Comments on: Dining: Mayorga Coffee Factory

By: Edna

Edna — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 00:48:43 +0000

I am sad to see such lost hope and discontent in Mayorga. As a former employee and a customer since the day it opened, even I’ve noticed a decline in the service, quality of drinks, and as a result, in patronage. Regardless, this review was extremely inappropriate and unprofessional, and rates Mayorga based on brunch, which was never their claim to fame. Having traveled all over the world and trying coffee from all over, I have to say that Mayorga’s coffee remains my favorite. The quality of beans is truly the best, while the family’s business sense may be lacking.
I hope that they [the owners] see what is happening to what used to be the coffee jewel of the community, and that patrons in turn give the store another chance, and not listen to the angry teenager who wrote this vicious review.
As far as the wait times go, I can’t say much about the food other than that the kitchen is small, but the coffee takes so long to prepare (compared to Starbucks coffee-o-matic crap) because the entire process is manual. From grinding the beans, tamping, manually pouring, flushing, and using FRESH milk, a rarity in today’s coffee shops. So yes, it does take longer than your “grande instant latte”, but you’ll find that it tastes much better, as long as the baristas knwo what they’re doing.
Don’t give up on your local businesses, especially if you are one to take advantage of free internet no matter what,

By: Amro

Amro — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 17:31:08 +0000

@Mark Walters, I am not sure I completely believe what the owner is saying. Mayorga is a business and it operates so it can make money. Being a productive member of the community is part of being a smart business that attracts local customers. It can’t be the sole reason he is running a business. If so, he needs to be in the non-profit sector. If it is true that business went down 50%, then he needs to work harder to earn more business. That’s how businesses operate. What he told you makes him look like he is more interested in making excuses rather than fixing the real problems that might be contributing to his losses.

I am a big supporter of Mayorga and still go there several times a week. But the way they reacted to criticism left a bitter taste in my mouth. And if it continues, I will find another local coffee shop to go to.

By: CoffeeChugger

CoffeeChugger — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 07:31:24 +0000

I like Mayorga and have been several times. The atmosphere is nice and that’s the main draw for me. (I miss the reggae though.)The brewed coffee used to be excellent but is still good. I notice that the staff has changed a few times, however I’ve never had a problem with the service. Any errors have been fixed with no problem. The pastries are good. Some of the sandwiches are good. The brunch is not though and I find that part of the review quite accurate. (Too bad the fruit bowl wasn’t tried because it’s the best part.)

I’m very disappointed in the manager’s negative response. Don’t blame the messenger.

By: Springvale Roader

Springvale Roader — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 14:16:44 +0000

If I owned Mayorga or worked there, I would ponder all of the critical comments on this page, as well as the review itself, and ask myself whether or not I could improve my service. What I would not do is post defensive, disingenuous, and grammatically inept letters in a (failed) attempt to sweep the problems under the rug.

I don’t go to Mayorga simply because it’s out of my way, but I do buy their coffee. However, after the way Mayorga’s staff have responded here, I am strongly considering switching coffee brands, too.

By: tj

tj — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 13:55:20 +0000

I like going to Mayorga primarily because of the atmosphere- comfy couches, dim lighting and the buzz of conversations in the air. I also like their coffee. However, there are serious problems with their staff. It takes forever to get a cup of coffee and they don’t give good customer service. The food is mediocre at best. I want to continue to support local businesses but they need to do their part and provide a good experience for the customer. I’d like to see some accountability on Mayorga’s part. They should acknowledge that they have problems but will work to improve the experience for the customer. I’m sure that this acknowledgement would be greeted warmly by their current customer base and may bring back some customers that they lost.

By: Grig Larson

Grig Larson — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 13:44:20 +0000

To all the “support your local business” people: I used to be a sales manager, who ran various businesses for years. I can tell you, first hand, that your customers are your TOP priority. And one of the BEST way to get that is to have happy employees. I have run overpriced places with loyal clientèle because while customers could go elsewhere for cheaper, they stuck with us because they felt important and special. They recommended us to friends.

Ben’s Chili Bowl in DC is a dump, for example. It’s crowded. It’s hot. Decor is stuck in the 60s, and not because they designed it that way. Parts are worn and dirty, and it’s not exactly in a nice part of town. But it’s HUGELY famous because of their service and good food. Ben died last week, and it made the papers. Now THAT is a local business to be proud to have on your block.

So while you may wave the “support your local business” banner, is a business that serves lousy food and treats their customer and staff like trash something the community should be proud of? I’d say if Mayorga doesn’t change their attitude, they deserve to go out of business. Whining about changes in traffic patterns is no excuse; Ben’s Chili Bowl has been though a LOT worse.

By: Drath

Drath — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:55:46 +0000

Has anyone ever gone to the Sunday Brunch at Capital Bleu? It is at the Hilton on 8727 Colesville Road. We won a $50 gift certificate for the place — never been there.

By: Mark Walters

Mark Walters — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:33:37 +0000

I’m a long time customer of Mayorga Coffee. I used to go there every day on the way to work, but the new traffic layout and parking made it so that I only go there every once in a while. I think they have the best coffee in the area, hands down. (That is, after all, their claim to fame).

When I was there a few weeks ago, I got to meet the owner and complained about the parking to him. He told me that the day that public road was shut down for private development, their sales dropped by 50% and have never recovered. He said that the smart business decision was to shut down the location, but he did not want to abandon the community or his staff. He said that he chose to lose hundreds of thousands of dollars a year in order to stick to his mission of being a productive member of the community, but that his operations had struggled as a result.

It seems to me that the financial impact has made them sacrifice some on the food, but I think we all need to appreciate where their heart is and not be so quick to attack. This is a local company trying to do the right thing. They’ve strayed from their core to provide a community amenity and have been struggling to make that location work after a lot of change. If you don’t like it, don’t go there, but demonizing attacks don’t help anyone.

By: penguin plucker

penguin plucker — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 02:02:38 +0000

Buy Local, I wonder how the other business owners feel now that they have seen how you wrote such a damaging review. I hope you lose advertising and that your credibility is scared.

By: Jimmy

Jimmy — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 20:14:27 +0000

Even though I live just around the corner, my visits to Mayorga have cut back dramatically over the past few years. The food has become just plain lousy, and the service can take forever. The only thing I have ever ordered and gotten in reasonable time has been plain coffee. Anything espresso or chai and be prepared to wait a good five to ten minutes. If you pay attention while you are waiting for your latte or americano, you’ll notice that usually the reason is because they don’t know how to operate the machines. I’ve seen them start over, run around looking for someone to instruct them, etc.

Nearly all the money of mine that Mayorga gets these days is for coffee beans, which I believe are some of the best I have ever had.

They can blame it on the construction, but I blame it on the service.