Istanbul Bay — Restaurant in New York

REVIEW'S TITLE: FRONT-OF-HOUSE SERVICE MUST EXUDE WARMTH AND RESPECT

Having been a loyal patron of this establishment for over a year, I have come to enjoy their fare and often choose to share the experience with my guests. I appreciate the congenial service provided by the waitstaff and delivery personnel and reciprocate this with generous tips. However, my most recent encounter left a rather bitter taste in my mouth.

My encounter began routinely enough, I called in an order for pick up, and was promptly informed that it would soon be ready. After taking a short drive around to ensure my order was ready for collection, I arrived at the restaurant only to be met with a jarring reception.

Spotting what seemed to be my order on the counter, I made the assumptive comment, "I guess this is my order…" but was abruptly cut off mid-sentence. The woman counterchecked whether I had placed an order, to which I confirmed, adding that it was a phone order. However, her response was less than pleasant, making me feel as though I was communicating in an alien language. When asked if I had made the payment, I politely responded that I was about to do so. Her curt manner was in sharp contrast to the warm hospitality I had come to associate with this establishment.

In the interest of constructive feedback, I gently reminded her of the importance of her role as the face of the business. I understand that everyone has off days, but it is imperative that personal issues do not bleed into professional conduct. Professionalism isn't only about hard work, it's about maintaining a positive demeanor, especially in a customer-facing role.

In the service industry, a smile goes a long way in creating a welcoming ambiance. And it's important to remember, patrons are not merely picking your products, they're investing their hard-earned money in an overall dining experience.

To the business owner: It might be worth reevaluating the priorities when assigning front-of-house roles. It's not just about efficiently taking orders, but also about greeting customers with the respect and warmth...

Have been ordering takeout for almost two years. Today was nothing like I’ve been through so far. Everything started when the lady on the phone put a wrong address on our order and obviously we didn’t get the order. Have been calling them for 3 hours and every time the lady on the phone said she is waiting for the delivery guy, she needs to talk to the manager. Come on, it was only a $15 order, it’s not like a $50-100 order! Send it with the other delivery guy! Make life of you customers easy! I’ve read some reviews on takeout, they mostly say they received their order after 3 hours and from our experience it left much to be desired, so I guess it is the restaurant’s everyday practice. So after 3 hours after a long conversation they said come and pick up your order. When I came they tried to shift the blame on us, busy hours, etc. Eventually they apologized, gave my order and added a box of baklava as I was leaving the place. Unfortunately that was not the end of this horrible experience. Much to my disappointment, like it was not enough wasting my time and energy, they put lamb gyro instead of lamb Adana (even though they had lamb Adana as the lady was showing them to me) in a pita bread. Way to go, so much for all your apologies! Wouldn’t have written this review but after seeing the gyro, not lamb Adana it was just beyond any reason! Uploading the photo of the gyro so that they don’t start accusing us and blaming for all that happened today!

A word of advice, you put too much of onion and lettuce! Are you trying to compensate for something else? If I wanted to order a salad, even though lettuce and onion is hardly a salad, I would...

The service today (7/28/21 3-4 pm) was horrible! We used to go there twice a week for about an year until we switched to a closer Turkish place next to our home. Today we decided to go back since we only had the best memories from this restaurant. Unfortunately, we got so disappointed. The wait staff did not check on what we need besides taking an order and brining the plates. I had to go ask for extra napkins, and order the drinks. I went to the cashier to look for the waiter. At the end, we'd been waiting for a while for the staff to come so we can get the check. Again, I had to go and ask to pay at the cashier. Zero checking in! The best part of the story is getting a bill with 20% tip added as 'service fee' as if they did deliver ANY service at all, forget about it being worth 20%!!! I was super annoying and explain to the cashier how ridiculous they are but she just mumbled how she is sorry without offering to drop the tip they simply assumed they deserve. We did not want to leave any such tip! ZERO, indeed! No idea what happened with the Management of this place, they used to be TOP! We are never coming back, and I'd go ever further to say that this place is all but Turkish, since Turkish people are famous for their hospitality and glorious service both in Turkey and around the world, so wonder who bough this place and is running it now but definitely is not having a true Turkish...