Little Hut Cafe

Oy.
I really want the businesses that I pass by in the morning to prosper — the more competition, the better the services offered will get and the better the pricing will be. Sadly, I’m not really sure that the Little Hut Café understands this, nor how to develop and maintain a solid customer base.
Take Salad Days down the hall — I may not like the direction their business has gone, but I can’t deny they have a massive lineup every single day, starting from 11:30 until around 1:30. Business is always booming for a place whose only function is slicing vegetables and throwing them in a bowl. It’s not hard, it’s certainly not gourmet, but it’s affordable and fast. So is Esther Queen of Soups.
The reason these places do great business isn’t because what they offer is exceptional — it’s because over the years an extra scoop of tuna here, and an extra piece of hot buttered bread there have worked wonders in building goodwill.
I really would love Little Hut to acknowledge they aren’t either of these places. They have no customer base. Make some customers! 3.99 for an egg-​breakfast or 2-​egg-​omelette isn’t outrageous, but this morning we spent an extra 10 minutes negotiating with them:
«We don’t eat meat, but we eat fish, would it be possible to swap in smoked salmon instead of the bacon/​sausage?»
«Yes, we can add one slice but it’s a dollar extra. Smoked Salmon is expensive.»
«Okay nevermind, we’ll have the omelette. Two toppings, right?»
«Yes»
“Okay, can we have smoked salmon and tomatoes, does that work?”
«The smoked salmon will still be extra»
«Fine, how about mushoom, onion and tomato?»
«An extra topping will be 50 cents.»
«Fine, mushroom and tomato.»
«Great. Oh if you don’t eat meat, the hashbrowns are cooked in bacon grease.»
«Okay. We’ll have toast.»
I get that the omelette came with two toppings, and I get that smoked salmon IS more expensive, but hey, you know what? If they had made ONE concession for us, that goodwill would have paid off.
It would have paid off in return business, for one thing. Just to re-​emphasize, we walk by this stand every single day, and nearly every single day we are hungry at that exact moment. Oh well.
It would have paid off in recommendations, for another thing. We both work in a nearby office building with a staff of 50. We live and have friends in the neighbourhood — I’m not saying this to make myself seem super-​influential (I’m not) but it’s relevant that I’ve had 2 experiences where potential goodwill was squandered, and I imagine that’s the status quo.

If you combine the previous two reviews, they give a very good assessment of this place. It’s located on the top level of the Yorkville ghetto (ie Cumberland Terrace) down the hall from Salad Days. It’s a little kiosk with a few tables next to it.
Food order: Sea bass filet with rice, grilled veggies and pop for 7.99 plus tax.
Likes: For a kiosk, the quality of food was very good. The fish was very fresh as were the veggies. It is better quality than the Lebanese place next to Eat-​a-​pita (across the street, I forget the name of the place). I was hesitant at first as there were very few customers, but it was worth a shot. Not regretting it. Also, although a small kiosk with a few tables, they still tried to pretty it up with some flowers so it looked like a garden patio inside and I appreciate the effort.
Dislike: I won’t go so far as to say they are overpriced, but compared to Salad Days and Esther’s Soup, it’s somewhat more expensive, but the quality here is better. They also take debit without a surcharge (salad days is cash only, soup place has surcharge). Rice was also bland, though fresh.
Verdict: not a bad lunch place if you are in the area and don’t feel like enduring the lineups at Salad Days or Esther’s