a 5 STAR but the customer service was 2-3 at best. I'll be coming back but hopefully Green Eyes isn't the...