Service Safari — Bird & Branch
Speaking of comfort food, perhaps the ham & brie croissant is what provides me with a feeling of well-being. Over the weekend, I went to a small business named Bird & Branch in Midtown Manhattan to get my comfort food.
Before I entered the shop, I saw their menu, operating hours, and the “ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) Access” sign. There’s even a QR code that links to the digital menu on their website. However, it’s a little hard to read the operating hours from my height due to the reflection from the glass.
The unique decorations they put inside effectively reflected the theme of their brand name — “Bird & Branch.” Thinking of words like “birds” and “branches” has reminded me of nature. I was surprised by what I saw in front of my eyes the moment I walked into the cafe. They put a large greenery canvas (moss wall art) on the wall with plants hanging from the ceiling. The space has been set up similar to a mini-exhibition.
I ordered a ham & brie croissant, a cup of matcha tea, and a peanut butter chocolate cookie. The experience was quite smooth throughout the process. Instead of putting the menu on the wall like most places, they put it next to the cashier, which makes it much easier to read for someone with a bad vision like me. The cafe accepts multiple payment methods, including cash, credit/debit cards, as well as Apple Pay, etc.
After I placed my order, I was directed to wait at the pickup desk on the left. I like how the cafe provided hand sanitizers on both the ordering and pickup desks for customers to clean their hands before eating.
Once I picked up the food, I went ahead to get some napkins. I noticed they prepared some small gifts for the customers on the self-service desk. On top of the cup holder and napkins, they placed some stickers, pinback buttons, and coasters in separate containers.
There’s an indoor and outdoor dining space for customers to choose from. I decided to eat indoors, and I could smell the natural scent of coffee beans in the eating area.
Overall, I would say it’s a great dining experience. However, I think there’s definitely some room for improvement, especially in the recycling area, since I was a little confused when I tried to discard the food wrappers before leaving the cafe.
