Saturday, February 14, 2009

Paying for Bad Service

I'm sick and tired of paying for bad service.

Last year I said I would not return to places that offered bad service and I stuck to most of it, but today after 5 trips to the grocery store and tired, I decided to go get some dinner at a "fast food" establishment.

Another ride in the warm February sun to a place which I will not name. Once inside the door, I saw several white people who had already placed there orders milling about next to several other white people waiting behind the velvet line to order. The counter held two unmanned registers. A long braided hair young black man in a paper hat loaded paper containers for fries. He appears to be busy and though he gazed at the waiting line, continued to load the fry holders. Another black man in a paper hat and a different color shirt walked back and forth, then back and forth, then after filling a cup with drink, disappeared about the corner. The blurry TV monitor hanging over the fry area showed the muted bodies waiting to be recognized. Finally a young black man in another color shirt and paper hat stood at the register. A tall man rattled off his order as he stared at the variety of burger sizes and names. The paper hat man, without a hint of energy, punched buttons asking to clarify each order. A young couple waiting for their order started to make out as two young boys with bicycle helmets and backpacks flinched in anticipation. How long does it take to throw a frozen beef patty on a grill?

I turned and walked out.

Down the street to the next establishment, with similar results.

A large black woman impatiently waited at the counter, coat in hand, dipping her fingers in ketchup and talking to the pacing black shirted man with the headset on. He stepped up to the register as I peered into the glass case viewing one salad and dressing and wondering how man days those greens have lived there. "Can I take your order" he mumbled looking at me with a cell phone pressed to his ear. I stared at the mixed board of overpriced grimy photos of greasy meat on bread, then looked him in the eye and said, " Are you on the phone?" "No, he's on hold", he responded to my chagrin. I waited. He put the phone in his pocket. I placed the order, gave a $20, pocketed the change, and moved around the woman who had still not received her order but continued talking as if everyone need to know what she was thinking. Another black shirt man filled his drink cup while talking across the room to another black shirt woman as she curse the bus for being late. Along the windowed wall sat a young black man with headphones on gobbling down the dripping sandwich. Two brown paper bags were shoved at me across the chrome counter without a "Have a nice day" or "Please come back" or "I don't give a...."

I will not do that again.

I will not pay for inferior quality product and bad service. With the economy the way it is, we don't need this. Good customer service is what makes most of us repeat the experience.

So I bid ado and hope each and every one of you think before you reward a sloven and disrespectful establishment serving the public with less than pleasant and responsible acceptance of hard earned dollars for equal valued product.

11 comments:

Jocelyn Plums said...

Where do they still wear paper hats?

Anonymous said...

You should have named the places. Maybe then they'd learn something.

delete said...

Wht did the race of the employees matter?

I agree with Rus - you should've named the places. One was an Arby's, but Jocelyn is right - no fast food joints put paper hats on their employees, save Stewart's.

Again, why did you mention the race?

Robinitaface said...

I"m also curious as to wear they still wear paper hats except for maybe one of those new retro burger joints in Short Pump - cuz it's so darn cute.

But they don't HAVE black people in Short Pump.

Jokes aside - crappy service is also colorblind. I know white people who are truly sh*tty at customer service too. Only they get to work at the full service restaurants...maybe because they're white.

I think this was more of a chance for you to write about how you went slummin' with "those people" at the fast food joint than about bad service.

Miles said...

Kind of mirroring off everyone else's comments, seriously, why did you repeatedly mention the race? Robintafce is absolutely right, there are plenty of caucasian people with shitty customer service.

Also, by supporting fast food chains, do you honestly really expect top notch customer service? You're paying $4 for commercial grade, hormone infested meat and greasy ass fries. People in fast food chains make very little money, deal with asshole customers daily, and I'm sure their managers only concern is income and getting customers in an out.

Spend your money on a restaurant that directly supports your community, thus your local economy. I guarantee you Betsy at Cafe' Ole can get you the best burrito you've had with 100 times better customer service and twice the speed than any person of any color at any chain retailer.

Judging by your profile picture, It appears that you're old enough to know and realize these things.

RVA Foodie said...

I'm not convinced that the race of the workers was necessarily linked to the judgment about attitude/service. Talking about the race of the workers does make me scratch my head. It could just be some details of the description that are generally considered a taboo topic. You wouldn't perchance be a barber by day?

(referring to

http://caramelizedopinions.blogspot.com/2009/01/restaurants-ruined-by-those-people.html

this story features a guy who objects to people of color anywhere in a restaurant.

Anonymous said...

I know the writer, and I know he's not racist. AT ALL. If you read his post, however, you WILL see that 1. he was angry, very angry (which is quite unusual for him, because he's one of the most placid, calmest people I know) at the service he received, and 2. he was writing pretty much stream-of-consciousness because of his emotional state, so some of his anger may have been misplaced. We've all done it. Please don't read anything serious or sinister into it.

Anonymous said...

Oh yeah -- he's not a barber, but he occasionally needs one...

RVA Foodie said...

I was just playin around about him being "the barber" from my blog post. No doubt that frustration and racial dynamics are explosive and par for the course in Richmond

Robinitaface said...

I just notice that the author takes great pains to point out the race of every employee. He's not so diligent about the customers - unless, perhaps, they're doing something shocking. I'm amazed the couple making out wasn't black.

Bear in mind, even the fast food places are feeling the economic slump. Cutting people's hours is the quickest way to save on cash. That's why you have those empty registers - and less than cheery employees covering more stations for fewer hours at the same great rate of MINIMUM WAGE. Not that there is any excuse for crummy service. But you know you would also have been ticked off if you were waiting a long time for those fries that braided hair young black man continued to put in the fryer.


*Apologies for my typo in my previous comment (I do know the difference between "where and wear" - not that anyone called me on it)

Art said...

Just catching up, here...

I had similar thoughts about the race thing, dude. I wondered if the focus was going to 'leave' bad service and 'move to' does the race of the employee CAUSE bad service.

But I know what you mean... you don't have a racist bone in your body... but the focus got away from you.

(Now being waited on by someone talking/listening on a cell phone drives me to distraction!)