Rude service at a restaurant

[larry_stewart]

yeah, and it was a big enough story that it made the new york times, and all the major network prime time news. Sure , as an attraction getter, but still.

 

[Callisto in NC]

If I could have paid off my car in pennies, I would have because they made me so mad over the life of the loan including but not limited to repossessing the car after the payment had been received, cashed, and cleared. Their error, my inconvenience. Unfortunately they have a no cash policy so I couldn't. Not taking pennies is ridiculous, are they vending their food out of a machine?

 

[Maverick2272]

Not sure I like the implication that how I ask for things is rude. I can be as nice as possible but I won't accept food twice. I just won't. I worked in a restaurant and if anyone ever sent anything back, you really don't want to know what we did to it, didn't matter why but if it had to do with how it was cooked, you wouldn't want what the guys sent you back. I've held that image in my mind for 25 years and it's why I don't accept substitutes unless a plate shows up with something I'm allergic to or just can't stand the sight of, like cold slaw. I'm just too used to the mentality where even a simple request is an annoyance no matter how it's asked. Unless you are adding to your bill, i.e. another beer, I know many waitresses that think you're making "demands" and that includes asking for extra or different sauce for your calamari. Asking them to box your food? No way. Just never going to happen no matter how polite I am or how much I tip.

As for the pennies. With the advent of the Coin Star Machines, pennies wouldn't bother my friends. They'll take what they get and move on to the next person.

I was only speaking of myself, and not trying to imply anything on your end. My own experiences in the restaurant business taught me that our polite customers had nothing to worry about, but rude ones better hope they had a strong stomach. I took those experiences with me and it is how I interact with wait staff to this day.
I think if I had seen experiences where even polite customers got treated badly for returning something, I might think differently as well.
I just see it as two different life experiences, thats all.

 

[MJK]

Too bad about your service Larry. Scranton is usually a pretty friendly town. Even to long islanders. There are a lot of good, no mkae that great restarants in the city and surrounding area. Do some web homework before the next trip and you might be surprised.

 

[DramaQueen]

I have to say what I'm feeling about the subject of what the waitstaff does when a customer sends back an unsatisfactory meal. If this gets me kicked off of this site then that's it.
How filthy a person do you have to be to spit, urinate or whatever into someone's food REGARDLESS of the reason it was sent back? In my wildest dreams I couldn't do anything that low to anyone. Is the customer supposed to accept and PAY for a meal that is not right? It doesn't matter if a person is rude or not, people can be rude, they don't deserve to have their meal contaminated by a disgustingly classless person in the kitchen. Who raised these scumbags? And why isn't someone supervising these people when they are aware that this kind of thing happens?
I am aware of it too, so if I have to send something back, (I'm always polite about it since it's not the waitstaff's fault) I never accept anything else. I know that not all restaurant employees do this, but it's so widespread that I can't trust any of them. So the restuarant is out the price of a meal, I am an unhappy customer, and the waitstaff loses out on the tip since I didn't order another meal.

 

[Robo410]

1)there are those Chinese places that have real table service.
2)there are those that are the grand buffet
3)then there are those that look like little family take outs with a few tables (even 10 or 20) but operate really as take outs whether you eat there or go home with the food.
So that's what you got...order at the counter, no continuity as to how the food comes out and each plated as a single entre for one person.

 

[Callisto in NC]

3)then there are those that look like little family take outs with a few tables (even 10 or 20) but operate really as take outs whether you eat there or go home with the food.
So that's what you got...order at the counter, no continuity as to how the food comes out and each plated as a single entre for one person.

That's kind of what the place sounded like to me. We have a lot of those in California. You order at the counter, seat yourself, and then wait for them to call to you. You never sit before ordering, I just hadn't seen one of those in my PA travels. Not that they aren't there, they just aren't in my dad's podunck town. The meal you order is not shared, it's yours and yours alone.

Here we have a great buffet but you definitely don't go at off hours. The reason for this is that they don't fully stock the buffet because the food ends up sitting there and going bad so it's wasted. I always go at lunch time or between 6 and 7 to get the freshest food.

