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The Coffee Bean - so SLOOOOOOOOOOWW!!

First, let me say that I absolutely love Chai Teas, and in Manila - there's only one place that I go to for Chai Teas and that is - The Coffee Bean. Why? Well because they use Chai Tea leaves and not those powder mixes.

But one thing that discourages me in going to The Coffee Bean is it's slow, slooooooow service! It takes them forever to make a cup of tea or coffee. I mean comparing them to the other coffee houses - I think they're the slowest! It seems like whenever there's an order - all hell breaks lose! The Baristas are everywhere - sometimes even bumping into one another! I don't understand why they're so unorganized!

Last Saturday night - after watching 'The Invasion' in Eastwood - I was craving for a Chai Latte. Thus - I decided to order one - my Panget who's not a fan of CBTL opted to stay outside - in one of the tables - and wait for me. He said he needed to sit down - because for sure it'll take the baristas longer than usual - to serve me my Chai Tea. And he was right!

You see - when I ordered my Chai Tea - I already saw Terry (the barista) making 4 cups of various hot drinks - after paying - I headed to the 'claim section' and waited for my drink. My Panget on the otherhand - decided to time the service - he started to watch Fergie's MTV on his P990i when he saw me leave the counter. After watching - seeing that I hadn't gone out yet - he watched another one - Sway by the PSD. He assumed that in the middle of the MTV - I'd be coming out and sitting beside him already. It was already finished when he noticed that I haven't gone out yet. He called me to confirm - and as expected - he asked what the hell were they doing? Were they serving me with a 'grand' Chai Tea?

Yes - Imagine the length of the 2 MTV - that's how long it took (and more) for them to serve me with my Chai Tea. In 5 other incidents - this also happend! They took about 10 minutes to serve me my tea - sometimes - even more! And all they could say is that they're short staffed - I don't think so! They staff was there (they're always there!) - they were 5 - one was in the kitchen - just texting - won't that person need to help out his staffmates?

Coffee and Tea (I think) are supposed to be served fast! Especially - a 'to go' order!

This is not the first time this has happened, this has happened to me EVERY TIME I go to The Coffee Bean. I mean - I do love their drinks - but if I need to wait for so long for them to make it and serve it for me... nevermind nalang..

I always point out to my friends - that Starbucks is really efficient with their service - the lines in their cups - serve as measurement already - isn't that so reliable? We over look the green lines on the cups and think that they're just for aesthetics - the real reason is that the lines are used as a measuring thingie - for mixing the drinks! Cool right?!
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Comments

  1. PeevedSeptember 03, 2007 10:41 PM

    Funny, I just noticed the same thing ...CBTL Salcedo is also so slow. I was the only one who was ordering, then I told the barrista that i'll be back for my coffee... restroom lang ako. Pag balik ko from restroom, I still had time to go to my seat and read a few pages of my book before they sent my coffee over. ;)

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousSeptember 04, 2007 3:58 AM

    that's my only rant bout CBTL! you can't rush perfection though and i'd rather waitttt than settle with starbucks' fraps na puro ice (when i don't have a choice though, i just ask them to blend my coffee THRICE). :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. DidiSeptember 04, 2007 9:22 AM

    Hi Charlene! I actually think they get rattled when they have orders! Hihi..

    Hi Phoebe! I agree, you can't rush perfection, but I don't think you should wait that long for a cup of tea or coffee. But in fairness - I like their drinks - they taste better than the competition.. :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Dr.PeppermintSeptember 04, 2007 7:31 PM

    that, and they're kinda 'masungit' too. are they even trained to smile??? there are always a whole bunch of them, crowding around, and sometimes they seem to have no idea what they're doing. are they all trainees?

    i even went to this branch where a barista ARGUED with a customer... and the girl was PISSED.

    i loved their banana caramel and malibu sunrise drinks. sayang they were just seasonal :(

    ReplyDelete
  5. DidiSeptember 05, 2007 4:40 PM

    Hi Pepper! Gosh - I think they're training might be different! Haha.. I so agree on you observation of them crowding around!

    I think that's the trade off - good drink - bad service.. :(

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousSeptember 21, 2007 6:18 PM

    that's weird, i haven't experience any attitude problems from the barista and long waiting time for my drinks usually green tea IB or their tea lattes. i frequent their convergys, greenbelt, trinoma and gateway branch.
    you can always write in their comments/suggestion forms, list down the names of the baristas so the management will know what's is happening in their branches.

    ReplyDelete

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