Irrespective of the location, what's been your funniest or worst
restaurant experience/s you've had so far - as in the food and / or
service being terrible, or the food and service being fine and very
good, but something else amusing occurred.

"Rob" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Irrespective of the location, what's been your funniest or worst
> restaurant experience/s you've had so far - as in the food and / or
> service being terrible, or the food and service being fine and very
> good, but something else amusing occurred.
>

I was able to turn a bad experience into a good one.

A group of about five of us went to a well know restaurant in Philadelphia.
My wife had poor service there once so we never went back, but our friends
from out of town really wanted to try it. Mid week, not a particularly busy
night and we were early, the place was just opening for the dinner hour..

We gave our name to the hostess and waited for a table. Many others came in
after us and were quickly seated. I inquired and was firmly told just go
sit and wait until we want to seat you. So, I went to the pay phone in the
lobby and called the owner. I explained the situation and told him we were
headed out the door to another place to dine. He asked that I wait and in
about two minutes we were seated, given one of his "private" tables, and one
of the best waiters I've ever encountered.

Turned out to be a delightful evening and dessert on the house.

On Fri 25 Nov 2005 08:07:25p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Rob?

> Irrespective of the location, what's been your funniest or worst
> restaurant experience/s you've had so far - as in the food and / or
> service being terrible, or the food and service being fine and very
> good, but something else amusing occurred.

This was a very strange and funny experience, even though the food was
worth what we "endured".

Years ago when I was in New Jersey for a week-long seminar, I asked one our
seminar hosts (who was Chinese) if she could recommend a good, authentic
Chinese restaurant in Chinatown, NYC that specialiced in dim sum. She
praised her recommendation while writing out the name and address for me.
As a frequent traveler to NYC, and having eaten in Chinatown many times,
the restaurant she recommended was one I'd never heard of.

At the end of the seminar I drove to NYC for a week's vacation. On the
Sunday of that week we went to the restaurant that was recommended. As
soon as we entered I realized that this was truly *authentic*, as there
wasn't an Occidental face in the place, neither staff or diners. It was
terribly crowded, mostly with Chinese family groups, some rather large.
Most of the women were wearing flowers. Most tables were set for 8-10
people. The host took us on a rambling trip to a room upstairs and in the
back and indicated that we should sit in the two chairs where six members
of a family were already seated. Not seeing any other tables, we complied.
We realized we were in even bigger "trouble" when we learned there were no
menus, only a placard in Chinese in the center of the table, and a
chalkboard of what I imagine were specialites on the wall. Soon we spotted
a waitress pushing a dim sum cart and discreetly motioned for her to come
to our table. She complied. No one spoke English, and we never heard a
word of English in the entire restaurant during our stay. There was no
flatware, only chopsticks...not surprising. We began selecting items from
the procession of carts that came through, and every item we chose was
delictable, that is, until just at the end. We spotted several dishes that
each boasted a single beautifully glazed meatball. Assuming it was
probably made of pork, we both indicated we wanted one. What we ended up
with were balls of tripe! Chewing was almost impossible for our teeth were
bouncing off the meatball. With only chopsticks, it was impossible to break
small pieces apart. We left most of it uneaten. All the while, the other
party at our table would smile bashfully and sometimes gently laugh.

When it was finally time to go, we were given a check that was written in
Chinese. We made our way to the front and presented the check to the
cashier. We had no idea how much we owed, but we had consumed a fair
amount of food. I proffered three twenty dollar bills. The cashier
handed two of them back, then proceeded to make change from the third bill.
She handed back a bit more than nine dollars in change!

As we were walking down the street, it suddenly dawned on us why the place
was so crowded. It was Mother's Day, and the Chinese (at least in the US)
were celebrating in full swing.

It was a delicious meal of dim sum, even if we were not a little self-
conscious the whole time.

--
Wayne Boatwright *¿*
_____________________________________________

A chicken in every pot is a *LOT* of chicken!

It was some years ago,
driving through the boondocks of New Jersey
..
Decided to stop for coffee and a late night snack.
The only place open was the "Truckstop Diner"

We were turned away at the door by the waitress;
"This restaurant is for truckers only"
????

Who turns away business ?? Why ????



<rj>

"<RJ>" > wrote in message
...
> It was some years ago,
> driving through the boondocks of New Jersey
> .
> Decided to stop for coffee and a late night snack.
> The only place open was the "Truckstop Diner"
>
> We were turned away at the door by the waitress;
> "This restaurant is for truckers only"
> ????
>
> Who turns away business ?? Why ????

Last summer we were away for the weekend and went looking for a
restaurant for lunch. We pulled up outside a nice looking hotel and
went inside.

There was a large dining room with a small mezzanine space to one side.
The place was empty except for a long table on the left full of jolly
bikers.

We went to sit down at a table for four as we couldn't see a table for
two. The waitress told us she only had a table in the smoking section.
Since we were the only people in the room apart from the diners I
questioned this. The mezzanine section was for smokers and only in that
area did she have tables for two.

I said I preferred to stay where we were since we don't smoke anway.
She told us that was impossible and when asked why, we were told that a
party of four might come in. She did however ask the bikers if they
would mind us joining the end of their table! Please don't
misunderstand me. We have nothing against bikers and they were a
friendly bunch but to refuse a table for 4 for 2 people, when the rest
of the place was empty seemsed to be stupid and unwelcoming. I told
her to keep her tables, thanked the biker's nicely and left. We found
somewhere else that appreciated our custom!

"Ophelia" > wrote

> "<RJ>" > wrote

>> We were turned away at the door by the waitress;
>> "This restaurant is for truckers only"
>> ????
>>
>> Who turns away business ?? Why ????

> would mind us joining the end of their table! Please don't misunderstand
> me. We have nothing against bikers and they were a friendly bunch but to
> refuse a table for 4 for 2 people, when the rest of the place was empty
> seemsed to be stupid and unwelcoming. I told her to keep her tables,
> thanked the biker's nicely and left. We found somewhere else that
> appreciated our custom!

