la Madeleine

I was with most aspects.

Not enough associates for the dinner crowd.

GOOD Food, change area

It took a long time to get the order

Short staffed yet friendly

Good food, reasonably priced. Good staff. Kept as clean as one possibly could.

Overall, the La Madeleine cafe experience is satisfactory. The one thing that always bothers me, though, is the volume of the background music. Specifically, it's always too loud. Instead of creating a pleasant ambiance, it is very distracting. Moreover, because it is loud, it causes customers to talk louder, which creates a self-reinforcing effect, and significantly takes away from the experience. I would strongly recommend that management and staff pay attention to the volume of the music. It may seem like a very small detail, but it can significantly impact whether the experience is enjoyable or not.

The take-out service was good.

They have a fireplace which usually has a fire going. They have not had a fire for several visits. Also the Sacre Torte seems to have been discontinued at La Madeleines. Why? It was our favorite dessert.

There was one customer in front of me who took a while to confirm his identity to pick up his order. Because of that, it took a while for it to be my turn to pick up my food at the register. My suggestion is to have two staff near the cash register instead of one. That way, if one customer is taking a while when it's his turn, the second staff member is helping the next customer.