Latest news with #JohnRayBoukarim
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Trendy cafe hits back at entitled food critic who erupted into foul-mouthed whinge after he missed out on trying their sold-out sandwiches a second time
A popular cafe has hit back after a TikTok food critic complained he was unable to review its sandwiches because they had run out of stock in an expletive-laden rant. John-Ray Boukarim faced backlash after he visited the newly-opened cafe located at Marrickville, in Sydney 's Inner West, earlier this week. It was the second time Mr Boukarim went to the venue but he was unable to review the food as it had run out of bread for sandwiches In a rant shared on TikTok with his 14,000 followers, Mr Boukarim accused the owners of not knowing how to run a business. 'You think you would have your operation under control knowing what stock levels you would need in order to keep up with the demand, yet you still finish and run out of food an hour or two before you shut,' he said. 'F*** off, and stop wasting my time. Don't open up a business unless you know how to run it. Like seriously.' Mr Boukarim said he had no intention of tarnishing the cafe and deliberately left out the name in his video. Its owners have since spoken out, revealing the cafe was Bertas. 'We work out of a compact 36sqm space with a small tight-knit team and have up to eight people on deck during busy times,' they told on Thursday. 'Every sandwich we serve is made fresh to order, and we make as much in-house as possible - often starting in the early hours and finishing late at night. 'We hate having to turn people away, especially as we started this place to offer a high-quality product at an accessible price. 'This is what starting something from scratch looks like, and we're all in.' In his explosive video on Monday, Mr Boukarim claimed he and ten other customers in the cafe missed out on sandwiches. 'These idiots, "Oh we sold out". How do you sell out bro!' he said. He suggested the owners 'up' their bread quantities and donate any excess to charity. 'I guarantee you selling an extra 15 sandwiches vs giving away 15 to 25 pieces of bread completely outweighs the stand alone bread cost,' Mr Boukarim wrote. Social media users largely disagreed with Mr Boukarim's rant, with many scolding him for not visiting the cafe earlier on his second trip. 'That's just not how it works. If they sold out that means they're doing something right,' one wrote. 'You'd think you'd learn your lesson and go earlier the second time,' another said. Others slammed the food reviewer for claiming the owner did not know how to run a business, claiming he was the one who lacked understanding of a cafe's logistics. 'I understand that frustration however, sometimes they can physically order as much as their establishments can store/make in their kitchen,' one commented. 'They have only been open for four weeks and you think they should have it down pact exactly how much stock they need?' another said. Mr Boukarim replied to some of the comments claiming the video was a way for him to express himself and that 'for the most part' he was 'just taking the p***'. Mr Boukarim told Daily Mail Australia he was hesitant to visit the cafe a third time due to his past experiences. 'My hope was to offer constructive criticism that could potentially benefit the business in the long run,' Mr Boukarim told Daily Mail Australia. 'I personally feel it's better for businesses to slightly over-prepare and then donate any surplus, or utilise it the next day if feasible.' Mr Boukarim noted it was 'uncommon' for successful and established restaurants to frequently sell out of core items during their advertised hours. 'Imagine Maccas ran out of burger buns,' he said. 'While I get that unexpected things happen, it's those repeated issues - especially on a busy Saturday - that can really bother consumers.'
News.com.au
2 days ago
- Business
- News.com.au
Food blogger slams trendy new cafe for ‘annoying' problem
An Aussie food reviewer has lashed out at a newly opened sandwich shop in Sydney for running out of food before he could try it. Food blogger John-Ray Boukarim said that he visited the newly opened cafe, Bertas, in the Inner West suburb of Marrickville – not once, but twice – and on both occasions the eatery had run out of bread for sandwiches. Taking to TikTok to express his frustration, he explained to his 14k followers that he had planned his 'whole day' around reviewing the food for 'no gain other than boosting their business'. However, when he arrived for the second time, he was disappointed to learn that he and at least 10 other customers had missed out on trying one of their coveted sandwiches. 'Listen, tell me how the f*** you open up a business,' he began. 'You think you would have your operation under control, knowing what stock levels you would need in order to keep up with the demand, yet you still finish and run out of food an hour or two before you shut.' 'F*** off, and stop wasting my time,' the expletive-filled rant continued. 'Don't open up a business unless you know how to run it. Like seriously'. Speaking to Mr Boukarim said that the cafe should increase their bread quantities to avoid this issue in the future, and if they don't sell out by the end of the day, they should donate the rest to charity or use it the next day if possible. 'As a consumer, when a business advertises a time frame of operation, I expect those to be reasonably available throughout that period,' he said. 'For example, a sandwich shop running out of bread an hour before closing raises questions about meeting customer expectations set by their own advertised hours. Why have a business open and closing time? Rather have 'Until sold out'.' He noted that this issue is particularly frustrating when it happens repeatedly, especially on weekends. 'Customers often work Monday to Friday, so their weekends are precious,' he said. 'Imagine planning a nice Saturday lunch with the family, waiting in line, only to be told you've sold out. 'That's incredibly annoying, especially for families with kids. It's a huge waste of their limited family time.' The video quickly went viral, accumulating over 60,000 views as Aussies shared their thoughts on this issue in cafe culture. A spokesperson for Bertas told that they've been amazed by the response they've received from the community after just five weeks of opening — and they're still figuring things out. 