Now, *those* are two weird stories. Too funny.

nancy

We live near the beach and there is a building right on the beach that
houses 2 restaurants upstairs and a trendy cafe/light meals place
downstairs. It is a magic location where you can really impress
out-of-town friends! The several times I have frequented the cafe I
have had surly service. I go back in the vain hope things might have
changed.
The last time I had a girlfriend with me - check this out - 9.30am on a
weekday (i.,e. quiet) we walked in for a coffee and moved towards a
small table for 2 facing the water, inside the cafe. There were
perhaps 3 tables elsewhere in the room that were occupied. Accosted by
the waitress were asked if we were breakfasting. No, thanks, coffee
would be great. Sorry, you can't have one of these tables. You mayonly
sit outside on rough picnic style table setting.Polite protestations
had no effect.
The inside tables are reserved only for diners! At 9.30 on a weekday,
I doubt whether anyone was going to arrive for breakfast much later. I
wonder if the tables lay empty until a pretermined hour for lunch is
announced! Weekends would be quite a different proposition, however, I
still find the rule discriminatory.
We left without coffee and went to the surf club oppposite sitting at a
lovely table overlooking the view, and were treated with respect.
I sent a letter of complaint to the cafe but never received a reply.
I definitely will never go back. Really, tourist precinct or not, it
is shocking.

Cheers
Bronwyn

On Sat 26 Nov 2005 10:29:08a, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Ophelia?

>
> "<RJ>" > wrote in message
> ...
>> It was some years ago, driving through the boondocks of New Jersey .
>> Decided to stop for coffee and a late night snack.
>> The only place open was the "Truckstop Diner"
>>
>> We were turned away at the door by the waitress;
>> "This restaurant is for truckers only" ????
>>
>> Who turns away business ?? Why ????
>
> Last summer we were away for the weekend and went looking for a
> restaurant for lunch. We pulled up outside a nice looking hotel and
> went inside.
>
> There was a large dining room with a small mezzanine space to one side.
> The place was empty except for a long table on the left full of jolly
> bikers.
>
> We went to sit down at a table for four as we couldn't see a table for
> two. The waitress told us she only had a table in the smoking section.
> Since we were the only people in the room apart from the diners I
> questioned this. The mezzanine section was for smokers and only in that
> area did she have tables for two.
>
> I said I preferred to stay where we were since we don't smoke anway.
> She told us that was impossible and when asked why, we were told that a
> party of four might come in. She did however ask the bikers if they
> would mind us joining the end of their table! Please don't
> misunderstand me. We have nothing against bikers and they were a
> friendly bunch but to refuse a table for 4 for 2 people, when the rest
> of the place was empty seemsed to be stupid and unwelcoming. I told
> her to keep her tables, thanked the biker's nicely and left. We found
> somewhere else that appreciated our custom!

I can't believe that waitress! What was she thinking?

--
Wayne Boatwright *¿*
_____________________________________________

A chicken in every pot is a *LOT* of chicken!

"Wayne Boatwright" > wrote in message
...
> On Sat 26 Nov 2005 10:29:08a, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it
> Ophelia?
>
>>
>> "<RJ>" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>> It was some years ago, driving through the boondocks of New Jersey .
>>> Decided to stop for coffee and a late night snack.
>>> The only place open was the "Truckstop Diner"
>>>
>>> We were turned away at the door by the waitress;
>>> "This restaurant is for truckers only" ????
>>>
>>> Who turns away business ?? Why ????
>>
>> Last summer we were away for the weekend and went looking for a
>> restaurant for lunch. We pulled up outside a nice looking hotel and
>> went inside.
>>
>> There was a large dining room with a small mezzanine space to one
>> side.
>> The place was empty except for a long table on the left full of jolly
>> bikers.
>>
>> We went to sit down at a table for four as we couldn't see a table
>> for
>> two. The waitress told us she only had a table in the smoking
>> section.
>> Since we were the only people in the room apart from the diners I
>> questioned this. The mezzanine section was for smokers and only in
>> that
>> area did she have tables for two.
>>
>> I said I preferred to stay where we were since we don't smoke anway.
>> She told us that was impossible and when asked why, we were told that
>> a
>> party of four might come in. She did however ask the bikers if they
>> would mind us joining the end of their table! Please don't
>> misunderstand me. We have nothing against bikers and they were a
>> friendly bunch but to refuse a table for 4 for 2 people, when the
>> rest
>> of the place was empty seemsed to be stupid and unwelcoming. I told
>> her to keep her tables, thanked the biker's nicely and left. We
>> found
>> somewhere else that appreciated our custom!
>
> I can't believe that waitress! What was she thinking?

I don't know Wayne but she must have cost that place a lot of business

It wasn't the waitress - it was company policy - except she was not
intelligent enough to make her assessment and please a customer!!

On Sat, 26 Nov 2005 17:29:08 GMT, "Ophelia" > wrote:
>Last summer we were away for the weekend and went looking for a
>restaurant for lunch. We pulled up outside a nice looking hotel and
>went inside.
>
>There was a large dining room with a small mezzanine space to one side.
>The place was empty except for a long table on the left full of jolly
>bikers.
>
>We went to sit down at a table for four as we couldn't see a table for
>two. The waitress told us she only had a table in the smoking section.
>Since we were the only people in the room apart from the diners I
>questioned this. The mezzanine section was for smokers and only in that
>area did she have tables for two.
>
>I said I preferred to stay where we were since we don't smoke anway.
>She told us that was impossible and when asked why, we were told that a
>party of four might come in. She did however ask the bikers if they
>would mind us joining the end of their table! Please don't
>misunderstand me. We have nothing against bikers and they were a
>friendly bunch but to refuse a table for 4 for 2 people, when the rest
>of the place was empty seemsed to be stupid and unwelcoming. I told
>her to keep her tables, thanked the biker's nicely and left. We found
>somewhere else that appreciated our custom!

