DOn't try to do too much Although chef was very well informed, he attempted to do too much. Often had to move among recipes and he was clearly under pressure. Don't know if latter made him impolite to volunteers (only the women) but it seemed unnecessary and not humorous

Love Southern Season - Online Ordering needs improvement. We ordered a lovely Carolina-based gift basket to be delivered express delivery for nearly $40 extra. Other online stores offer 1-2 day express delivery from the time of order. It was not evident from the beginning (poorly placed messaging on the website) that the express delivery option meant that it would be shipped *after* the basket would be prepared, and this meant not on a Saturday or Sunday. This caused us to need to cancel our order, which was being delivered to a guest staying in a hotel at the time, and need to re-order to be delivered to a new location, albeit later than we wanted to. One other detail: the credit card entry method was outdated and did not work with a business expense card I often use on other online ordering platforms. I had to use a personal card. We love A Southern Season's products, but wish the online ordering system was more up-to-date.

Gift basket ordering I have been a long-time customer of Southern Season (since they were in Eastgate) but we moved away from NC 5 years ago due to a job relocation. I like to give Southern Season baskets for special occasions and in the past they had a great selection. For this most recent purchase the basket I wanted to send was out of stock, but I ordered it anyway since there was no rush to have it sent immediately. Customer service called and notified me that the item was out of stock and could not state when it would be available again. Therefore, I replaced the gift basket with another one at a similar price. I also had trouble with the website with my initial purchase, since NO e-mail confirmation was sent. Only after talking to Customer Service, did I receive an e-mail. I also am a Premier card holder and my discount and free shipping was not applied to this order. Overall, the gift basket selection online is limited and using the Premier card online does not work. For the future, I will stick with just purchasing items at the store when I am back in Chapel Hill (once a year). I love Southern Season, but since online purchasing is less satisfactory it makes sense to do only in-store purchases.

Southern Seasons test of time Growing up in Durham in the 80's, I made my Saturday ritual trip to Southern Season to shop for coffees and other wonderful treats. I have lived out of state for the past 20 years and I still shop on-line. Items I order are accurate and here in just a couple of days. Southern Season has grown and improved every year. I still stop by to shop and browse the wonderful store when I visit Chapel Hill. A great store with great memories.

Not enough hands on coming opportunity My 9 year old daughter attended a cooking class this past weekend. The facilities were lovely, and the teachers warm and kind. My daughter was, however, frustrated by the lack of actual cooking she got to do. Would have enjoyed more individual work, rather than making a class dish, which was mostly cooked by the teachers and then divided for all to try.