'We work out of a compact 36 sqm space with a small tight-knit team, and have up to eight people on deck during busy times,' they said. 'Each one giving their all to serve as many sandwiches as possible, always with quality and consistency at the heart of everything we do. 'Every sandwich we serve is made fresh to order, and we make as much in-house as possible — often starting in the early hours and finishing late at night.' They explained that while demand has exceeded expectations and continues to grow week on week, they're actively working to scale quickly and sustainably. 'This means sourcing more staff, refining operations, and doing our best to ensure we can serve everyone who comes through our doors,' they said. 'We hate having to turn people away, especially as we started this place to offer a high-quality product at an accessible price. This is what starting something from scratch looks like, and we're all in.' Commenters on the video mostly sided with the cafe on this one — saying it's common for businesses in their early days to suffer teething issues. 'You should give them more grace if they're new. They're still learning,' said one customer. 'They have only been open for a few weeks and you think they should have it down pat exactly how much stock they need?' questioned another. 'Even a business that is 15 years old might have weeks they weren't expecting and can be sold out'. Others claimed he made a mistake by going so close to closing time. 'If you want good fresh food, rule of thumb never show up two hours before closing,' another noted. 'You have the right to be upset but maybe go earlier next time,' advised another. Mr Boukarim told this publication that his intention with the video was not to tarnish the reputation of the business but to provide some constructive feedback. Currently, in Australia, 60 per cent of businesses will fail within their first three years of operation, with 20 per cent failing in their first year. He believes that this sort of 'tough love' he provided in his video can help businesses adapt quickly and critically assess their offerings — leading to more success in the future and, hopefully, preventing them from shutting down.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Food critic sparks backlash after blasting cafe for selling out of sandwiches before he could review it for his 14,000 TikTok followers: 'This is the second time'
A TikTok food reviewer has faced a barrage of backlash after he unleashed a scathing tirade on a newly-opened cafe for running out of food before he could try it. Lifestyle blogger John-Ray Boukarim visited a newly-opened cafe located in Sydney 's Inner West. This was the second time Mr Boukarim went to the cafe and to his disappointment he was unable to review the food as the cafe had run out of bread for their sandwiches. Mr Boukarim explained he had planned his whole day around visiting the cafe to review the food for 'no gain other than boosting their business'. In an expletive-laden rant shared on TikTok with his 14,000 followers, Mr Boukarim slammed the owners for not knowing how to run a business. 'Listen, tell me how the f*** you open up a business,' he said. 'You think you would have your operation under control knowing what stock levels you would need in order to keep up with the demand, yet you still finish and run out of food an hour or two before you shut. 'This is the second time I've come here to do a food review and you've run out of food. In a rant shared to his TikTok account nillasjourney, Mr Boukarim slammed the owners of a newly-opened cafe for running out of bread before he could review their sandwiches 'F*** off, and stop wasting my time. Don't open up a business unless you know how to run it. Like seriously. These idiots. "Oh we sold out" How do you sell out bro!' Mr Boukarim added in the caption he and about ten other customers missed out on ordering food. He suggested the owners 'up' their bread quantities and if they do not sell out by the end of the day, they should donate the excess to charity. 'I guarantee ya selling an extra 15 sandwiches (and keeping customers happy) vs giving away 15 to 25 pieces of bread (if you didn't sell them) completely outweighs the stand alone bread cost,' Mr Boukarim wrote. Social media users disagreed with Mr Boukarim's rant, with many claiming he should have just visited the cafe earlier. 'If you want good fresh food, rule of thumb never show up 2 hours before closing. people need to wash/ clean / prep and go home to their families too just like you and I,' one wrote. 'That's just not how it works cuzzy. If they sold out that means they're doing something right. You have the right to be upset but maybe go earlier next time,' a second person commented. A third person chimed: 'You'd think you'd learn your lesson and go earlier the second time'. Others slammed the food reviewer for claiming the owner did not know how to run a business, claiming he was the one who lacked understanding of a cafe's logistics. 'I understand that frustration however, sometimes they can physically order as much as their establishments can store/make in their kitchen,' one commented. 'At my business because I'm a one woman show, once I'm completely out, I'm out. No stock left. Plus I have no storage to keep excess amount of food. I prefer my customers to eat fresh food daily,' a second person added. A third person wrote: 'They have only been open for four weeks and you think they should have it down pact exactly how much stock they need? 'Even a business that is 15 years old might have weeks they weren't expecting and can be sold out. 'If you've ever run a food business you would know to prevent wastage, you prepare for expected sales only.' A fourth chimed: 'You need to consider how much space they actually have to store meat or anything that needs to be refrigerated and space to hold dry stock. 'It's not as easy as everyone thinks it is. I'm sure they would of loved to make more money rather then sell out... sometimes it's better to sell out and not exhaust yourself out, and still be able to give your best the next day to customers.' Mr Boukarim replied to some of the comments claiming the video was a way for him to express himself and that 'for the most part' he was 'just taking the piss'.
