When Impatience Escalates To Slave Labor 

As all our food is freshly cooked to order, wait times on Saturdays are generally over thirty minutes. We tell every customer before they order and there are signs everywhere telling people. A customer orders for six-plus people, all big meals that take ages to cook, so I say there is a forty-five minutes wait, which he says is okay. Cue him coming up to the counter fifteen minutes later, screaming and pushing other customers out of the way.

Customer: “Where’s my food? I ordered nearly an hour ago and I’m still waiting!”

Me: “Do you have a receipt, sir?”

Customer: “Why would I? Just give me my food or my money!”

Me: “I’m sorry, sir, but I can’t provide a refund unless you have a receipt, but if you give me your table number, I can check the till and then check how much longer your food will be.”

Customer: “Fine. I’m at [table number].”

I check the till and see it’s only been fifteen minutes since he has ordered.

Me: “I’m sorry, sir, but it seems you only orders fifteen minutes ago, not nearly an hour. Your food will be another fifteen to thirty minutes.”

Customer: “This is unacceptable! I paid you for my food and I want it now!”

He pushes past two coworkers taking out food and drink and causes one to drop a whole tray of coffee on the floor.

Me: “Sir, you can’t be back here. Please go back to your table. We will bring your food out as soon as we can, but I did tell you when you ordered that it would take up to forty-five minutes as it was a big order.”

The customer pushes me aside into a table and barges into the kitchen, hitting someone else with the door.

Customer: *Surprised* “You’re all kids! You should be in school.”

My manager has arrived and is trying to get him out of the kitchen, but he is a foot taller and about fifty pounds heavier than she is.

Customer: *To my manager* “You should be ashamed of this slave labour. I bet you only hire them because you don’t have to pay them or give them breaks.”

He walks back into the main café where everyone is now watching.

Customer: “This place only hires children. This is slave labour. I will never come here again!”

Manager: “Please leave before I call the police.”

He walked out, followed by his tomato-red family, without his food or his refund. All the staff had really big lunches that day.