Warning: Hot Crepe, Cold Crepe

Here's a classic story about how service can vary depending on the situation or your customers:

Last Saturday, I was fortunate enough to be invited to the media launch of the newest branch of Crepes & Cream at The Atrium of SM Megamall. I was excited to attend this event as I love crepes and I used to frequent their Podium branch a couple of years back.

I entered the store and immediately smelled the scent of cooking crepes. The aroma just made my stomach grumble and my mouth to water. Finally, it was my turn to place my order and I got a Kani Mango Crepe (Php. 135) because I found out that they add ebiko in it which is perfect since I'm still on my sushi craving phase.

I watched the girl effortlessly prepared my crepe that it got me wondering if it's really that easy to prepare. Here's what she did:

First, she poured the batter into the hot skillet pan

Next, she spread the batter around and smoothen out the sides

Afterwards, she added the remaining ingredients (Kani sticks, Lettuce, Mangoes, Ebiko and Mayonnaise)
She waited for the crepe to cook for a few more seconds and folded it up into a triangle.

Tadah! My Kani Mango Crepe is ready!
I love my chosen crepe because it reminds me of my favorite California Maki. The sweet mangoes are so refreshing and I enjoyed the tiny Ebiko in every bite!

After finishing our savory crepe, we were told to choose a dessert crepe. Oh, I don't think I can take another bite but I happily obliged.

Choosing the sweet crepes was an easier task as I already know what I'm getting. I love strawberries and now that it's still available in the market, I grab any chance that I could have to order it. I chose the Crazy for Strawberries Crepe (Php. 145). This has a scoop of Strawberry Ice Cream with a generous serving of fresh strawberries and a drizzle of Strawberry syrup. You can say it was definitely Strawberry overdose!

My first Crepes & Cream experience was delightful and I was so happy and excited to bring Paul there soon.

The Next Day

After the event, we were given a gift certificate that we can use on our next visit to the store. Yesterday, I brought this with me because I wanted to bring Paul and let him try the crepes too. We entered the store and the girl who prepared my crepe immediately recognized me. She said hello but it was another server who was assigned to prepare my crepe.

I ordered the Kani Mango Crepe for my sister while Paul just got a Strawberry Ice Cream because we had a very filling lunch. I stood by the counter ready to watch the girl prepare my sister's crepe. The store wasn't that busy but it took the girl more than 5 minutes to get started. I even have to ask her if it would take a long time before my order would be ready.

Finally she began with the preparation, she poured the batter and quickly smoothened it out. She added in the ingredients but failed to add in the ebiko. I asked her how come there's no ebiko and she told me that it's out of stock. When I voiced my disappointment to the supervisor, Crys, the server went to the refrigerator and came back with a small container filled with orange ebikos. Ok, so she even have to lie probably hoping that she can get away with it. I was really getting so disappointment considering that I had a wonderful time just the day before. I couldn't help but ask her how come she told me they ran out of ebikos when they still have it. She didn't answer and just ignored me.

As if this is not bad enough, she handed me the crepe with an irritated look on her face and when I reminded her that I'm getting it as a take out, she pouted even more and roughly grab the take out box from the side counter. If only she would just apologize for the poor service and remedy the situation right away. The supervisor, who has witness the whole thing just stood there and continued chatting with one of the girls.

I'm not really the type who would create a scene over a poor service but rest assured, I will stay as far away from the store from now on. This experience got me thinking which service was real -- was it the one that we, bloggers, had yesterday or the one that I just had this afternoon.