Prayer is Needed

Ok, so look...this is when anonymity is so tough. Because I know of some people that are in need of prayer.

That is the wonderful thing about God...He knows who you are praying for, even if you don't.

There was a manager at one of our stores that was murdered the other night. With as many people reading this blog, I figured you all could take a minute to pray for strength, faith, and comfort to a family that is missing their father, son, and friend.

That is the powerful thing about my work family. We all are like family. I have felt pain in my heart for a man that I have never met...but I am certain that he was as amazing as everyone has made him out to be.

Thank You!!!

Thanks for the LOVE

Only three months of blogs and the # of hits is CRAZY!!!

It's no Shauna Maness Photography Blog, but I'm coming for you Shauna.

Thanks for the LOVE!!!

The Gift Card Wrangler

Last night was a busy night...one of those that caught us off guard. On nights like that, my job is to be EVERYWHERE!!! I was at the front door when a man walked in. We welcomed him to our establishment...we then asked him how many were in his party (he had his wife and two kids)

He then told me he had a $15 gift certificate for here and a $25 gift certificate for an establishment up the road. I looked at Nelly, she looked at me...and we both said at the same time...HERE...all day...

that wasn't what he was asking

He then proceeded to tell us that he lost his job and he was trying to save some money...so he wanted to get some cash. I told him that the gift certificates were not redeemable for cash, but he could feed his kids very well with $15. And he and his wife could eat at the other place.

He asked to see a menu, so I gave him a regular menu and a kids menu. I also made some suggestions of how to most effectively use his $15.

He was sitting on a bench in the front when I heard an outburst. "What are these people thinking"

What are we thinking...what are you thinking???

So I asked him if he had some questions about the menu...he pointed to the kids rib...and questioned the $6.29 price. I said yes sir, that includes the 4 bone ribs, a side, and a drink...he then looked overwhelmed

OUR FOOD IS REASONABLY PRICED

So after looking at the menu for a few more minutes...he handed me the menu back and said that he thought he would just go wrangle someone in the parking lot and see if they would give him $15 cash for the card...

ok that was creepy...and the last thing I want is my customers getting hassled by some creeper in the parking lot.

So I said, sir I would rather you didn't, let me go ask one of my servers if they would give you cash and redeem the gift card at a later time.

I took the card and checked the balance...I mean, if a guy is willing to "wrangle" someone in the parking lot, and tell me about his recent financial state...I would not put it past him to try to get us for $15...maybe my mother just raised me to be skeptical...

The card checked out, and a server gave me some cash.

So I sent the wrangler and his posse on their way...I wonder if they wound up eating at the other place, or doing some more wrangling there????

Firemen

There are a couple of things that pop into my mind when I say that word...

#1. Lil Wayne
#2. Drunk
#3. pervs

It is sad that working at restaurants in Bryan/College Station will do that to a person. These guys do so many things that are good for us! But once a year A&M holds fire school...and they come out of the cracks like roaches.

Last night I was called by my busser over to a table bc the table was whistling for someone to help them.

I don't like to do cold calls on these kinds of tables, because you never know what you are going to get. So I asked Philmont what was going on.

Her response...THOSE GUYS ARE ASSHOLES...when she came to the table he asked her to read the menu for her...good luck with that one sweetie

So I scan the table and there is no need for me at that point. I went up to the host stand, but before I got there she informed me that the guys she just sat were ASSHOLES...she said that she tried to seat them at one table...but he pushed her aside to point at another table and seat themselves. Then the guy with droopy eyes whistled at her, the motioned to get him a drink, and shooed her to dismiss her...PALEASE....

Understand that normally a host will get your drink for you, if you ask politely...that did not fall under that category.

I asked her how many people she sat at the table. Her answer was two. My question became...WHY ARE THERE 5 DRINKS ON THE TABLE!!!!

It turns out when they sat they split...one went to the bar to order drinks, and the other ordered at the table.

I told the guy that I was going to have to remove some of the drinks from the table...as law requires us to have a max number of drinks per patron. The guy informed me that his friend was going to be pissed...and that is ok with me.

