Unfiltered Story #194951

(I work in a complex with a few other fast food places, located off a highway off-ramp so we get lots of travelers in the summer. Of the 5 restaurants in the complex, only mine and the coffee shop across the way have drive-thrus. If someone wants something from the sandwich place, ice cream parlor, or the chicken-based restaurant they have to come inside and order at the counter. None of the restaurants are connected to each other in any way and operate independently. The following happens more often than you’d think.)

Me: (Working drive-thu) Good afternoon, welcome to [store]. What can I get for you?

Customer #1: Yeah, can I get a teen combo with rings, another teen combo with fries, a mama burger on its own and a chocolate shake?

(Some locations of my restaurant offer milkshakes, but ours doesn’t due to lack of space for the machine. We instead get individually packaged ice cream pucks delivered to us for floats.)

Me: I’m sorry, we don’t have shakes at this location, but we do have root beer floats.

Customer #1: But there’s a [ice cream place next to my place in the complex] sign outside.

Me: Oh! I’m sorry, but this is [burger place], not [ice cream place]. If you want a shake from them you’ll have to go inside and order at the counter, they don’t have a drive thru.

Customer #1: Well that’s stupid.

(Later on, with a different customer in the drive thru…)

Customer #2: I want a whistledog combo with iced tea and sweet potato fries, 2 kids strip combos, and a small cone.

Me: What would you like to drink with the kids combos, and I’m sorry, we don’t have ice cream here.

Customer #2: Chocolate milk for both please.

(Since they didn’t mention the cone again I figured they heard me and realized their mistake. Since we don’t keep sweet fries on hold and cook them fresh, we park them for a minute or two. This exchange occurs when I bring their food out to them.)

Me: Here’s your food! Have a great day.

Customer #2: Wait, where’s my cone?

Me: Err… we don’t have ice cream, sir. I explained that in the drive thru.

Customer #2: What? You didn’t charge me for it, did you?

Me: No, sir. We don’t sell ice cream at all, only floats, so there’s nothing to charge you for.

Customer #2: Well how do I get ice cream? I want ice cream.

Me: You could go inside and order from [ice cream place]. They’re the only place that has ice cream, but they don’t have a drive thru.

Customer #2: Well can you go get a cone for me?

Me: I’m sorry sir, but I can’t. I can only help you with food from [my place], not anywhere else. You’ll have to go inside to order yourself.

Customer #2: Why? It’s all connected in there, isn’t it? All of you work in the same place.

Me: We work in the same complex, but every business is independent from each other, like a food court in a mall. I’m not employed by [ice cream place] and our spaces aren’t in any way connected to each other. You have to go inside to get ice cream.

(The customer rolled his eyes and drove away.)

(And, finally, a mere 45 minutes before the end of my shift…)

Me: Good afternoon, welcome to [restaurant]. What can I get for you?

Customer #3: Can I get [list of items from the chicken-themed restaurant in the complex].

Me: I’m sorry, this is [burger place]. If you want [chicken place] you’ll have to go inside.

Customer #3: What? Since when? I always order from the drive thru here!

(To the customer’s credit, the other restaurant DID used to have a drive thru but it was removed after someone drove into it around five years prior.)

Me: I’m sorry, ma’am, but they removed their drive thru around four or five years ago.

Customer #3: What the sh**? What am I supposed to do then?

Me: You’ll just have to go inside and order at the counter, that’s all.

Customer #3: Can’t you go get it for me?

Me: …No, ma’am. I don’t work for them. You have to come inside and order.

Customer #3: Well you have sh***y customer service. (Drives off.)

(This happens way, way too often.)