I revisted Max Brenner's Chocolate Bar (8 Raffles Avenue, #01-06/08 Esplanade Mall, Singapore) with my family this afternoon. And what a disappointment it was this time!
First, the menu is badly presented. Some of the menus had prices missing! And beware, not everything on the menu is available! We were told one of the items we ordered is available only for breakfast even though it was not stated anywhere in the menu that it was so. The souffle we wanted is also not available.
Second, the staff is unprofessional. We were told that the souffle was unavailable because it had to be imported. Imported souffle?!?! Give me a break! Do they even know what a souffle is? How can a souffle be imported? It is supposed to be prepared fresh! Or are they referring to the ingredients? Which of the ingredients need to be imported? The eggs? The chicken laying the eggs? Ridiculous!
Service is also inattentive. They actually missed preparing one of our items and had to be reminded when they send us the bill. Even topping up our drinking water requires reminder.
It is no wonder that the place is rather quiet nowadays. If the management doesn't do some serious improvements, it will be in trouble.
I would put this place in the "give it a miss" category.
The review for my earlier visit can be found here.
Postscript: Nadia has ran a blog on what she thinks are the worst restaurants in Singapore in terms of food and/or service. Do check out her site.
Posted by ymchee at June 20, 2004 03:51 PM | TrackBackThe Garlic Restaurant at the Esplanade. The service is very bad, when i asked for pepper, the grinder came empty! so the staff said that they will fill it up, but nonetheless it came back empty again!! My soup was getting cold and before i could finish my soup the main course came up, aren't they know that the main course is supposed to be served after the customers have finished their soup? We also need to remind the staff to clear the table! We will never go there anymore.
Posted by: SS on June 25, 2004 06:50 PMHi, as a chocolate lover, I couldn't give Max Brenner's a miss after much recommendation from my colleagues. Similar to your case, I went back to the restaurant from cravings for the souffle after my first try. The staff actually told me that the souffle ran out because it had to be imported from Israel. Of course I was blowing my top (it was my 2nd miss at the dessert). Although the staff recommended me to the other cakes, I was so angry that I had only the suckao. I had thought that souffle is made in house too. But after searching through the web I realized that the staff were to lying to me or covering their asses up with such a lousy lie. I went on a weekend night (which was a bad choice). The restaurant was almost packed and its clearly seen that the staff were very busy and trying to serve their best. Being in F&B industry, I could totally understand how busy the staff could be.
Maybe Mr Chee would like to spare a thought for the staff and do some research on your part before assuming that everything can be made in-house.
I totally agree that the service at Max Brenner was non-existent except when the bill was asked for. I had a bad experience there as well. The staff were haughty and oblivious to the needs of the customer(s). I was there on a weekend but it was not crowded at the time I was there. Even thought the food was wonderful but I would rather satisfy my chocolate cravings with a Van Houten chocolate bar than to go into Max Brenner's
Posted by: ruffie on August 30, 2004 05:53 PMI live in Sydney, Australia. A friend (in Singapore) is visiting us soon. And, upon suggestion that I "must take him to Max Brenner" when he visits, he directed me to your site. I've never been to the outlet in Singapore, but all FOUR outlets in Sydney (as well as the one in Melbourne) have fantastic service. The food is also fabulous. Maybe when you next visit Sydney - try it here. I've never been told I cannot get the FABULOUS souffle before!! =)
Hi there
I just went to Max Brenner's yesterday, and the service was horrible. Also, the quality of their food is shocking - I ordered a chicken sandwich which had more chutney than chicken pieces... and my friend's crepe was rubbery. So yes, Max Brenner's is definitely a no no in Singapore.
I am setting up a blacklist blog soon for restaurants with horrible service. If you're interested in joining, please feel free to email me.
Cheers
Nadia