I removed the drinks and took my risk...HERE WE GO!!!

Lucky for me the guy that was "going to be pissed" was the nice guy...

The beers were gone, but when I reached for the margarita...the guy shooed my hand. So I informed him that I needed to take the drink bc he could only have one in front of him (the 2nd time I explained this) He finished the one so he could have the other...grrrrrr

then he told me...go get me another margarita...I regretfully informed him (not really) that it was past last call, so he could order no more drinks. But he could finish the two beers that I removed earlier...as long as he did so before 15 mins after close.

He was not satisfied with that bc he didn't want beer...just another rita...NO DICE PLAYER

I was lucky that a table that was very close was a manager at another establishment in town that I knew...so I hovered by there table to be present but not...

I kept checking on the table...but the only words I heard from the droopy eye guy was margarita...so I continued to ignore him

I dealt with a drunk guy that got out of control a few weeks prior...so I was weary of a repeat!

I am happy to report that these guys left without a fight...the guy was rude the entire time...but his friend's niceness made up for it.

It always makes me feel better when someone's friend is willing to admit how much of a jerk they are...so I know that it is not me being the jerk!!!

So I went on the rest of the night singing my Lil Wayne song...ready for the next night of firemen...they will be here all week!!

Hunger Strikes

I am amazed by the number of people that think if you speak to someone who doesn't speak your language much slower and louder...they will somehow be able to understand.

I am trilingual...I speak Spanish/English/and enough sign language to get by...

I was walking by the front area when I heard a guy talking loudly and slowly to my busser. He was attempting to tell him that the table he was cleaning was not gone yet. I witnessed the brick wall in communication and stepped in.

I asked the gentleman if I could help him because Milky didn't understand him. He told me that the occupants of the table (that had been empty for 15 mins) were coming back. I replied, "Sir, that table has been dirty and unoccupied for 15 minutes. But, if you think that they are coming back and are not bothered by the mess we can leave it for 5 more minutes."

Then he broke into his real reason...he said...

"I mean, you can clean it...but if you are just going to throw those chips & salsa away...you can give it to me and I will finish it."

ARE YOU KIDDING ME...SICK

Of course I didn't say that.

I said, "Sir, I can't give you food that has been eaten by other patrons. That is not sanitary. But I will "leave it here" and clean the rest of the table...in case they come back for it"

People amaze me every day...I could have made him a fresh batch...but we are not a soup kitchen...

That was my Strike against Hunger!

Gasping for Air

Sooo...if you have casual conversation with me...you are probably aware of the drowning effect my job has had on me in the past couple of months. We haven't had a chance to come up for air...without something else crashing down on us again.

I am glad to say that we are GASPING for air now!!! We have two new additions that I think are going to fit and complete us!!! I am excited to enjoy my job again.

So this is my first official gasp that I am enjoying....

and Im baaaacccckkkk!!!!

Poo Poo Patrol

So Chris called for Charles the other day...and Johnson's girl answered the phone and enlisted my help in finding him. I searched high and low for this man...but he was no where to be found.

I made a round by table one where Paul was studying and asked him if he had seen Charles. We were getting our bathrooms worked on by a plumber...Paul said he had seen him earlier, but the plumbers were in the bathroom.

Charles being the hands on guy that he is I figured that he was in the restroom monitoring progress...so I made my way into the men's room to let him know his wife was on the phone.

knock, knock, knock...and in I went...HEY...IS CHARLES IN HERE...

I noticed a white t-shirt in the first stall...and a foul smell...

the guy answered...no, no Charles in here...

I left the restroom and grabbed Johnson's girl 1/2 way in tears...and disbelief that someone actually answered...

So I walked in the office later...unaware that Charles was in the restroom...to him quickly notifying me...of the following

It doesn't matter what is going on...who is sick, puking, or hurt...he can't do anything about it until he is done handling his business...and he will never answer when a crazy woman enters the men's room yelling his name...

at this point I was in tears (from laughing so hard) that someone else had witnessed the craziness of answering...no, he's not in here...

