It’s All In The (Lack Of) Delivery

(My friend is over with her five-year-old daughter visiting me and my infant daughter. We decide to order from a small local chain pizza place that is known to take a little longer to take than most nation-wide chains. We order online and it gives us a time of 40 minutes to expect the delivery, which is fine.)

Friend’s Daughter: “When is the pizza gonna be here? I’m hungry!”

Friend: “Any time now! It’s supposed to be here at 7 and it’s 7 just now.”

(15 minutes later…)

Me: “I can’t believe the pizza isn’t here yet. It’s a weeknight; they shouldn’t be that busy… Maybe my order got lost online? I’ll call and see what’s up.”

(I call the shop.)

Me: “Hi, I ordered a pizza online over 45 minutes ago. It said it was supposed to be here at 7.”

Worker #1: “Yes, I remember that order. I’m sorry about that. The delivery driver just left with your order; he should be there in a few minutes.”

(I thank her and we wait another ten-fifteen minutes. Our town is VERY small and it would not take that long to deliver anything from their location. I first figured he was having trouble finding our house, which can be tricky, but I’ve never had this issue before. I call back.)

Me: “Hi, it’s [My Name] again. I called fifteen minutes ago about our pizza being late? We still haven’t gotten our pizza. I wanted to check on that.”

Worker #2: “He had another delivery. He should be there any minute now. Sorry about that!”

Me: “Okay, thanks. That’s fine.”

(They’ve been very polite both times I’ve called, and I have never had issues before, so I don’t complain. But then we wait another 10 minutes and I frustratingly call back, which is difficult with my social anxiety. So I’m very upset, but try to be polite. The first worker, who I know is the manager, answers again.)

Me: “Hi there. It’s [My Name]. I called twice already and we don’t have our pizza yet. I’d like to know when it’s going to be here? I ordered our food over an hour ago… We have kids that need to go to bed.”

Worker #1: “I’m sorry about that. I have no idea what’s going on. Can you give me your name and number again for me so I can give you a call back? I’ll call our driver and find out what the holdup is.”

Me: “Thank you.”

(My friend’s daughter is getting impatient, tired, and grumpy. We’re all annoyed and watching out the window for the driver. A couple minutes later, the manager calls me back.)

Worker #1: “Hi, is this [My Name]? I’m so sorry about the delay.” *she’s audibly annoyed with the driver* “The driver is on his way. I have no idea what happened, but we won’t be charging your card for the food. Again, I’m terribly sorry about that.”

Me: “Thank you very much. I appreciate it.”

(I’ve worked in food service, so I know it’s likely only the driver’s fault. I don’t blame the restaurant, but I’m really mad. I finally am able to put my daughter down to bed, and the pizza comes while I’m doing so. I instructed my friend to sign the slip if she still needs to, but no tip. After, she tells me what happened.)

Friend: “So it was some young guy, couldn’t have been out of high school very long. Didn’t say sorry or anything! Just had me sign the slip, mumbled that the manager said it’s free, and gave me a look when I didn’t give him a tip!”

(And, not surprisingly since it was 45 minutes late, the pizza was cold! At least it was free.)