In Vienna about 15 years ago I was strolling around, alone. It was 1
pm (late for lunch in Austria), I was hungry. Found a nice-looking
place, with 4 empty tables for 4 on the terrace (it was a beautiful
sunny summer day). A waitress was there, I said I wanted lunch, she
motioned for me to come inside. I said no, I preferred outside. She
said I couldn't sit there (implying I coulnd't take a table for 4
alone). I hardly need to add that I left. Sigh.

Nathalie in Switzerland

"Nathalie Chiva" > wrote in
message ...
> On Sat, 26 Nov 2005 17:29:08 GMT, "Ophelia" > wrote:
>>Last summer we were away for the weekend and went looking for a
>>restaurant for lunch. We pulled up outside a nice looking hotel and
>>went inside.
>>
>>There was a large dining room with a small mezzanine space to one
>>side.
>>The place was empty except for a long table on the left full of jolly
>>bikers.
>>
>>We went to sit down at a table for four as we couldn't see a table for
>>two. The waitress told us she only had a table in the smoking
>>section.
>>Since we were the only people in the room apart from the diners I
>>questioned this. The mezzanine section was for smokers and only in
>>that
>>area did she have tables for two.
>>
>>I said I preferred to stay where we were since we don't smoke anway.
>>She told us that was impossible and when asked why, we were told that
>>a
>>party of four might come in. She did however ask the bikers if they
>>would mind us joining the end of their table! Please don't
>>misunderstand me. We have nothing against bikers and they were a
>>friendly bunch but to refuse a table for 4 for 2 people, when the rest
>>of the place was empty seemsed to be stupid and unwelcoming. I told
>>her to keep her tables, thanked the biker's nicely and left. We found
>>somewhere else that appreciated our custom!
>
> In Vienna about 15 years ago I was strolling around, alone. It was 1
> pm (late for lunch in Austria), I was hungry. Found a nice-looking
> place, with 4 empty tables for 4 on the terrace (it was a beautiful
> sunny summer day). A waitress was there, I said I wanted lunch, she
> motioned for me to come inside. I said no, I preferred outside. She
> said I couldn't sit there (implying I coulnd't take a table for 4
> alone). I hardly need to add that I left. Sigh.

and so these stupid people lose custom!!

The scene is yum cha at a cheap chinese restaurant (which I normally love
BTW).

1) Despite booking ahead they had insufficient room for us so we had 15
people at a round table for 8, my chair was so far back I could hardly reach
my food, to leave the table required pushing your chair back into the people
next door so you could get out..
2) They kept bringing plates of chicken feet despite being told repeatedly
that we didn't want them.
3) The waiter dropped a platter of something or other that was swimming in
sauce on the table, he scooped up most of the solids and vanished with no
apology, several people were left with table cloth soaked in sauce in front
of them, with nowhere for their plate or anything else, when the owner was
summoned he grudgingly put a smaller table cloth over the large wet spot but
wouldn't replace the whole thing, then they tried to charge us for it.
4) Overall the food was very ordinary, the service was terrible and the
ambience horrid, at the end they asked if we wanted sweets and/or coffee and
we rose as a body saying "No!" and went up the road to a coffee shop. There
was no tip.

David

On Sat, 26 Nov 2005 09:39:06 -0700, "<RJ>" >
wrote:

>It was some years ago,
>driving through the boondocks of New Jersey
>.
>Decided to stop for coffee and a late night snack.
>The only place open was the "Truckstop Diner"
>
>We were turned away at the door by the waitress;
>"This restaurant is for truckers only"
>????
>
>Who turns away business ?? Why ????
>
>
>
><rj>

When we were kids in the early 1960's, our family was out for a drive
and our parents stopped at a small coffee shop on a busy highway just
outside of Riverside, CA. There was a small motel behind the coffee
shop. I was about 10-years old. When our family walked in for lunch, I
remember there were a lot of women sitting around by themselvers, but
all dressed up, wearing a lot of makeup. The owner behind the lunch
counter said, "We don't serve childen here, you'll have to leave". We
left with out being seated and ate at another place on down the road.

A few months later there was a news story about the coffee shop and
motel being busted for prostitution.

Maybe they are tuning away one kind of business for another.


-Rusty

In article >,
Rusty > wrote:

> On Sat, 26 Nov 2005 09:39:06 -0700, "<RJ>" >
> wrote:
>
> >It was some years ago,
> >driving through the boondocks of New Jersey
> >.
> >Decided to stop for coffee and a late night snack.
> >The only place open was the "Truckstop Diner"
> >
> >We were turned away at the door by the waitress;
> >"This restaurant is for truckers only"
> >????
> >
> >Who turns away business ?? Why ????

> When we were kids in the early 1960's, our family was out for a drive
> and our parents stopped at a small coffee shop on a busy highway just
> outside of Riverside, CA. There was a small motel behind the coffee
> shop. I was about 10-years old. When our family walked in for lunch, I
> remember there were a lot of women sitting around by themselvers, but
> all dressed up, wearing a lot of makeup. The owner behind the lunch
> counter said, "We don't serve childen here, you'll have to leave". We
> left with out being seated and ate at another place on down the road.
>
> A few months later there was a news story about the coffee shop and
> motel being busted for prostitution.
>
> Maybe they are tuning away one kind of business for another.

I was wondering about this also. Some years ago, almost all truckers
were men. Maybe, "truckers only" meant a strip joint, or a place for
prostitution.

