I’m working my part-time job at donut place that also serves hot breakfasts. It’s during Christmas and it’s completely dead. I have no idea why I am even here. This is on a college campus to boot. But then, this woman comes in, still in her pajamas:

Customer: “I need everything!”

Me: “What do you mean, ma’am?”

Customer: “The big breakfast I was going to make for my family, all the meat and eggs, it’s been torn into by my dog in the middle of the night!”

She hasn’t slept since 2 AM (the dog also ate some chocolate, so I am guessing there were medical concerns) and needs breakfast for fifteen people. It’s just me and the manager; a really chill older lady. We give each other a quick look, and get right to work. We fill boxes in minutes and throw in extra everything while she waits at a table.

My manager brings her an extra-large coffee, on the house, and she breaks into tears.

Within ten minutes we’ve loaded her up with bagels, muffins, donuts, croissants, and enough coffee to give a hummingbird a heart attack. 

We help her load it into her car, and she gives us each a $50 tip and drives home. That was my only good day at that job.

At our burger place, we always have burgers cooking on the hot plate, since we get a lot of volume. Sometimes when the rush dies down, we move some of the unsold but cooked patties onto a heated surface where they’re good for a little longer before we either eat them ourselves (free staff lunch) or sadly discard them (although this happens rarely).

Customer: “I want a cheeseburger, and I want it fresh.”

I’m not the one taking the order, but I am making it. Since he’s specifically asked for “fresh”, I go to the freshly-cooking patties on the hot plate, but then the customer shouts out to me.

Customer: “No! I said fresh! I want those ones there!”

He points to the older patties sitting on the heated surface.

Me: “Oh, those are older burgers, so they’re not as fresh as—”

Customer: “Don’t lie to me! I saw you put those burgers out just a few seconds ago!”

Me: “Yes, because they’re—”

Customer: “Don’t talk back to me! Just give me the burger I want!”

I simply shrug and do as he asks. As the customer is given his burger:

Customer: “You think you can shift an older burger to me, but I’m smarter than you realized, eh? I’m onto your money-saving ways at the expense of the customer!”

I am sitting down eating my food at a fast food place. Two firefighters have already ordered and are waiting for their food. A couple ahead of them has just received their food.

Suddenly, the fire truck outside starts its siren, and the two firefighters immediately turn on their heels. Without hesitation, they’re sacrificing their already-paid-for lunch for the next emergency. The couple runs up to them and keeps pace with them, never slowing down.

Couple: “Wait, take ours! Hopefully, you can chow down on the way!”

They basically shove their food into the firefighter’s arms as they beeline for the fire truck.

Both Firemen: “Thank you, so much!”

The couple then calmly walks back into the fast food place, gets in line again, and reorders their meals.

Manager: “I saw all that. No way are you two paying again.”

This moment restored my faith in humanity more than a little bit!

My friend and I are at the drive-thru to a Mexican fast food place.

Friend: “Hi, we called in an order ahead.”

Employee: “Order number and name?”

Friend: “Order 239, [Friend’s Last Name].”

Employee: “I don’t have that order.”

The employee just stands there, as if we’d just go, “Okay!” and drive off without our food.

Friend: “Well, I have the confirmation here on my phone, my dude!”

Employee: “I don’t have that order.”

Ouch. The moment they get stuck in that loop, you know you gotta be that type of customer.

Friend: “Can I see the manager?”

The employee just sighs and slooooowly fetches a manager. Cars are building up behind us.

Manager: “So, you guys are trying to get free food?”

Friend: “What? No! We have a paid order to pick up. Here, look at my phone.”

Manager: *Barely glancing at it* “We don’t have that order on our system.”

Friend: “So, can you make it based on what I have on my phone, and we can pull over and pick it up?”

Manager: “I’m not making you free food.”

Friend: “It’s not free food! We paid for it. If it’s not on your system, then you have a technical issue, but from where I am sitting, I have paid my money for food that you’re not giving me.”

Manager: *Sighs* “Put the order through again, and I will keep an eye on the printer.”

Friend: “But then I will have to pay again.”

Manager: *Sighs louder* “You’re blocking the drive-thru.”

Friend: “Yes, as this is the only way I am getting you all to listen to my problem.”

Manager: “Okay, just pull into the lot and put the order in again, and we will make the food. You can call Corporate to get a refund on the first order.”

My friend is very annoyed, but he doesn’t want to be a jerk to other customers in line, so he pulls into the parking lot and we go inside. He’s putting in the online order again when he smiles at me and hits send.

We are lucky enough to see the printer behind the counter that prints the online orders. An order comes in that just kinda… keeps… going. My friend notices that I have noticed this.

Friend: “I noticed they don’t have a maximum character limit on their ‘Special Instructions’ box on their online order form.”

Me: “What did you do?”

Friend: “I pasted the entire script to the Cats movie into the ‘Special Instructions’.”

I look back at the printer. Yup… still going.

Friend: “Ten times.”

The look on the manager’s face when he saw the print order was worth it, as was the extra long wait to get our food. My friend did eventually get his refund from corporate, and their online order form very quickly added a character limit to their “Special Instructions” box.

I worked at a fast-food joint while I was at university. A couple availed of the “budget” option for their child’s birthday party. We threw in a few extras during the event; but the mum kept on condescendingly asking for more.

Mum: “Oh, they only get two pizza slices each? I was expecting more…”

Mum: “These cupcakes are very plain and boring. Can’t they try some of the [premium] ones?”

Mum: “It says on the online booking calendar that you have no other children’s parties booked today, so you won’t mind if we stay an extra hour, right?”

Piece by piece, demand upon demand, in total we must’ve given them over the highest-value party package.

And yet she wasn’t happy!

Mum: *Complaining.* “The mascot didn’t have enough energy to dance to the music we provided! You should offer us a discount!”

Lesson learned: Say a firm but polite ‘NO’ right from the get-go. 

Related:
Give Them An Inch…, Part 2
Give Them An Inch…,