NOT FAMILY FRIENDLY. DISRESPECTFUL, RUDE, MONEY GRUBBING OWNER. I have sadly gone to this orchard multiple times in the past 10yrs and today was our 2nd trip this year - NEVER AGAIN WILL WE GO OR RECOMMEND THIS ORCHARD. THERE ARE PLENTY OF OTHER ORCHARDS in the greater Boston area with all of the same offerings and most importantly, respect for customers. This is our 5th time at an orchard this season and 2nd at this place this year- we don't go for the apples, we go for the hope of a fun experience. The experience at Honey Pot Hill Orchards was HORRIFIC and RUINED the entire day.
- GO IF YOU WANT TO BE TREATED LIKE DIRT AND A CRIMINAL - I don't bother writing negative reviews typically, but this, I have to do. I can't let my kids grow up thinking that it's ever OK to be treated the way that we were treated by the man who claimed he was the owner, and I can't let my kids think it's ever OK to treat anyone else in this way. We had purchased 2 x $30 bags and filled them up, as we and everyone else does at any orchard. As our kid didn't want to walk or sit in the stroller and had to be carried, we decided to put the bags of apples in the stroller. Do they really expect us to hand carry the 2 large bags full of apples the very long distance from where the remaining apples are, up and down bumpy hills, toward the farm store and parking lots? Yes, we had multiple adults, but that included elderly, pregnant, and one carrying a kid- is that reasonable to demand? Is that what a "family-friendly" business does? We were on our way to the store to look into purchasing some donuts and cider when we were targeted by this man who demanded that we stop and pay $20 because several apples had fallen out of the bag into the stroller when we were pushing it up and down the hills. He stormed off before we could even fathom what was going on. We weren't even at the final check out - we were still in the orchard. He eventually came back with a small bag, yelling and pointing at us in front of our small child. He went into the bags in our stroller without warning and pulled out the couple of apples that fell out, threw them forcefully in the new small bag and started taking more out of the 2 bags we'd purchased, all the while saying we owed $20 extra. He claimed apples had to be hand carried in the bag. When we indicated that the full bags were in the stroller because we didn't have extra hands to carry them- he didn't care. He demanded the $20 as if we were trying to steal 4 apples (mind you, we had a backpack- I think if someone wanted to steal apples, he wouldn't put them visible in a stroller). We then indicated that we'd just hand carry the 2 bags of apples. He then said, oh no, if you can SEE the apples over the top edge of the bag, it's too full, even if they don't fall out, and you have to buy another bag. It was absurd. Honestly, I was dumbfounded. Returning the 3-4 extra apples was not allowed since we'd already "picked them." So we ended up being forced to buy another bag, cash only, no receipt - it went right into his pocket.
He said "I'm the owner, so I can do what I want." I guess this means he can be rude, demanding, and dehumanizing to whoever he wants. He also thought this behavior was speaking "Kindly." If this is your kind, then I don't ever want to see your "rude" behavior. I don't care about the $20, but if you want to be stringent with your rules, then you have to enforce them universally, and in doing so, speak to people with respect and not be accusatory or rude. It's not just what you say, but your body language and how you say it. It's really shocking that the owner of a place could be so rude. It reflects negatively on the entire business. Maybe he doesn't care because the season is practically over. I feel bad for its employees, most of whom appear to be young. I feel bad for the unknowing families that come to this place without knowing how the owner treats other people. We cannot be silent anymore.
Very few times in my life have I ever been treated so badly or humiliated. It's part of being a minority in the US. Afterwards, I hung out in the car and watched for 20 min and saw numerous others with similarly full bags - no one was stopped, yelled at, or humiliated. Why us?
I wish I had read these reviews earlier, as other negative reviews note the SAME ISSUES. "FAMILY OWNED" MEANS NOTHING IF YOU CAN'T TREAT CUSTOMERS RESPECTFULLY and allow families to have a good time. If you don't want people to carry bags with apples in strollers- don't allow strollers. Oh, wait- then maybe families wouldn't come and they'd lose money.
- POOR COVID PRECAUTIONS- the owner himself couldn't even wear a mask properly when yelling at us. Nose exposed and all. Crowds
- CASH only with NO RECEIPTS- who is still using cash in Covid times?! This suggests that they only care about maximizing profits and/or are underreporting earnings as there are no receipts given at ANY point of purchase during both visits... read more