The Old Curiosity Shop - Thanet

I have visited this restaurant before without any issues. The young waitress was very friendly and polite, and my sandwich was decent. However, when I returned to pick up my dishes, I noticed the waitress's friend sitting on the counter where food was being prepared. This raised a hygiene concern for me, and it has ultimately deterred me from coming back to this place.

I stopped off at the old curiosity shop cafe with my family and our friends. It ended up being a very bizarre experience. We ordered simple things an egg sandwich, a few toasties for the kids, a brie and bacon sandwich, and a salmon and cream cheese bagel. Most of it didn’t need cooking. We were told it was a 25 minute wait for food which was fine. It took 40 minutes to even get the drinks. We were told the food was coming. After over an hour of waiting, with 3 very grumpy and hungry kids, and a few polite requests as to when our sandwiches would come out, some of them eventually did. The guy who brought them out dropped the Brie and bacon one on the floor. Accidents happen and usually it wouldn’t remotely be a problem, but we’d had enough so asked if we could get a refund for the floor sandwich and the final one we were still waiting for, which we were told had been brought out already so it seems to have been lost between the kitchen and where we were sitting outside. My friend went inside for the refund as by this point, we’d been waiting for basic sandwiches for an hour and 20 minutes, with no apology or acknowledgement that this probably wasn’t an ok amount of time. Even the refund seemed to take a long time. Insane. So after all that, some of us didn’t even get fed. I love Broadstairs and have been going there since I was a kid. We won’t be going back to this place again the next time we visit.

Lovely spot for lunch. I had a jacket beans. My partner had a sausage sarnie. Generous portions. Great food. Most excellent value! Would recommend 100%.

Our group stopped here for lunch. The prices seemed reasonable and the order at the counter for four sandwiches and teas was taken quickly. The cafe was fairly quiet so they weren't busy. Drinks were served after about 15 mins, so not a good start. After waiting another 30 mins or so we asked when the sandwiches would be ready. On their way was the reply! Another 15 mins passed. No food. Still on their way apparently. Drinks were either drunk or cold after almost an hour. The server then asked what bread we'd like on the sandwiches, so clearly not on their way!!! When they did arrive no apology at all was offered. Awful service. Needless to say, we'll not be visiting again.

Stopped here for drink. Prices on the menu at the table are different to the prices we were charged. When I asked about it, the menus were old and there was no apology. What a strange attitude and practice... deliberately misleading. Beware....