--
Dan Abel

Petaluma, California, USA

"Dan Abel" > wrote

> Rusty > wrote:
>
>> On Sat, 26 Nov 2005 09:39:06 -0700, "<RJ>" >
>> wrote:

>> >We were turned away at the door by the waitress;
>> >"This restaurant is for truckers only"
>> >????
>> >
>> >Who turns away business ?? Why ????
>
>> When we were kids in the early 1960's, our family was out for a drive
>> and our parents stopped at a small coffee shop on a busy highway just
>> outside of Riverside, CA. There was a small motel behind the coffee
>> shop. I was about 10-years old. When our family walked in for lunch, I
>> remember there were a lot of women sitting around by themselvers, but
>> all dressed up, wearing a lot of makeup. The owner behind the lunch
>> counter said, "We don't serve childen here, you'll have to leave". We
>> left with out being seated and ate at another place on down the road.
>>
>> A few months later there was a news story about the coffee shop and
>> motel being busted for prostitution.
>>
>> Maybe they are tuning away one kind of business for another.
>
> I was wondering about this also. Some years ago, almost all truckers
> were men. Maybe, "truckers only" meant a strip joint, or a place for
> prostitution.

Duh!!! I must be losing my touch, of course that's why the truckers
thing.

nancy

Maybe when the owners started the business, a condition of the original
planning permission was that the cafe was to cater for lorry drivers only,
in order to prevent extra traffic to the site.

Similar thing is under discussion in the UK.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/suffolk/4217408.stm



"<RJ>" > wrote in message
...
> It was some years ago,
> driving through the boondocks of New Jersey
> .
> Decided to stop for coffee and a late night snack.
> The only place open was the "Truckstop Diner"
>
> We were turned away at the door by the waitress;
> "This restaurant is for truckers only"
> ????
>
> Who turns away business ?? Why ????
>
>
>
> <rj>

In article .com>,
"Rob" > wrote:

> Irrespective of the location, what's been your funniest or worst
> restaurant experience/s you've had so far - as in the food and / or
> service being terrible, or the food and service being fine and very
> good, but something else amusing occurred.

Several years ago, a few friends and I went into a diner in Philadelphia
to eat dinner after we saw a movie. As our food was served, a waitress
brought over a friend's chicken parmasian. This friend was the final
person at our table to be served. The poor waitress' hand slipped as she
was about to remove the platter from her serving tray. Instead of
placing the food in front of my friend, she received her dinner in her
lap and all over her shirt! Fortunately, my friend was just dressed in
inexpensive casual attire.

The friend who had the food dumped on her was every bit is beautiful on
the inside as she is on the outside so she reacted very politely and
calmly. The look on the face of the waitress was one of horror. The
waitress could not have been more apologetic. My friend stepped into the
ladies' restroom, cleaned herself up reasonably well. By the time she
returned to the table, a fresh plate of food was waiting there for her
and we had all our meals comped by the management.

We tipped generously, including the dumpee, because the poor waitress
really did look like she was having a bad day and the restaurant was
packed at the time.

Stan Horwitz wrote:
> In article .com>,
> "Rob" > wrote:
>
> > Irrespective of the location, what's been your funniest or worst
> > restaurant experience/s you've had so far - as in the food and / or
> > service being terrible, or the food and service being fine and very
> > good, but something else amusing occurred.
>
> Several years ago, a few friends and I went into a diner in Philadelphia
> to eat dinner after we saw a movie. As our food was served, a waitress
> brought over a friend's chicken parmasian. This friend was the final
> person at our table to be served. The poor waitress' hand slipped as she
> was about to remove the platter from her serving tray. Instead of
> placing the food in front of my friend, she received her dinner in her
> lap and all over her shirt! Fortunately, my friend was just dressed in
> inexpensive casual attire.
>
> The friend who had the food dumped on her was every bit is beautiful on
> the inside as she is on the outside so she reacted very politely and
> calmly. The look on the face of the waitress was one of horror. The
> waitress could not have been more apologetic. My friend stepped into the
> ladies' restroom, cleaned herself up reasonably well. By the time she
> returned to the table, a fresh plate of food was waiting there for her
> and we had all our meals comped by the management.
>
> We tipped generously, including the dumpee, because the poor waitress
> really did look like she was having a bad day and the restaurant was
> packed at the time.

My husband and I went to Portland Maine for a long weekend to get away
for our birthdays ( we are born on the same day ) We decided to eat
early so we could walk around after dinner. We were the second
customers to this restaurant ans we were quickly seated. He ordered the
half roasted chicken and I ordered a scallop appetizer on mesclun salad
with fried julienne leeks for my dinner. The waitress brought my meal
as an appetizer even though I asked her to bring it for my entree. She
appologized when i mentioned the mix-up but i told her not to worry
about it i will just wait to eat until my husbands dinner was served.
Well it took a good 30 minutes for his dinner to arrive and by that
time the mesclun salad was very wilted and i asked if she could just
replace the greens and not the scallops. She returned with a new salad
and the scallops were reheated but there weren't any fried leeks. I
asked if she could bring a small plate of the fried leeks. She returned
with ONE very THIN piece of fried leek the size of a toothpick on a
bread plate. I called her back and told her if the chef has a problem
then ask him to come out here and settle it. I told her that is the
rudest thing a chef can do, I have been a catering chef for over 15
years and tell the chef to get off his high horse. I also told her I am
no longer hungry and the chef ruined our birthday dinner. The manager
came over and appologized over and over. We got a dinner on the house
and a dessert which we refused, The chefs excuse was that they ran out
of leeks. It was a house special and we were the second couple that was
seated that night. No way did they run out of leeks 40 minutes into
service.
Stan Horwitz wrote:
> In article .com>,
> "Rob" > wrote:
>
> > Irrespective of the location, what's been your funniest or worst
> > restaurant experience/s you've had so far - as in the food and / or
> > service being terrible, or the food and service being fine and very
> > good, but something else amusing occurred.
>
> Several years ago, a few friends and I went into a diner in Philadelphia
> to eat dinner after we saw a movie. As our food was served, a waitress
> brought over a friend's chicken parmasian. This friend was the final
> person at our table to be served. The poor waitress' hand slipped as she
> was about to remove the platter from her serving tray. Instead of
> placing the food in front of my friend, she received her dinner in her
> lap and all over her shirt! Fortunately, my friend was just dressed in
> inexpensive casual attire.
>
> The friend who had the food dumped on her was every bit is beautiful on
> the inside as she is on the outside so she reacted very politely and
> calmly. The look on the face of the waitress was one of horror. The
> waitress could not have been more apologetic. My friend stepped into the
> ladies' restroom, cleaned herself up reasonably well. By the time she
> returned to the table, a fresh plate of food was waiting there for her
> and we had all our meals comped by the management.
>
> We tipped generously, including the dumpee, because the poor waitress
> really did look like she was having a bad day and the restaurant was
> packed at the time.

