New style M&S cafe

[Triflingjelly]

AIBU to not like the new style M&S cafe where you order at screens like McDs and then sit and wait for hard working waiting staff to bring your food. Stressful for customer and #runaround for staff. It all feels very impersonal. Bring back self-service. Is it just me?

No its not just you

im not doing that, i just won’t go the cafes which do this

I haven't been in the M&S ones yet but in general I prefer to have a look at what's physically available on the day to see what looks appealing before I decide what to buy

It’s terrible and it excludes wheelchair users and customers who do not or cannot pay by card.

And the fact there is no big board that shows the whole menu is a mistake!

The last few times I was in an M&S cafe, they were hugely understaffed. Two people trying to serve, take cash, make coffees and clean tables. I can see why they are taking this direction tbh.

I walk straight out of any cafes that have this order on screen 'service'

We've had one of these near me for four years, it's not new?

It doesn't exclude anyone, you don't have to order that way. You can still go to the front, or order on your phone at the table.

I'm surprised that it's taken so long to roll out to your M&S!

Ours is regularly out of stock of at least half the menu, so a big board would be frustrating. At least the online menu can show you what's OOS.

I asked the staff at our local M&S if they had a till that could be used by wheelchair users. Her response was “no, but there is always a member of staff by these screens to assist wheelchair users.”

I think that is a terrible backwards step. Why would you construct a situation that makes wheelchair users less independent? Why are you forcing them to ask for help to buy their lunch? What if they don’t want ‘assistance?’

Our M&S cafe is so slow .. not enough staff. I think it’s a good idea.

I’d like them to bring back saucers. Not the point of the thread I know!

It doesn't exclude anyone, you don't have to order that way. You can still go to the front, or order on your phone at the table.

Nope. You can’t go to the front. There are no tills any more. I checked.

The screens exclude wheelchair users and customers who do not or cannot pay by card. Online ordering excludes the latter, as well as a lot of typically elderly customers who do not have, or are not confident users of, smartphones.

Same here at the store in Warrington next to Ikea - it’s a massive store, but there were just too few staff.

I might actually start using them if they introduce that everywhere! Much less stressful than queueing up and ordering from an actual person.

I agree. And it stops the whole problem of one person bagging a table while the other person queues up to order.

How does screen ordering stop one person from taking a table while the other orders? Surely it's the same as if they were ordering at the till if there is a queue for the screens?

The reason restaurants love touch-screen ordering is that they help people to order more food. It’s less embarrassing to order what might look like a LOT of food via an impersonal screen than through a possibly judgemental person.

True story.

Last time I was in the cafe, I queued up for 15 minutes. People have to not only order at the till, but then have to wait for hot drinks to be made. Meanwhile, people are hogging tables whilst their companions are in the queue. By the time I got served, there were no empty tables. Id say about 1/4 of the tables had people waiting.
Ordering at a screen means you can then sit down and wait to be served. It takes a couple of minutes to do a screen order. The problem comes if the cafe is full but the screens still let people order. There wont be a table to sit at! Its a bit like a car park that will only let a car in of the barrier system knows there’s a space available as opposed to one where entry and exits aren’t monitored so when you enter there’s no way of knowing if there’s a space free.

Every one of my visits to M&S cafe results in a good old internal gripe about how badly organised it is. Inefficient, the multiple queues, the weirdness when they try and stop people going in to browse the food because it's too busy, the bottlenecks they create all over the place, the odd system of picking up a sandwich and then it sits around at the till while a completely different sandwich gets toasted in the kitchen.

I do like the food though, and the tea is delicious. And I like being handed the pot immediately after it's been filled so it's as hot as possible. I'd worry about drinks going tepid in the kitchen waiting to be brought out.

I don't know if ordering screens will help, but I don't object to them in principle, as long as there is still cash ordering available and it's accessible for wheelchair users.

I will try not to buy from anywhere that won’t take cash. I’m going to Marks tomorrow so I’ll have a look at what ours is doing.

I haven’t been in ms recently as nearest one is a fair distance away, but I’m a fan of screen ordering.

I haven't used one for ages, ours has that stinking burnt cheese toastie smell and I always felt like I was being mugged.

Same! I find it much less stressful and you don’t have to carry a heavy tray of hot
drinks to a table (always feel like
i’m going to drop it! 🙈)

I've just seen that the Trafford Centre cafe is offering table service. Its situated in the old Debenhams - not tried it yet.

God that sounds grim. I don't mind at Burger King on the motorway but if I'm at M&S I want service. I'll just take myself off to somewhere else if they come to the one near me.