06/07/09

Waitress Helped Herself to Tip

by TaraK

We generally have a good dining experience at Madam Mam's. A lot of times the food is awesome, but sometimes it's only okay. That's why I'm giving the 3 stars, because I think the food is worth a visit. However I'm writing this review because as far as I'm concerned a bad waitress has now stolen money from me, and I feel that deserves public comment.

The last time we went we had the worst wait staff ever. (Westgate location) I tried to flag down our waitress 3 times. We wanted to order dessert, but we were also out of beverages and with spicy food that's a no-no. I finally tried chasing her down only to have her disappear into the kitchen and not come out until someone else went to fetch her for me.

We were so irritated with the lack of service that we did not tip. We wrote 0 on the receipt and the total amount equal to the amount of the bill for the two of us. I was just balancing my check book and I see that she gave herself a $2 tip anyway.

We will be going in to complain, and I'm not sure I will ever go back to their establishment. If I don't get service then I'm not going to tip. If you don't like those rules then get a new job. The restaurant was not busy and there were plenty of people waiting tables. There is no excuse for her lack of service, and there is no excuse for her giving herself a tip that she didn't earn.

• Pros: Sometimes it's the best Thai food in town
• Cons: Sometimes it's only just edible

05/03/09

best thai food i've ever had

by Sarsies

i go to madam mams every chance i get. the pad thai is amazing, though it is very spicy (get a 1 or 2 tops). also, the pad sea ew is too die for and i think it's my new favorite. the spring rolls taste awesome and go perfectly with the peanut sauce they come with. don't expect good service here, it's just not gonna happen, but the food more than makes up for it. oh, and they have the best tofu i've ever had for such a low price, even my meat loving friends like the tofu. and the prices are so low, even college students can afford to eat here at least once a week.

• Pros: awesome flavor, delicious tofu
• Cons: bad service

02/16/09

For all the people that like this place, just wait ...you'll change your mind

by tracmullins

We used to go here (South location) all the time. I swear though, they don't give a cr*p about having good service or not. All I have to say is, you better know what you want - if you don't like it, too bad. First hand experience, if you find something inedible, they'll tell you - they can't help it if you ordered the wrong thing. My friend got something she swore was spoiled, ordered another dish and got charged for both. Had we known this ahead of time, we would have said 'forget it'. We tried to get it off the bill, they wouldn't budge. The food is decent, but I can't put up with the crappy attitude. Seriously - I'm not that hard to please either.

• Pros: food is decent
• Cons: literally worst service I've ever seen

12/03/08

Disappointing

by EPhoto

I ate here with a friend hoping to get some REALLY good Thai food... I was severely disappointed. This felt like just another crappy restaurant on the drag by campus who's food suffers because of high traffic. I've had some good Thai food from some really shotty looking restaurants, but this was not one of them.

I decided to venture away from the normal dish I get and took a suggestion from the waiter, the food smelled TERRIBLE and was NOT SPICY AT ALL when I asked for it to be. The taste was nothing like it had been described and the service wasn't great or friendly. I have heard that the original restaurant is supposed to be far better. I say try it and don't eat here unless you have no other choice.

• Pros: Good Location, seemed clean
• Cons: Food was no good

08/31/08

Warning - Most Addictive Food Ever!! Beware

by jwoftx

Okay, the atmosphere of the restaurant is nothing special at all. Kinda feels a little divey/dinerish. But don't judge this place until you put the food into your mouth. This is the best Thai food I have ever eaten. The flavors are absolutely amazing. I have had a lot of the items off the menu and the worst I can say about any of them is that they are jsut good. But there are a few of the items that I just sometimes find myself craving - the curry pork and the spring rolls especially. The good thing is that the food is priced so that I can fill my cravings whenever they happen - really affordable. If you are going to try the place for the 1st time, or if you are on a date, go to the South location across the street from the South Hyde Park Grill location - it is decorated a little nicer and you will avoid the hassels of trying to park on the drag. But be warned - you will become addicted to this stuff.

• Pros: Amazing flavors in every bite
• Cons: Not a great drink menu, and decor needs help

08/11/08

BEST THAI FOOD IN ATOWN!

by troynrebecca

My husband and I just got back from Thailand and this is THE only place that comes close to the local flavor. WE LOVE THIS PLACE!!! BYOB is a bonus!!! Try the panang chicken, and beef pad thai, YUM!!! We've never had a problem with the service and have been there nearly a dozen times now, maybe some people r too uptight...this is Austin people, u need 2 chill...