channeltool wrote:

>
> and a dessert which we refused, The chefs excuse was that they ran out
> of leeks. It was a house special and we were the second couple that was
> seated that night. No way did they run out of leeks 40 minutes into
> service.o the

You can offer some very attractively priced specials if you aren't really
offering them :-)

A number of years ago, a friend of mine warned me away from a restaurant that
had recently opened. It had been a dilapidated old building and someone had
bought it and but a lot of work into rebuilding it and turning it into a
restaurant. My friend and his wife went there on a Tuesday night to try it
out. They weren't sure if it was really open because there were no cars in the
parking lot. When he went in the owner greeted him at the door and asked if he
had reservations, and then went through the motions of checking the
reservation sheet to see if he could fit them in.

I was once turned away from the restaurant in a motel where I was staying on
business in a grubby northern town. I had clean jeans and a clean shirt and
explained that I was staying in the hotel and just wanted a quick meal. They
finally agreed to let me in. I was the only person there and the dinner was
awful.

Stan Horwitz wrote:
> In article .com>,
> "Rob" > wrote:
>
>> Irrespective of the location, what's been your funniest or worst
>> restaurant experience/s you've had so far - as in the food and / or
>> service being terrible, or the food and service being fine and very
>> good, but something else amusing occurred.
>
> Several years ago, a few friends and I went into a diner in
> Philadelphia to eat dinner after we saw a movie. As our food was
> served, a waitress brought over a friend's chicken parmasian. This
> friend was the final person at our table to be served. The poor
> waitress' hand slipped as she was about to remove the platter from
> her serving tray. Instead of placing the food in front of my friend,
> she received her dinner in her lap and all over her shirt!
> Fortunately, my friend was just dressed in inexpensive casual attire.
>
> The friend who had the food dumped on her was every bit is beautiful
> on the inside as she is on the outside so she reacted very politely
> and calmly. The look on the face of the waitress was one of horror.
> The waitress could not have been more apologetic. My friend stepped
> into the ladies' restroom, cleaned herself up reasonably well. By the
> time she returned to the table, a fresh plate of food was waiting
> there for her and we had all our meals comped by the management.
>
> We tipped generously, including the dumpee, because the poor waitress
> really did look like she was having a bad day and the restaurant was
> packed at the time.

Another working at a restaurant experience... lunch time and a busy day.
Someone I used to work with in retail was dining with friends. I can only
imagine this was a true Freudian slip because I'd never dumped anything in
anyones lap, either before before or after. But those Mai Tais or whatever
booze she'd ordered slid right off the tray and splashed red fruit juice and
booze all down the front of her dress. EEEP!

She was gracious about it and the manager comped her meal. I was
embarrassed as hell and asked another server to swap tables with me lest I
drop hot fish and hush puppies in her lap.

Jill

Worst:

We were in TGIFridays (not a place I like to go anyway, but I wasn't in
charge of picking that night) I took my 6 year old to the rest room after
dinner while my DH was settling up the check.
Our waitress burst into the bathroom while we were standing there washing
our hands, went into a stall and started vomiting. I felt bad for her, and
stuck around to see if she needed some help. She exited the stall, I asked
are you OK? She said yes, walked out the door and kept on serving. Please
take note that washing her hands was NOT part of this encounter.
I told the manager, but at that point DH had already paid and all I wanted
to do was get out of there.


"Rob" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Irrespective of the location, what's been your funniest or worst
> restaurant experience/s you've had so far - as in the food and / or
> service being terrible, or the food and service being fine and very
> good, but something else amusing occurred.
>

On 2005-11-26, Knit Chic > wrote:

> We were in TGIFridays.....

It's a safe bet one-time patrons of TGIFridays vastly outnumber
regulars. I'm one of the former for more reasons than I care to
relate.

nb

We went to this restaurant that had ribs as a theme ... not a
rib joint, actually, but a restaurant. I don't remember what we
ordered, that was some time ago, but I guess we ordered an
appetizer, dinner, dessert, there was a bread basket, couple of
rounds of drinks. I think that pretty well describes it.

Sat down, ordered drinks, over came the drinks, ordered the
appetizer, that came along with the requisite little dishes for each
of us, then came dinner. Along with another drink, no doubt.

Now, to describe the setting; we were sitting at a table for two,
to say, not as large as my desk. Rectangular and not much wider
than a person on the sitting sides. (laugh ... did I mangle that badly
enough?)

Drinks, appetizer, bread plates, salad ... this was really a stretch, but we
got everything to fit. Next came dinner. Well, the waitress didn't
take anything away with her. As in empty plates/glasses. Luckily
or fortuitously, there was a ledge that the table butted up against,
it held a large planter. Enough room so that we started stacking
dishes on it.

Well, we didn't order THAT much food, but everything came on a
separate plate, ribs on one plate, vegetable in a little bowl, etc., you
get the idea.

We were laughing our ass off, I swear, we left after paying the bill,
you didn't even have a place to put the thing down so you could sign
it. None of this seemed to faze the waitress AT ALL.

