I booked myself tingkat lunch from Empire Catering.
Fortunately, I did. My 2nd born is a little more difficult to look after as he has very bad reflux. Every feed is a nightmare. Every feed I kill a lot of trees because of the tissues used to clean up his vomit. The endless washing of his and my clothings. Because he regurgitates his milk so much, I had to give him milk in smaller amount and every 2 hourly. But he is a growing baby so smaller and 2 hourly feeds may not be sufficient for him. Plus he regurgitates so much, being on breast milk, makes him hungrier (and angrier) easily. I hardly have downtime. Even having lunch, I have to gobble my food (3 dishes and 1 soup) in under 5 mins. I swear I have never eaten so fast in my life!
Basically, there is no time to cook. Even expressing milk is a challenge at times and I cannot express in peace. Most times after feeding, cleaning him, putting him for his nap, washing his clothes, washing and sterilizing his bottles, its time to get ready and warm up his milk for the next feed. The entire cycle continues the entire day. On bad days, he poos after his feed so there is additional diapering duties and if he decides to go on a mega poo, there will be additional clothings to change.
I am not lamenting on my responsibilities as a mum. I'm saying all these because unfortunately, I have much to complain about the caterer and the sales person - Catherine!
I am busy and super lack of sleep but I just had to blog about this while expressing milk!
As I am breastfeeding, I have requested for some food items such as cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower & etc to be omitted from my order since these food can cause either wind in baby or reduce breast milk supply. On the web order form, I remembered I specifically ticked on the box not to have prawns. Before my confinement lady left, she has reminded me not to take seafood for the time being. Moreover, I had a slightly difficult delivery this round and since the wound is still healing even though I have completed my confinement, I decided to be good and abstain from seafood especially prawn for now.
Initially, the sales person - Catherine was all nice and friendly on the phone. She called to explain that if the food items I requested to be omitted are accompanying items in a main dish, then they will not be able to change the dish away. For eg, there might be shrimps fried together with vegetables, etc. Sure, that I understand and I accept.
And so my tingkat journey started on 18 Jan 2016. First day of delivery, the food wasn't too bad though oily. The feedback I had for the first delivery was the menu was not according to the menu posted on the website. And one of the dishes with beancurd only had 3 pieces of miserable beancurd which I thought was pathetic. The beancurd came with cabbage / white vegetable as seen in the picture below. I am alright with it as the sales person had already mentioned that if its accompanying dish, they cannot change it. I emailed her to ask why the menu is different and that the beancurd portion is kinda pathetic.
Later on, I realized on my own, the menu on their website is not updated. So I did not pursue this with the sales person. She also did not reply to my email on the above. I also did not have the time to follow up.
A few days later, I received this dish in my tingkat order.
I got a little upset because that would mean I have one dish less to eat for lunch.
Then the next day, this was in my tingkat!
Drunken prawns! I was quite mad by now. Two days in a row I was given dishes I had requested to be omitted. Two days in a row, I am one dish short for my lunch. Even if I am willing to close an eye and eat the prawns, I am allergic to drunken prawns. I cannot take drunken prawns. Tried and tested twice and both time, I had allergic reactions to it. This time, I emailed the sales person with the pictures and I am quite pissed by now that she has not been replying my feedback. Immediately after she saw my email, she called me.
She said she tried calling me after my first email feedback but couldn't get me. I told her I am really busy with my newborn, I have no time to pick up calls then. She asked why I didn't call her back in a not very nice tone. Seriously, I have no idea who's number is that. I don't even have enough sleep, do you think I have the time to call back? If its urgent, call me again or drop me a message. And since I emailed you, at least have the basic courtesy to reply my email if you cannot reach me on my phone, no? This is what age? Internet age, auntie! If you can accept order via internet, email me an invoice and accept my payment via internet banking, you cannot reply my email?
Then she insisted, I did not request not to have prawns. I am very sure I did indicate on my web form order. She still insisted I did not. Fine. So I asked how about the cabbage? Her reply was 'Mam, I don't work in the kitchen!' WTH!! I raised my voice a little because I think this is very bad attitude and reply from her. She is the sales person, she took my order, she has the duty to ensure the kitchen packs the right food to me. What do you mean by you don't work in the kitchen so that is not your problem? That is NOT my problem either, madam! I paid for it, I liaise with you, you jolly well ensure I get my order right.
What I cannot stand the sales person is her attitude and her lack of response. Yes she may need time to check with the kitchen on why the order was not done properly, but at least REPLY to my email and let me know that she is checking! Is it that difficult? As a sales person, she does not even have any basic customer service.
Then I remembered and reminded her of the conversation we had about shrimps as accompanying dish when I first placed my order. I am not sure if she recalled that conversation, she cut me off by saying she will compensate with a dish and hung up on me!
Seriously? What service is this?
I emailed her immediately to tell her that she is very rude and that after my 20 days of tingkat ends, I want to cancel it. And as usual, she doesn't acknowledge my email about the cancellation.
Oh guess what compensation dish did I get the next day?
This definitely doesn't justify for the cabbage and prawn dish I received for 2 days.
Just 11 days into my tingkat, I have 4 complains or 5 or 6 of them. Or rather on Catherine!
Yesterday, I was heading out so I emailed her last week that I do not want any lunch delivery on 3 Feb. She did not reply. I had to send her a few emails to ask her acknowledge and I even called her. When I called on Monday, she defended that she hasn't checked her email. I told her my email was sent last week! On the same day, she replied with a 'Noted'. But still, the food was delivered yesterday!
I am sick of washing their tingkat because the food is so so oily that I always have to washed it twice to get rid of the grease. I have enough of washing clothings so I definitely don't appreciate this and decided to top up for disposable containers. Its supposed to be $10 additional a month. I'm slightly halfway through my 20 days of tingkat lunch already so I expect a pro-rated amount but no, the sales person says its $10. Sure... fine. If you are so hard up for that additional $5, I gladly give to you. I take it as doing charity since you are so in need of it.
After I am done with transferring the $10 via internet banking, I emailed her the details. Again, she has no decency to reply that she has received the payment.
I am on several mummies' and our new condo whatsapp chat group. Some of them were asking for recommendations for tingkat caterer. I have shared with them about Empire catering. I think its too stressful to order from them and with a non-responsive sales person, you are like ordering from a robot. No human touch at all.
This is my first experience of ordering tingkat and yet it has to be such an unpleasant one. Catherine, thank you so much!
Hopefully when I decide on my next tingkat caterer, food and service is better.
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