Flanders Bagels — Restaurant in Mount Olive

Too many disconnects in service to make this establishment worthy. When you have your mind set on what you would like to consume, and something else is presented, that is a problem. For example - I simply asked for a breaded chicken sandwich on whole wheat bread with lettuce, tomato, American cheese, and mayo. A no brainer. The one woman walks around from behind the counter and looks at the specials menu, and then says, “so you want the special”. No.

The special was on grilled ciabatta bread with bacon, cheddar, lettuce, tomato, and chipotle mayo. Either way, why question my order in that fashion. This is a deli, and you should simply accommodate the basic request. Nothing is written in stone, and I did not deviate far off the tracks by requesting something really challenging, like smoked Gouda and avocado in a wrap with bourbon glazed chicken and ranch dressing.

I immediately knew there would be an issue when I brought the take out sandwich home. So, they grilled the whole wheat bread, didn’t put mayo on the sandwich, included bacon, perhaps one slice of cheddar, and to top it all off, the chicken itself was chewy, stringy, and unremarkable at best. So, undercooked chicken, and a very poor portion size of chicken at that, for $13.

The additional disconnect occurs back in that kitchen, whereas a staff of young kids don’t know what they are doing. Even the French fries which came with the sandwich were NOT seasoned at all. There is a reason our world as spices, so, perhaps use them? I know you love your finger tattoos there Mr. Grill dude, however this isn’t “Daniel” in NYC. Learn to cook or simply care a bit more about the food you are serving. Or, get out of the business.

I will give credit on their tuna salad. That is pretty decent, yet almost impossible to mess up. I think the safe bet is to simply know exactly what type of sandwich you want, make sure they understand what you want, and stick to something prepared in the front. And, hope for the best. Anything from the grill, or something being prepared in the back kitchen will most likely be a train wreck.

Not a...

I’ve been coming to this bagel shop often and for quite a long time, because the food is always fresh, delicious, and consistent. The staff members are friendly and hardworking, and I’ve never had an issue with either the service or the quality of what I order.

That being said, I feel it’s important to share a concern. On several occasions, I’ve witnessed the manager, Lulu, speaking very harshly and disrespectfully to employees in front of Us customers and I've also witnessed the same lady speaking very Rude to many Costumers. It’s Very uncomfortable to watch and creates a Very negative atmosphere that takes away from the otherwise great experience. As a customer, I don’t appreciate seeing Staff and Costumers treated poorly, and it honestly makes me hesitant to return—even though I love the food.

I truly hope the owner (I believe his name is **HENRY) is made aware of this situation, because this shop has so much potential and an incredible staff that deserves to be supported and respected. With such great food and service, it would be a shame for customers to stop coming because of management...

Used to be great, now the Spanish workers there don’t understand what you’re saying when you’re wearing the mask. I lowered my mask so they can understand what I was saying since I had to repeat myself 3 times with it on, and the lady with the glasses at the register yells at me to pull up my mask. Seems like nobody cares about customer service there anymore as the bagels are smaller and more stale than what they used to be and are more concerned about policing mask habits. Been coming here on a weekly basis for years now which makes it very sad, I’ll be looking for a new bagel shop now. The attitude that the cashier with the glasses has is terrible. There needs to be a...