I really wanted to give a 10+ review but with so many screw ups there is just no way that I could. Initial communication was excellent. After we hired them to install the granite counters, it all went downhill. It seems Sam, the owner, can talk the talk but can't deliver.
The morning of the install, I received an email saying they could not make it that day. They showed up the next evening. Yes, evening, at around 5:30pm.
Our old counters were torn out. Drywall, plaster and under bar counter base was damaged. Even our sliding door frame was damaged when they wheeled in the new counters.
The install was very fast. The pieces were cut reasonably well (considering all the angles). Our issues are with the shoddy way in which the two bar countertops were joined together. The seam is uneven and feels very rough to the touch.
The granite, although beautiful on its own, has several areas that are chipped or damaged and repaired (my guess is by the company). It seems we were given 'seconds' or damaged slabs without being told this was what we were paying for. I am attaching photos of the areas that were obviously repaired. As well, we went with a 2" deep edge and you can see where the edge pieces were cracked or broken and repaired. One corner of the 2" edge is about 1 1/2" tall and gradually spans to 2". So, it isn't even all around.
I did call Sam (the owner) about this and he said he would come out to look. Instead what he did was send the same installers out and they just repaired the cracks better. Very disappointed with this because I feel we received inferior slabs.
As well, the installers had to cut some of the granite and a plywood base in our backyard. They did not clean up the mess. We had to go out the next day in sub-zero weather to pick up several small and large pieces of granite and plywood.
Overall, if you don't look too closely at the counter tops you cannot see the grey 'glue' they used as a filler for the broken or chipped pieces on the counter. I would say there are less than a dozen pieces/chunks on the slabs that were filled in.
I have updated this review because since having the counters installed, we have noticed several chips surrounding the sink opening. We have reached out many times to Sam, the owner and he either says he will come out to fix the chips or he ignores our calls/texts altogether. He was suppose to come out yesterday but at 12:30 midnight he text to say he could not make it. Unbelievable.
Today is October 18th. Last week, the owner, Sam, came to our home to repair the damages to our granite. He explained in great detail how this granite, Antico Bianco has a tendency to chip away due to the various mineral patterning. The slabs are gorgeous but not enduring. He not only repaired the chips but also replaced a couple of grey epoxy pieces. His workmanship was so good that even I cannot tell the original stone from the repairs. I have therefore upgraded my review.
- Approximate cost of services:
- $4,800.00
- Company Response
Thank you very much for your providing us the best experience. My name is Sam as the owner of City Stone Design. I'm apologize for all any happened and made my client unhappy with there countertop finishing. I never have any complaints after this job because of Ling as the home owners gave me the best experience. I was always explaining to our client to have the Quartz Countertop which are the best quality material and Free maintenance. The granite are natural stone and most of granite color are showing crack and chip everywhere around the sink and edges. Some of clients keep interesting the natural stone (granite) then we have no choice to send them to the warehouse to select the color they like, wrote their name on the slab and we honestly to purchase the correct one they selected. Few years ago that our company was trying to get our clients get out from the granite and we now have no complaints, no headache!
We had done at least 3000 private house in GTA within this few years. We always have the referral client one to one. We didn't focus on advertising, that's why we didn't know that we made one of our clients unhappy on home Star.
Thank you very much! We are happy to receive all your recommendations.
Sam- City Stone Design Inc.