Me: “Do you have side salads?”

Employee: “What?”

Me: “Side salads. Do you sell them here?

Employee: “No. What kind of salad do you want?”

I couldn’t see any salads on the menu.

Me: “I don’t know, what kind do you have?”

She lists the types of salads.

Employee: “…and side salads.”

Me: “…okay, I’ll take a side salad.”

Employee: “What kind of dressing?”

Me: “Do you have vinaigrette?”

Employee: “No, we have Italian and ranch.”

Me: “Okay, Italian.”

I pull around to the window where a different person is working. I get my bag and check inside. They gave me thousand island dressing. At this point, I was so flustered that I didn’t even remember what I asked for.

Me: “Excuse me, I got the wrong dressing.”

Window Employee: “Okay, what kind did you want?”

Me: “Whatever your lightest dressing is would be fine.”

Window Employee: “Vinaigrette okay?”

For a second, I legitimately thought I was being punked.

It’s a mid-week short shift for me, and I’m covering the back window of the drive-thru. We’re slammed (odd for this time of the week and year) and have both lanes of our drive-thru packed.

I’m taking orders as I can, with a trio of front employees also taking orders as much as possible. Mostly from lane one. At one point, lane two beeps, but shortly stops beeping. I assume someone up front got it. 

After the rest of the cars clear, I look up at my camera feed and think I see a car in lane two (the camera can’t see the lane very well), and I answer.

Me: “Thank you for choosing McDonald’s. Have you been helped yet?”

Customer: *Shouting.* “NO! I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR TWENTY MINUTES, AND I WAS HERE BEFORE ALL THOSE PEOPLE!”

He was not waiting that long.

Me: *Taken aback slightly.* “I’m sorry about that, sir. I was unaware of that. Are you going to be using the mobile app?”

Customer: *Still shouting.* “NO! I’M NEVER USING THE GOD D*** APP! JUST GIVE ME A BIG MAC MEAL! AND A QUARTER POUNDER WITH CHEESE MEAL!”

Me: “And your drinks?”

Customer: *Slightly less mad.* “Coke with one. And I don’t know, Dr Pepper with the other.”

Me: “Anything else?”

Customer: “No!”

Me: “Alright, your total is [total] at the first window. Thank you.”

My McDonald’s is right off a major interstate, though our area is so small we likely wouldn’t be able to keep one open without it. Because of this, we park 75%-90% of orders when we’re busy. That’s inevitably what happened here. One of the sandwiches we ordered was made fresh to order, and it takes about seven minutes to cook the meat.

Less than five minutes later (this was relayed to me afterwards, though I could hear *something* from the back window), apparently the guy stormed back in and started yelling at my manager about how “this always happens” and “I waited twenty minutes for my order to be taken”. 

While I am unsure of the aftermath of that (besides the fact that he spent so long shouting at the manager that he got his food before he was done), I checked after he left. One of my coworkers up front *did* get lane two, but got no response. So he thought no one was there.

This isn’t unusual. Sometimes people pull around the building by using lane two if it’s empty. Or someone with a trailer or longer vehicle will set it off again when pulling around.

Late one night at a certain Kentucky-themed restaurant, an older woman came to the drive-thru.

Woman: “I want these items separately!”

She then proceeded to list multiple items that come in a combo, as well as the sides and drinks.

Me: “Ma’am, just so you know, it will be cheaper if we put these in a combo.”

Woman: “I don’t want your stupid combos!”

Manager: *Hopping on.* “Ma’am, I’m a manager, and my employee is right. You’ll save a lot of money if you put them in combos.”

Woman: “STOP TRYING TO UPSELL ME COMBOS! I WANT THESE ITEMS AND NOTHING ELSE! NO ADD ONS, NO COMBOS. JUST! THESE! ITEMS!”

Manager: “The combos don’t add anything other than what you ordered; they’re the same things, just cheaper.”

Customer: “I DON’T CARE!”

Manager: “Very well, we’ll have your total at the window.”

Manager to me, off the headset: “I’d better handle her at the window. I have the feeling she’s going to Vesuvius all over everything. Everybody, don’t start building the order yet.”

Sure enough, once she pulls up to the window…

Woman: “What the h*** did you upcharge me for?! This price is ridiculous! You’re trying to scam me!”

Manager: “We were trying to do the opposite, actually. We could have combined–”

Woman: “LIAR! SCAMMER! I’M NOT PAYING FOR THIS!”

Manager: “Then you’re not getting your food.”

The woman lost her mind, screaming incoherently and honking her horn. When the manager simply shut the window and walked away, she proceeded to gun the accelerator and peeled out, leaving nothing but the smell of burned rubber behind her. 

We all just shrugged and continued with the rest of our closing shift. The next several cars behind her were incredibly nice to us.

I used to be a regular at a coffee shop, but I noticed that the service has gone downhill. Usually, there are long lines, and while I get my order, it does take a bit for a coffee and two sandwiches. One day, I’m waiting behind a car for what seems like forever, when it finally moves forward.

When I pull up to the window, I internally groan. The person at the window is my least favorite worker. She’s super spacey. Usually, I have to ask her for extra ketchup or extra straws when she should know by now.

Worker: “I’m sorry for the delay. Your total is $14.39.”

Me: *As I’m paying.* “That took too long. Next time, you should have just pulled him up so you wouldn’t have to keep us all waiting.”

At that moment, I saw something snap behind her eyes. Usually, she acts like a ditz. Looking around, she leans in, eyes narrowed.

Worker: “Okay, sir. I don’t know what your problem is, but every time you come here, you always have an attitude with me. Now, I don’t know if it’s because you’re sexist, racist—” *She’s White, I’m Filipino.* “—or if you just are a bitter person, but here’s the deal. There are fifteen other sister locations in this neighbourhood. No one is forcing you to come here.” *Hands me my order.* “Happy Canada Day.” *Slams the window shut.*

I filed a complaint with the owners, but nothing seemed to happen, as when I came through the drive-thru again, I recognized her valley girl voice on the headset. Since then, I’ve chosen another location to get my coffee from.

I work for a fast-food place in the USA with a reputation for having the nicest/friendliest employees, and always ending each customer interaction with “my pleasure.”

Customer: “Yeah, I want [deluxe] chicken sandwich.”

Me: “Sure thing! That will be [price], please.”

Customer: “What? H*** no! I’m not paying that much! I usually pay [lower price].”

Me: “That’s for our standard sandwich, ma’am. You asked for the deluxe, which is [price].”

Customer: “I want the deluxe for the standard price.”

Me: “I’m afraid I can’t do that, ma’am.”

Customer: “I thought y’all were supposed to be nice.”

Me: “I’m happy to help you explore our menu for other options within your price range, but the deluxe is a set price and there’s nothing I can do to lower it, I’m afraid.”

Customer: “It’s a good thing y’all behind that glass or I’d come in there and beat yo’ a**.”

Sadly, in this neighborhood, threats like that are not uncommon.

Me: “Ma’am, I will ask you to either make an order or leave.”

Customer: “Fine. Regular sandwich.”

Me: “That will be [price].”

Customer: “Y’all supposed to say ‘my pleasure’!”

Me: “That would be lying, ma’am, and lying isn’t nice.”