Happy + Hale — Restaurant in Raleigh

The food here is always on point and HH has always been one of my favorite places to eat. That said, there are a couple things I think would DRAMATICALLY improve the level of customer service I’ve been experiencing lately …

HH closes at 8PM. Not ideal for such a busy area. That said, I say, “fine, I’ll work with it. No big deal I can’t go after my shift or after my workout.”

But, a word of advice - don’t go in between the hours of 7PM and 8PM. You’ll feel incredibly rushed (and I always get to-go.)

I’m not sure if he’s the manager, but he definitely gives off that “vibe.” This particular employee rushes back and forth between orders, clearly trying to get them done as fast as he can, making sure everyone is aware “we close in 20 minutes.” Customers are tripping over each other, going back and forth with him, trying to get out what they want with their meal. There’s no thinking about it or asking any questions. You better know what you want the minute you get in line, or it’s made clear that you’re holding up the staff from clocking out and going home.

Let me clarify that I wouldn’t make any fuss of this if I had only seen it once or twice. However it seems to be nearly every time I visit as of late, which is at least once a week.

I’ll continue to visit this location because it’s convenient and the food is healthy and delicious. But I think the customer service is subpar, and in the restaurant industry, many customers will use that as a reason to not spend their money at HH.

Cheers to continued coaching and development of management to make their customers feel welcome, rather than rushed...

I wanted to bring to your attention an issue I observed at your establishment this evening. At approximately 7:55 PM, I witnessed a young female employee behind the counter turn away three customers who had arrived before the posted closing time of 8:00 PM. Rather than allowing them to place a to-go order, she informed them that the store was closed, despite the fact that there was still time to serve them. Meanwhile, other customers who had arrived at the same time were still able to receive their food.

This situation seemed not only unfair but also unprofessional. If the store advertises an 8:00 PM closing time, customers who arrive before then should be served accordingly. Otherwise, the posted hours should be adjusted to reflect an earlier closing. I believe a review of security footage would confirm that multiple customers were turned away unnecessarily.

Additionally, I noticed that the same employee was eating her own meal behind the counter while working. While I understand the need for staff to take breaks, it may be worth reviewing appropriate times and locations for employee meals to maintain a professional atmosphere for customers.

The customers who were turned away expressed their frustration to me outside, noting that the experience felt unprofessional. I wanted to share this feedback in the hopes that it can be addressed to ensure a better experience for future patrons.

Thank you for your time and...

Overall they're pretty good. Good ingredients, good flavor, and good recipes. Bowl preparation highly inconsistent.

There is a consistency issue and its been quite persistent for a while now. I go here often and have come to learn a bit about how the staff prepare the bowls. You can tell right away by whose making the bowl just how high quality of a bowl you're going to get.

It really puts a damper on the experience because the variation is quite large. Sometimes the bowls are half full, other times they're just right. Sometimes you get real parmesan instead of the vegan kind (which isn't a large issue but I've seen it consistently done). Paying full price for half a bowl is disheartening.

If you guys can hammer down the consistency so I don't have to play Russian roulette with my debit card, then I'd be happy to bump this...