 

[elaine l]

In this big world there are rude people. They drive, wait tables, eat in restaurants, work with the public etc. It's difficult when it's your hard earned money that is on the line and we, as consumers, expect nothing but the best for ourselves. I waited tables many moons ago and would like to think I was always at my best. Was I? I am sure I had a bad day here and there and my performance wasn't up to par. Rude, no never.

I would describe your experience as a disinterested type of hostess. Too bad. I am sure you will have many many pleasant experiences in life and phooey to her.

 

[Mama]

... I worked in a restaurant and if anyone ever sent anything back, you really don't want to know what we did to it, didn't matter why but if it had to do with how it was cooked, you wouldn't want what the guys sent you back. I've held that image in my mind for 25 years ...

I'm sorry...am I reading this right? Did you participate? Did you allow food to be taken back out to customers that had been tampered with? Oh my......

 

[Callisto in NC]

I'm sorry...am I reading this right? Did you participate? Did you allow food to be taken back out to customers that had been tampered with? Oh my......

I was 18, I was the bartender, and I did participate one time, but it was the girl that stole my boyfriend and she deserved the anchovies the guys put on her pizza.

As for allowing, it wasn't my place to allow or not to allow, I wasn't a server.

 

[GB]

As for allowing, it wasn't my place to allow or not to allow, I wasn't a server.

I am not blaming you. We have all done things in our past, especially at that age, that we would never do later in life and wish we could take back. G-d knows I have. I do have an issue with the above statement though. If you see someone tampering with food then it is your place to do something about it. Tell a manager or owner. Confront the person who was doing it. Send an anonymous letter to the owner or manager if you are not comfortable doing it face to face. If you see a wrong though then it absolutely is your responsibility to do something about it.

Again, I am not laying blame on you. I want to make sure that is very clear.

 

[deelady]

I've had a waitress ask where her tip was while half our party was still eating and we just ordered a new round of drinks!!! You know how they always bring the bill early well since there was about 6 of us we were going to split it ealry to get it out of the way, we literally almost payed it to the penny then went back to finish our meal and drinks.....less than 5 mins later she comes up and asks where her tip was.......you can only imagine how dumfounded we were!

 

[larry_stewart]

1)there are those Chinese places that have real table service.
2)there are those that are the grand buffet
3)then there are those that look like little family take outs with a few tables (even 10 or 20) but operate really as take outs whether you eat there or go home with the food.
So that's what you got...order at the counter, no continuity as to how the food comes out and each plated as a single entre for one person.

I would agree, if the restaurant wasnt broken up into two obvious sections. There was clearly the take out section with a few tables, then another room, carpeted, nicer tables which is where we ate. I agree in the sense that, it was run like a take out place with a place to eat , but it appeared, at least to me, as sit down waiter/waitress served place. Obviously i was either wrong, or she was having a really bad day. Doesnt matter, the food was good, I had plenty of left overs to take back and eat at the hotel, and I didnt let it ruin my vacation at all. I was just curious about everyone elses opinion. As for scranton,PA. We had a nice time, other than that, treated well, and I have nothing bad to say about the city. I am treating it as an isolated incedent. No big deal at all. As far as doing my web homework, I created a list of chinese/ italian places within a very reasonable distance of the museums/ things we visited, since im not familiar with the city and didnt want to base my mini vacation on eating and driving around looking for a place to eat. If I were expecting to have a really fantastic dining experience , i definately would have spent more time searching for a more ideal place. This was just a quick, eat and lets go to the next place type of thing, but even that, I expect to be treated with a smile and good attitude, weather at a take out, sit down, gas station.....where ever

 

[GB]

That is crazy deelady. What did you say to her?

 

[deelady]

I was afraid to say anything more than we are not finished with our meal and we had not planned to leave yet, I wanted to ask for a manager but I was afraid they would say we were trying to start trouble because we had been drinking. Looking back I wish I had spoken to the managment, the only thing I did say was to another waiter who refilled our water...I asked him if it was normal routine for their waitresses to ask their tables for their tips, he studdered and stammered and I apologised for putting him on the spot but I was just wondering, next thing I know al the wait staff had their heads poking out the kitchen! lol So even if she didnt get reprimanded we at least gave her co-workers something to gosip about!

 

[toni1948]

Maybe there's a reason why the place was empty..