Honest, I was waiting for Peter Funt to come over and say we'd
been had.

nancy

"Nancy Young" > wrote in message
...
> We went to this restaurant that had ribs as a theme ... not a
> rib joint, actually, but a restaurant. I don't remember what we
> ordered, that was some time ago, but I guess we ordered an
> appetizer, dinner, dessert, there was a bread basket, couple of
> rounds of drinks. I think that pretty well describes it.
>
> Sat down, ordered drinks, over came the drinks, ordered the
> appetizer, that came along with the requisite little dishes for each
> of us, then came dinner. Along with another drink, no doubt.
>
> Now, to describe the setting; we were sitting at a table for two,
> to say, not as large as my desk. Rectangular and not much wider
> than a person on the sitting sides. (laugh ... did I mangle that
> badly
> enough?)
>
> Drinks, appetizer, bread plates, salad ... this was really a stretch,
> but we
> got everything to fit. Next came dinner. Well, the waitress didn't
> take anything away with her. As in empty plates/glasses. Luckily
> or fortuitously, there was a ledge that the table butted up against,
> it held a large planter. Enough room so that we started stacking
> dishes on it.
>
> Well, we didn't order THAT much food, but everything came on a
> separate plate, ribs on one plate, vegetable in a little bowl, etc.,
> you
> get the idea.
>
> We were laughing our ass off, I swear, we left after paying the bill,
> you didn't even have a place to put the thing down so you could sign
> it. None of this seemed to faze the waitress AT ALL.

That was seriously wierd)

Nancy Young wrote:
> We went to this restaurant that had ribs as a theme ... not a
> rib joint, actually, but a restaurant. I don't remember what we
> ordered, that was some time ago, but I guess we ordered an
> appetizer, dinner, dessert, there was a bread basket, couple of
> rounds of drinks. I think that pretty well describes it.
>
> Sat down, ordered drinks, over came the drinks, ordered the
> appetizer, that came along with the requisite little dishes for each
> of us, then came dinner. Along with another drink, no doubt.
>
> Now, to describe the setting; we were sitting at a table for two,
> to say, not as large as my desk. Rectangular and not much wider
> than a person on the sitting sides. (laugh ... did I mangle that
> badly enough?)
>
> Drinks, appetizer, bread plates, salad ... this was really a stretch,
> but we got everything to fit. Next came dinner. Well, the waitress
> didn't
> take anything away with her. As in empty plates/glasses. Luckily
> or fortuitously, there was a ledge that the table butted up against,
> it held a large planter. Enough room so that we started stacking
> dishes on it.
>
> Well, we didn't order THAT much food, but everything came on a
> separate plate, ribs on one plate, vegetable in a little bowl, etc.,
> you get the idea.
>
> We were laughing our ass off, I swear, we left after paying the bill,
> you didn't even have a place to put the thing down so you could sign
> it. None of this seemed to faze the waitress AT ALL.
>
> Honest, I was waiting for Peter Funt to come over and say we'd
> been had.
>
> nancy

This is why, if I owned a restaurant, there wouldn't be any duces (tables
for two) except in the bar area where most likely only an appetizer would be
served along with drinks.

Part of a good servers' job is to pre-bus the table - remove empty bowls,
plates, glassware. God, where do you have to to go get good help these
days?!

Jill

"jmcquown" > wrote in message
. ..
> Nancy Young wrote:
>> We went to this restaurant that had ribs as a theme ... not a
>> rib joint, actually, but a restaurant. I don't remember what we
>> ordered, that was some time ago, but I guess we ordered an
>> appetizer, dinner, dessert, there was a bread basket, couple of
>> rounds of drinks. I think that pretty well describes it.
>>
>> Sat down, ordered drinks, over came the drinks, ordered the
>> appetizer, that came along with the requisite little dishes for each
>> of us, then came dinner. Along with another drink, no doubt.
>>
>> Now, to describe the setting; we were sitting at a table for two,
>> to say, not as large as my desk. Rectangular and not much wider
>> than a person on the sitting sides. (laugh ... did I mangle that
>> badly enough?)
>>
>> Drinks, appetizer, bread plates, salad ... this was really a stretch,
>> but we got everything to fit. Next came dinner. Well, the waitress
>> didn't
>> take anything away with her. As in empty plates/glasses. Luckily
>> or fortuitously, there was a ledge that the table butted up against,
>> it held a large planter. Enough room so that we started stacking
>> dishes on it.
>>
>> Well, we didn't order THAT much food, but everything came on a
>> separate plate, ribs on one plate, vegetable in a little bowl, etc.,
>> you get the idea.
>>
>> We were laughing our ass off, I swear, we left after paying the bill,
>> you didn't even have a place to put the thing down so you could sign
>> it. None of this seemed to faze the waitress AT ALL.
>>
>> Honest, I was waiting for Peter Funt to come over and say we'd
>> been had.
>>
>> nancy
>
> This is why, if I owned a restaurant, there wouldn't be any duces (tables
> for two) except in the bar area where most likely only an appetizer would
> be
> served along with drinks.
>
> Part of a good servers' job is to pre-bus the table - remove empty bowls,
> plates, glassware. God, where do you have to to go get good help these
> days?!
>
> Jill

I don't know how many times I've been served my food and after the person
walked away, I realized I didn't have fork, knife and spoon. ARRRGHHHH. A
normal response if you ask another person is that they will "have to locate"
your server. Then when the utensils are delivered, you put up with the
server's apology (if there is one). At my last dinner out where the food
was wonderful and the waiter was good natured, there were no napkins, so we
got up and got them off another table instead of 'harrassing' the wait
person for napkins, we didn't want to break the spell.
Dee Dee

