This used to be my go-to place for beef suya in Baltimore. I'd come in 4-5 times a week, usually spending between $50-$90 each visit. Sometimes more. Even when the Towson location didn't have what I wanted, I'd drive 35 minutes to their Owings Mills branch. That's how much I liked their suya. Convenience played a role too, even though the quality of service always depended on which staff member happened to be working that day.
My most recent visit a few days ago, however, went far beyond a bad attitude. I came in for beef suya and fish rolls. While one female staff member was prepping the suya, a new male staff member handled the fish rolls. He put on gloves, then used those same gloves on different surfaces before handling the fish rolls directly, which is not sanitary but I initially let that go. When the fish rolls were done, he again tried to pack them using the same now-dirty gloves, so I asked him not to do that and requested tongs instead. I called the attention of the more experienced female staff member who immediately went to get tongs. While she was in the back, the male staff member hissed at me and continued packing the fish rolls with his dirty gloves. When she returned, I told her I could not accept the unsanitary food and asked for a fresh batch.
That was when everything escalated. The male staff member became verbally aggressive, gave me the middle finger multiple times, called me a “loser,” said he would “find out who I am,” and made an unfinished comment about “the next time I come in,” which came across as a threat. As a woman being spoken to this way by a male employee, it was frightening. I left the restaurant feeling unsettled. I do want to acknowledge that the female staff member was kind throughout and tried to de-escalate the situation. She is such a sweet lady.
This was not the first time I've experienced hostility here. A few months ago, a different male employee loudly berated me for several minutes when I asked a simple question about substituting an item. A second experience like this, even with a different employee, is troubling.
I spoke with the manager that same evening, and they told me they would review the security cameras and address it. I also followed up in writing. As of today, I haven't seen any indication that the issue was actually addressed. I had hoped this would be handled privately but the lack of follow-up suggests the business sees nothing wrong with this conduct.
I supported this business for a long time but I cannot continue patronizing a place where behavior like this is tolerated. I will take my business where food safety is taken seriously and reasonable customer requests do not result in threats.
The other negative reviews are on brand for the place by the way. Food is still overpriced given the portion sizes, and it's not even the tastiest compared to similar spots. I guess they have realized they can only hike prices so much before people stop coming in, so they've leaned even more into shrinking the portions. Desserts used to be bigger with more filling, and the suya portion used to be noticeably larger.
Keep heading in this direction and you won't retain customers. There are more competitors opening up ever other day and people have options.