Loose Brick Coffee Co. — Restaurant in Ozark

As NY foodie I was super excited to see the sign on the Hwy with a NY looking bagel, thick with fresh looking ingredients, wrapped in deli paper and sliced down the middle for ease of eating. My daughter and I immediately went in search of this business. I was excited to see signs inside stating they were in fact NY style bagels, they had Boars Head deli meat (there is no other domestic meat for a New Yorker) and they had the Chai tea that I had been craving. I was contemplating asking for the breakfast egg Sandwhich I saw in the photo, despite it being afternoon, but I caught a glimpse of pre-made cold eggs in their fridge. No one wants reheated eggs. My daughter and I both settled for BLT bagels with mayo. What we got was a tiny, messy salad on bagels. Hers came with mayo, mine was forgotten. Each bagel had the very thin end of a Roma tomato. The tomato did look fresh but there was little of it. Each bagel had two crisp pieces of bacon criss crossed and messy tiny pieces of lettuce. Neither was wrapped in deli paper, nor sliced in half for easy eating. My daughter enjoyed her bagel but instantly seriously dissapointed, I decided to wait until I get home where I will add mayo, more tomato, more bacon and possibly, since why not?, an egg and avocado. My Chai tea was ok but quite spicy and nothing like the tea I had in Kenya or at any Indian restaurant. All in all after tip, my bill was over $16 for two bagels with messy salad on them and an ok small cup of tea. In NY a bagel is less than $2 alone so I assume I paid big bucks for the 4 pieces of bacon, two tiny slices of tomato, messy lettuce and one slather of mayo. The server was nice and looked eager to do a good job but clearly needed more training as he was unsure as to where certain items were and didn't put together a quality item. Sadly, I don't think we will be going back. Maybe if we are dying for just a bagel with nothing in it. The atmosphere was OK but cuter on the outside than inside. They did have a dog bowl outside for water for your dog which I...

I would love to speak to whomever is the owner of this new establishment to inform them of an incident I witnessed in their business regarding the way the staff poorly handled a situation involving a potentially homeless man.

Coffee taste great though.

In response to your reply:

Firstly, I'm truly sorry about what happened to your wife. I do hope she is doing ok from the interaction with the man.

And I am sorry to put it so plainly, and I don't mean to be unkind, but how are you even sure that you know who I am and what exactly is the issue I needed to address?

How are you sure that you were in the building at the same time I was - because a man who comes in 2 or 3 times a day happen to be there?

I don't believe our interactions are the same because you just informed me you wouldn't give him any coffee, but when I walked in he did have coffee, which led to the series of events that brought me here.

However, if you were there at the same time I was, as you assume, then you already know my complaint because you witnessed it happen, and perhaps do not believe it is warranted, and that really is all I need to know.

(When responding to the next Guest's concerns, please let them tell you what it is before assuming you know what the problem may be and volunteering a response -- once again, I truly am not trying to be rude - which is what delayed this response to find the kindest way to put it, because I have no desire in arguing with someone over the internet. I only reached out this way because it seemed the most professional and I work in the same industry and thought you as a owner of a new business would want to know. Just a kind suggest from someone who was very excited to have a local coffee shop, only to be let down on...

I'm going to start with the great and good stuff. Really enjoy the location, the large windows, the social atmosphere. The chai is spicy, the unsweet tea is delicious, and there is a wide variety of alternative milks. Also I really like supporting a locally owned business.

The pastries are dry but not terrible.

However, the service is not fantastic. Everyone is very friendly but apparently no one knows how to use the register. I have visited more than 30 times and every transaction involves scrolling through multiple options on the register and asking for help. In case you're wondering if I'm ordering complicated things, almost every time I order ice tea.

However, what I find most egregious is the incessant up charging. If you want a straw with your drink, it's a charge. If you want light ice, it's a charge. I ordered a large iced tea and it was packed to the brim with granulated ice resulting in about 2 oz of tea. I asked for half ice and I was charged 80 cents. This is 1/3 the cost of the iced tea. I asked for a straw and was charged another 20 cents. If this was for environmental reasons, I might get it except that there's no evidence elsewhere that they are trying to reduce packaging or change consumer behavior.

I visit the area 5 or 6 times a year and go to Loose Brick 5 or 6 times each time I visit. This trip alone, my total purchases were more than $50. This visit today was probably my last visit. The nickel and diming is ridiculous. The business should either increase its prices to handle basic expenses or it should change their behaviors. Under either circumstance, training of the staff...