Dee Randall wrote:
> "jmcquown" > wrote in message
> . ..
>> Nancy Young wrote:
>>> We went to this restaurant that had ribs as a theme ... not a
>>> rib joint, actually, but a restaurant. I don't remember what we
>>> ordered, that was some time ago, but I guess we ordered an
>>> appetizer, dinner, dessert, there was a bread basket, couple of
>>> rounds of drinks. I think that pretty well describes it.
>>>
>>> Sat down, ordered drinks, over came the drinks, ordered the
>>> appetizer, that came along with the requisite little dishes for each
>>> of us, then came dinner. Along with another drink, no doubt.
>>>
>>> Now, to describe the setting; we were sitting at a table for two,
>>> to say, not as large as my desk. Rectangular and not much wider
>>> than a person on the sitting sides. (laugh ... did I mangle that
>>> badly enough?)
>>>
>>> Drinks, appetizer, bread plates, salad ... this was really a
>>> stretch, but we got everything to fit. Next came dinner. Well,
>>> the waitress didn't
>>> take anything away with her. As in empty plates/glasses. Luckily
>>> or fortuitously, there was a ledge that the table butted up against,
>>> it held a large planter. Enough room so that we started stacking
>>> dishes on it.
>>>
>>> Well, we didn't order THAT much food, but everything came on a
>>> separate plate, ribs on one plate, vegetable in a little bowl, etc.,
>>> you get the idea.
>>>
>>> We were laughing our ass off, I swear, we left after paying the
>>> bill, you didn't even have a place to put the thing down so you
>>> could sign
>>> it. None of this seemed to faze the waitress AT ALL.
>>>
>>> Honest, I was waiting for Peter Funt to come over and say we'd
>>> been had.
>>>
>>> nancy
>>
>> This is why, if I owned a restaurant, there wouldn't be any duces
>> (tables for two) except in the bar area where most likely only an
>> appetizer would be
>> served along with drinks.
>>
>> Part of a good servers' job is to pre-bus the table - remove empty
>> bowls, plates, glassware. God, where do you have to to go get good
>> help these days?!
>>
>> Jill
>
> I don't know how many times I've been served my food and after the
> person walked away, I realized I didn't have fork, knife and spoon.
> ARRRGHHHH. A normal response if you ask another person is that they
> will "have to locate" your server. Then when the utensils are
> delivered, you put up with the server's apology (if there is one).
> At my last dinner out where the food was wonderful and the waiter was
> good natured, there were no napkins, so we got up and got them off
> another table instead of 'harrassing' the wait person for napkins,
> we didn't want to break the spell.
> Dee Dee

I wrote about that diner in Jonesboro, where they were running around
hawking hot beans with ham (not very good ones, either) and fried okra, and
flinging rolls without giving us a plate to put the roll on. But just TRY
to get condiments. John's hamburger was dry as the Sahara and all he wanted
was some mustard... you'd have thought he'd asked the server to empty the
safe. She was just plain grumpy. I still don't know why the place was
always packed.

Jill

On Sat, 26 Nov 2005, Dee Randall wrote:

> >>
> >> We were laughing our ass off, I swear, we left after paying the bill,
> >> you didn't even have a place to put the thing down so you could sign
> >> it. None of this seemed to faze the waitress AT ALL.
> >>
> >> Honest, I was waiting for Peter Funt to come over and say we'd
> >> been had.
> >>
> >> nancy
> >
> > This is why, if I owned a restaurant, there wouldn't be any duces (tables
> > for two) except in the bar area where most likely only an appetizer would
> > be
> > served along with drinks.
> >
> > Part of a good servers' job is to pre-bus the table - remove empty bowls,
> > plates, glassware. God, where do you have to to go get good help these
> > days?!
> >
> > Jill
>
> I don't know how many times I've been served my food and after the person
> walked away, I realized I didn't have fork, knife and spoon. ARRRGHHHH. A
> normal response if you ask another person is that they will "have to locate"
> your server. Then when the utensils are delivered, you put up with the
> server's apology (if there is one). At my last dinner out where the food
> was wonderful and the waiter was good natured, there were no napkins, so we
> got up and got them off another table instead of 'harrassing' the wait
> person for napkins, we didn't want to break the spell.
> Dee Dee
>

LOL. Been there, done that! I've helped myself more than once to the wait
station items.

Having been in the restaurant business for so many years, I understand a
lot of the problems - including spread-too-thin employees,
having-a-bad-day employees, and plain, ol' lazy-assed employees. When I
sit down at the table, I take stock. Napkins? flatware? salt & pepper?
artificial sweetener? etc. When the wait person comes to take drink
orders, I ask for anything that is missing right then. I also try to
always remember everything that I want when I order - like tartar sauce,
extra mayo, honey mustard, etc so the wait person can write it down.
It doesn't always solve the problem, but it increases my odds. Waiting
tables is probably the hardest job - and often the worst job - to have in
the "service" industry. Sadly, dealing with people is a female dog.
Dealing with people who are dining out is a rabid female dog.

Elaine. too

On Sat, 26 Nov 2005 14:21:46 -0500, "Dee Randall"
> wrote:

>I don't know how many times I've been served my food and after the person
>walked away, I realized I didn't have fork, knife and spoon.

I dunno why--maybe just my semi-finikin nature--but I always (and all
too often) notice when the table doesn't have utensils[1]. If it's
the sort of place to have the little ad things on the table, THOSE are
there, though.

[1] Then, of course I forget to mention the lack when ordering...

--
-denny-
"Do your thoughts call ahead or do they just arrive at your mouth unannounced?"

"It's come as you are, baby."

-over the hedge

On Sat, 26 Nov 2005 11:16:09 -0500, "Nancy Young"
> wrote:

>We went to this restaurant that had ribs as a theme ... not a
>rib joint, actually,

Likely not a BBQ place, either. Specially not if it's the one I
suspect it is.

>Honest, I was waiting for Peter Funt to come over and say we'd
>been had.

?Peter? Not Allen?
(am I dating myself here?)

--
-denny-
"Do your thoughts call ahead or do they just arrive at your mouth unannounced?"

"It's come as you are, baby."

-over the hedge

On Sat 26 Nov 2005 06:39:41p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Denny
Wheeler?

> On Sat, 26 Nov 2005 11:16:09 -0500, "Nancy Young"
> > wrote:
>
>>We went to this restaurant that had ribs as a theme ... not a rib
>>joint, actually,
>
> Likely not a BBQ place, either. Specially not if it's the one I
> suspect it is.
>
>>Honest, I was waiting for Peter Funt to come over and say we'd been
>>had.
>
> ?Peter? Not Allen?
> (am I dating myself here

Peter is Allen's son and now does CC.

