They’re The Only Ones Entitled To The Holiday Season

It is Saturday night, 7:00 pm, mid-December. It is a widely-known fact that companies have their office Christmas parties around town starting from October.

The restaurant is still fairly quiet; one small group is in the dining area, there are a couple of people at the bar, and there’s a group of around forty in a private room.

A family of three comes in. They order starters, mains, desserts, and drinks, and everything is going smoothly. About twenty people come in from the private room to the bar and dining area to enjoy the evening as a live duo is about to start performing. The duo is a calm blues/swing with a piano and vocals.

The mother of the family waves to me.

Mother: “We have been waiting for forty-five minutes for our main courses. What’s taking so long?! This place is terribly noisy and we want to leave!”

Me: “I’m sorry, I’ll ask the kitchen to expedite your order. We did have a private group in the other area and now some of them have come over to listen to the live music.”

I haven’t checked the time, nor do I have a clear idea on how long they have been waiting, but the starters have just been finished, so…

Mother: “You should have warned us about the number of people in here. We just wanted to have a nice, calm meal with our family, and it’s so noisy with all the people talking and music blaring!”

Me: *Pauses* “My apologies, I didn’t think to mention that our restaurant has customers. There is really nothing I can do about them chattering.”

Father: “We don’t care! You should have told us that there was a private party going on and that they were coming in here after!”

Me: “Yes… So, I’ll ask the kitchen to hurry up, then.”

Mother: “Bring the check while you’re at it!”

Absolutely I will, just to get rid of you idiots.

I went to the kitchen and checked the order. It had been printed thirty-one minutes before. So, okay, they might have waited five minutes with the empty starter plates, but forty-five?

The orders came up quickly, and with the biggest customer service smile, I took them over and wished them bon appetit. I got grumpy huffs as a reply.

A couple of minutes later, and not surprisingly, the dishes were not spicy enough, the burger was missing an onion (not part of the dish or description), the steak was too thick (?!), etc. Luckily, they paid without further incident and left.

It was the middle of the hottest Christmas party season and Saturday night in a restaurant. Would it be too much to assume that customers would expect someone else to be present at a restaurant, as well? It’s a public space; everyone is welcomed. If you want peace and quiet, eat at home or come in on Monday evening.