Monday, November 21, 2011

It goes without saying, but...

Damn, people are assholes.
I waited on two women tonight who seemed nice enough. One asked what our stew came over and I jokingly replied, "A bowl."
She decided to get it over pasta, which I warned her would cost extra so come check time, there would be no surprises. They agree, have their meal and dessert, everyone is happy. I drop the check, and they call me over two minutes later.
"Can you tell me why this stew is so expensive?"
"Well... it was this much to begin with, and I told you I had to add in the pasta, so there it is."
"The penne was THREE NINETY FIVE? That's outrageous!"

Now, maybe I should have specified how much I had to add for the pasta from the get-go, but I didn't want to insult them and they agreed to a higher price. They asked me once more why a side a pasta was so much.
"Ma'am, I'm sorry I don't have a better answer for you, but I don't make the prices; it's just my job to charge them."
"Well, NEVER again."
I meekly smile, apologize once more, and walk away.

They pay at the register, and somehow this meal has turned into the WORST MEAL they've ever had. The food was dry, the prices were too high, etc. etc. Mind you, they complained about none of that when I checked on them.
I go to clear the table, no tip. I check the register to see if they left it on the card, nope. The bitches stiffed me. This pissed me off more than usual.
I understand you're upset about the price, and I'm sorry for that. Maybe I should have told you up-front, maybe you should have asked. I'm sorry your food was dry. Maybe you should have told me while I was at your table and could have done something about it. But the person you're pissed at in the end is the restaurant, not me. Cheating me out of a tip doesn't hurt "the man," you still paid for your food and they're none the wiser at the end of the day. The only person you're hurting is the 22-year-old who has college tuition and car payments, who just happened to be your waitress. And that's just a downright mean thing to do.

Cunts.

3 comments:

  1. They shouldn't have stiffed you, no doubt. Next time know the cost of the add on and you will be able to say "It will be an additional charge of 3.95 for the penne ma'am." Because anyone who asks for extras or is that cheap is going to pitch a fit over any charge that exceeds "free" [even though you told her "additional charge."] I know it is hard to know the additional cost of every extra so you could just say "The penne will be extra to add to your meal. Let me check the price real quick and I'll be right back to confirm if you still want it."

    I know most people think a scoop of pasta costs .50 cents to make at home [and it does] but they are making it, serving it AND cleaning up after it. In a restaurant it is a whole other deal.

    Good luck.

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  2. @SkippyMom
    It's not that I didn't know the price (after four years you get to know a menu inside and out, haha), but I've found if you tell people the exact price of each extra charge, they assume you think they're cheap or poor, so I try not to give numbers unless asked.
    Guess I misjudged this one!

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  3. Either way, getting stiffed over that is fucked up. It seems they were looking for a way not to tip...

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