--
Wayne Boatwright *¿*
_____________________________________________

A chicken in every pot is a *LOT* of chicken!

"Denny Wheeler" > wrote

> On Sat, 26 Nov 2005 11:16:09 -0500, "Nancy Young"
> > wrote:
>
>>We went to this restaurant that had ribs as a theme ... not a
>>rib joint, actually,
>
> Likely not a BBQ place, either. Specially not if it's the one I
> suspect it is.

I'm sure you wouldn't know, it was just some place. I don't
think they were a chain, and I don't remember the name of it.
But, no, not a barbecue place. Their big thing was ribs and
fried chicken. Good food.

>>Honest, I was waiting for Peter Funt to come over and say we'd
>>been had.
>
> ?Peter? Not Allen?
> (am I dating myself here?)

(laugh) I don't know why I said Peter, I guess that's who popped into
my head first.

nancy

On Sun, 27 Nov 2005 20:37:19 -0500, "Nancy Young"
> wrote:

>>>Honest, I was waiting for Peter Funt to come over and say we'd
>>>been had.
>>
>> ?Peter? Not Allen?
>> (am I dating myself here?)
>
>(laugh) I don't know why I said Peter, I guess that's who popped into
>my head first.

See Wayne B's reply to me. I *was* dating myself. again. sigh.

--
-denny-
"Do your thoughts call ahead or do they just arrive at your mouth unannounced?"

"It's come as you are, baby."

-over the hedge

Nancy Young wrote:

>Honest, I was waiting for Peter Funt to come over and say we'd been had.

Wouldn't that have been Alan Funt? Just wondering...

Mike

On 5 Dec 2005, Mike wrote:

> Nancy Young wrote:
>
> >Honest, I was waiting for Peter Funt to come over and say we'd been had.
>
> Wouldn't that have been Alan Funt? Just wondering...
>
> Mike
>
>

Only if you are old.

My worst:

I was sitting in a hotel restaurant in Tampa (on a job interview trip).
Suddenly, out of the wall lantern popped a huge cockroach, the size of
which I had never seen before. I started to scream but stopped myself,
though the entire restaurant heard me. The waiter came by and said
"Oh, I see you just met Charlie".

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Andy Yee E-Mail: ayee AT mn dot rr dot com
President Home Page: http://home.mn.rr.com/andyyee
New Directions Engineering, Inc.

Godwin's Law: As a USENET thread grows, the probability of a reference
to Hitler or Nazis approaches 1.00.
Corollary: When such a reference is made, it is generally
recognized that the poster has LOST the argument.

Andy Yee wrote:
> My worst:
>
> I was sitting in a hotel restaurant in Tampa (on a job interview trip).
> Suddenly, out of the wall lantern popped a huge cockroach, the size of
> which I had never seen before. I started to scream but stopped myself,
> though the entire restaurant heard me. The waiter came by and said
> "Oh, I see you just met Charlie".
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Andy Yee E-Mail: ayee AT mn dot rr dot com
> President Home Page: http://home.mn.rr.com/andyyee
> New Directions Engineering, Inc.
>
> Godwin's Law: As a USENET thread grows, the probability of a reference
> to Hitler or Nazis approaches 1.00.
> Corollary: When such a reference is made, it is generally
> recognized that the poster has LOST the argument.

oooh, that reminds me
I was in DC a couple years back visiting friends. One of them took me to his
favorite chinese restaurant. It was in Dupont Circle, iirc, a half level below
street level - you had to walk a half flight of stairs to get to the place.
The concrete at the bottom of the stairs was all busted up, opening into some
dark space.

As we sat and chatted I had the wild misfortune of seeing a rat pop out from
under the stairs. then another. then i realized they were darting all over the
floor. I never saw more than 3 at once, but I honestly don't know if there
were 3 or 30. And they were bold ****ers running across the floor and
everything.

I DID scream, oh yes i did. I was freaked.

The weird thing, my friend had lived in DC for 7 years and never saw a single
rat. The week that I'm there we see rats in the restaurant, in the metro and
on the sidewalks!

--
..:Heather:.
www.velvet-c.com

On Sat 03 Dec 2005 12:55:04p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it The Bubbo?

> Andy Yee wrote:
>> My worst:
>>
>> I was sitting in a hotel restaurant in Tampa (on a job interview trip).
>> Suddenly, out of the wall lantern popped a huge cockroach, the size of
>> which I had never seen before. I started to scream but stopped myself,
>> though the entire restaurant heard me. The waiter came by and said
>> "Oh, I see you just met Charlie".
>>
>> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Andy Yee E-Mail: ayee AT mn dot rr dot com
>> President Home Page:
>> http://home.mn.rr.com/andyyee New Directions Engineering, Inc.
>>
>> Godwin's Law: As a USENET thread grows, the probability of a
>> reference
>> to Hitler or Nazis approaches 1.00.
>> Corollary: When such a reference is made, it is generally
>> recognized that the poster has LOST the argument.
>
> oooh, that reminds me
> I was in DC a couple years back visiting friends. One of them took me to
> his favorite chinese restaurant. It was in Dupont Circle, iirc, a half
> level below street level - you had to walk a half flight of stairs to
> get to the place. The concrete at the bottom of the stairs was all
> busted up, opening into some dark space.
>
> As we sat and chatted I had the wild misfortune of seeing a rat pop out
> from under the stairs. then another. then i realized they were darting
> all over the floor. I never saw more than 3 at once, but I honestly
> don't know if there were 3 or 30. And they were bold ****ers running
> across the floor and everything.
>
> I DID scream, oh yes i did. I was freaked.
>
> The weird thing, my friend had lived in DC for 7 years and never saw a
> single rat. The week that I'm there we see rats in the restaurant, in
> the metro and on the sidewalks!
>

You sure some branch of the government hadn't just let out some session or
other?

--
Wayne Boatwright *¿*
_____________________________________________

A chicken in every pot is a *LOT* of chicken!