• Pros: love everything..great food and BYOB
• Cons: none

08/06/08

Just ok

by youarewhatyoueat

I have had a lot of great thai food living in Chicago, but since coming to Austin, I've pretty much resigned myself to the fact there just isn't great thai food here, as Madam Mam's is supposedly as good as it gets. I've been there several times with groups of people, and it is just ok. The Pad Se Ew is always good, but that is not a very difficult dish to execute either. The last time I was there made me decide it was probably my last. My husband ordered a beef dish that was literally just a plate of inedible fatty gristle. I had a curry (panang I think) with beef. The beef was tough, and the broth was overly salty. No veggies in either dish. So between the two of us, we had some overly salted coconut milk, and plain rice. It seemed like such a waste of money. Grr.

06/19/08

Lousy Service from the owner herself!!!

by lastbite

Service was lousy!

First I love their food and have referred many friends there. Good food needs to be shared...what can I say!

But my last visit there has left me feeling incensed! I believe the old lady is the owner's wife. I asked her for a booth and said I could wait...I had a toddler and a booth would work better for us. Not to mention I was still waiting for my friend to join us. She rudely tells me that there are no both available and gave me a stare...i kindly reply i could wait. A few moments went by and another lady came out to help seat the busy lunch crowd...assuming her sister...she seemed nicer. As she was going down the waiting list, I came to her to mention that I am on that list but waiting for a booth and at that moment, the mean Mam gets off the phone and rudely tells me and the other lady that she already told me there was no booth available. I merely wanted the new person to know that I was here waiting for the booth..the rude lady then starting spouting something in her native tongue to the other lady and I KNOW she was talking about me!!! How rude, I jsut wanted to walk out, but I was meeting a freind there. so when we finally sat, the mean lady was the one to wipe the table and there were crumbs from the previous meal on my booth and I pointed to her and she never came back to wipe it off or send anyone over to do it!!! How rude!!!! I will never come back to eat there again and will look for another great thai food place!!! How sad. Why be so sour when you have all that money from your business old lady! Relax and learn some customer service skills! Cheers!

• Pros: great tasting food
• Cons: lousy customer service

02/03/08

my break up with Madam Mams

by sweetcynic

Anyone who knows me at all knows my passionate love affair with Madam Mams that started when it first switched management in 2001/2002 and BECAME Madam Mams. Since then I?ve turned many a friend to loyal impassioned patrons. I?ve written it praises in between 2001 and 2005 in my previous online journal to the point of one of my out of country friend insisted I take her to this Mams. There was a semester in college where I would go weekly with my then boyfriend, with Michael, with my brother and with Jon. Up to 4 times a week. Even after I graduated and moved , I?ve managed to average 1/2x a week.

I?m that fricking loyal. I?ve loved the pad thai at first and then alternated between the different curries and finally stayed true with the F5 flat noodle. Well, I went with Naz (whom I?ve introduced to Mams) for our 2nd trip that week and we had our usuals. Midway through our meals, noticed that we had lipstick on our glasses and disturbed, we complained.

Mams is not known for her service. But we expected a little bit of an acknowledgement. 1st, they claimed that the glasses were in fact, clean because they pulled it out of the dishwasher; it must be stained. We countered that that does not make it clean. They insisted that they cannot be held accountable for ?dirty? glassware. When we asked for a small discount, (a measly 10% would have us believing that they at least care for their patrons). Said we were being unreasonable if we expected a discount for something wrong with our drinks. That their policy is to only discount if something unsanitary were to happen with the food.

Asked, how do we know our plates are clean? They shrugged. I told the manager how much I love their food and how often I come and I've been coming longer than he had been managing. He agreed. I said the way he is dismissing us makes me not want to come back anymore.

To which, he said ?That is fine. We have customers.? That marked the end of our 6-7yr relationship.

• Pros: F5
• Cons: arrogance, service, unsanitary

12/13/07

Good food, terrible terrible service

by imejin

The food is good, but the service terrible. They take forever to get your order, and food comes out very late. What's worse, some dishes can come out 20 minutes or more after others in your party have already started eating. I've seen r o a c h e s on the wall once, so you know there are a lot more out there. I've been to this place probably over 50 times, so the food is good (and sadly, I'll go again), but they really really need to work on the service, espcially since you KNOW they are making real good money since it's always packed.

• Pros: good food
• Cons: terrible service