[leeniek]

I'm sure we've all had them.. the patrons who are impossible to please but we had a doozy today.

She made an order and it was for a vegetarian omelette with raw veggies. We have no raw veggies on the line except for the western mix and tomatoes and the veggies in the vegetarian omelette (carrots, broc and cauli) are from an IQF mix, so we made the omelette the way we usually do, but leaving out the mushrooms as they are precooked using oil. She sends it back, and gave the server a hard time about the vegetables. I explained the IQF situation with some of the veggies and I told the server that those vegetables are blanched in water for five minutes then flash frozen and that's how they come to us. So, diner from **** says fine... I want a veg omelette whites only this time, but cooked with no butter or oil. I made it, and I warned the server that it wasn't going to look the best but we could accomadate her request. Well.. she sent it back. The third time she went back to whole eggs in her omelette but still no butter or oil and again she sent it back. She was super rude to the server and finally in a huff she said all she wanted was toast and when she went to pay she started freaking out on the owner. She said all she asked for was a simple omelette and she didn't understand how it was so hard, etc.. and the owner looked at her and said madam, I have spoken at length with the kitchen manager and his assistant and both of them did their best to accomodate your request but their grills are seasoned with oil and they do not have the proper equipment in the back to cook without any fat in the pan at all.

I would have said.. eat at home if you're so **** picky... but that's just me! There are so many reasons WHY I do not serve and people like her remind me of them!

[chefboy2160]

This site will help you though the tough times
The Stained Apron

The best response ever given to a patron:
Question: Do you serve crackers here?
Answer: Yes, ma'am, we serve everybody!

—Mr. Happy, New York City

[dishdave]

Jesus Christ. 3 times. I feel for you.

I tell you what I hate the worst though...it's not orders with a millions modifiers that are almost impossible to accommodate, its those people who order a dish just exactly the way it comes off/is described on the menu and then complain that they don't like it. I mean, sometimes I order a dish somewhere and I just don't like it...you chalk that kind of thing up to experience (or whatever you want to call it). I certainly don't demand my money back or get all *****y with the staff just because I picked something off the menu that I just happened to not like very much.

When I, or we, put out a dish that is just as it should be (and always is, nothing goes through our window that we wouldn't serve to ourselves. If it's not right, it's not getting served, no matter how long it's gonna take to re-make it or fix it) and the customer gets all upset because they aren't happy with what they picked, it makes us furious. Our FOH manager has a terrible tendency to give these people free deserts, comps, etc. That just doesn't seem right to me. Just the other day I heard a figure of how much our FOH manager has comped in just the last month and I liked to have passed out right then and there.

I do understand that, I (and we) work in the service industry, and our primary job is to service customers and keep them happy...give them what they want, etc. But ****, some people are just always trying to get something free out of you because they are SURE they can. That just disgusts me. I will, 99.9% of the time do whatever it takes to make my customers happy...I am making their meal that day...but don't get pissed because you were unhappy with a well made dish just as it is described on the menu. Get something different the next time.

But yeah, sorry to hear about the customer from ****.

/endrant.