Charles then informed me that the funniest part happened after I left...the guy in the stall beside him, then turn the conversation to him...

Hey man...was she looking for you...are you Charles...

He was a bit ticked that I created this awkward position for him...but eventually he found the humor in it...maybe it was my tears...

He then told me that he would not have answered even if he was alone in there...

I GIVE ALL THE CREDIT TO PAUL FOR THIS ONE>>>HE TOLD ME THAT CHARLES WAS IN THERE WITH THE PLUMBERS

You can't hide from the Poo Poo Patrol!!!

Something for Nothing

I was called over to a table last night. I encountered a couple that looked like they were from my small town (don't worry...I'm not going to put anyone on blast).

She was sitting there with her arms crossed and started her conversation with her head cocked...that body language indicated that she was on defense. I was interested to know why...

She said that a server spilled a tea on her and she had to sit through her entire meal wet & cold and it ruined her experience...and she thought I should do something about her food. She sucked the side of her cheeks making an annoying smack when she was done. She cut her eyes to see what my response was going to be.

My thoughts were that I was not going to argue with this woman over 1/2 off a meal...she could have it. So I apologized and told her that had I known I would have given her a dry shirt, moved her, or turned the air to a more comfortable level. She said that it was fine...she understood accidents.

Then her husband tried to be cute and said, "if we say he did it on purpose can we get it for free?!?" I looked him right upside his head...with the same bad humor I said...only if I would have gotten to see it...

ok, maybe I crossed the line with that one...but what eva...

I went to the back and Lanier asked me what the complaint was...I told him. He asked why they didn't complain when it happened...before I could answer him, Richard did it for me...He said...because then, they couldn't get something for nothing!

Get Your Story Straight

I was working a slow lunch yesterday when I was summoned to the togo area. Someone wanted to speak to a manager.

I approached the gold toothed, barefoot, no bra wearing 400 lb woman. She had a bag on the counter, so I figured she had just picked up some food. When I got to the counter she told me that the salads were cold. NO SHIT...THAT IS PART OF WHAT MAKES THEM SO GOOD!

I asked if she had her ticket and she said no...that they were on four different tickets...which translates to me that they were on one ticket, but got split up to pay...and she did not have a phone number to reference bc she called from a hotel.

So I asked her if we could remake them for her right quick. She said, no, I just want my money back. I explained to her our system. We do not do refunds, we give out our form of in store credit that were good at any store...not just ours (we sometimes refer to them as gift certificates).

She explained to me that this happened last night...and she didn't want the salad...just her money...I pulled the salads out of the bag to inspect and they were all 1/2 eaten...some 3/4 eaten...ARE YOU KIDDING ME

I asked her why she didn't bring them back last night and she said that it was after close...and the guy told her to bring the food back today...THAT IS NOT HOW WE DO THINGS...

She then told me that she had experienced problems previously with the gift cards received for mess ups...apparently they had not being activated in Dallas...that is funny because the credits we issue are not in card form...they are in paper form...

I asked her to give me a second to ask the other manager that was on duty if he knew a way to give cash...I really just needed a moment to process the fact that this woman wanted money back for 1/2 eaten salads. I took the salads back to show Charles. He was in awe as well.

So I went back and told her that I had no way of giving her cash...that the best I could do was remake the salads or give them the paper certificates. She was not satisfied. She wanted to talk to Charles. So I told her, mam, he is a manager just like me with the same information as I have. He is going to tell you the same thing.

I then said, you know what our GM was the one that was on staff last night. If he was the one that told you that he was going to give you cash, then he probably had something in mind. I offered to go call him. She back pedaled quickly. She said that she had to go home to Dallas and that this was plain ridiculous.

I said, ok, well I will be quick about it. Give me just a second. I then went to the back and started to call the GM, when Charles told me that he closed last night. So I asked him if he told a lady to come back. He said no...so I passed it on to him.

I looked through the tickets from last night and didn't see any with those menu items on it. So I went back to see how Charles was handling it.

I intersected the part of the conversation where he made an analogy with something she may understand. He said, "you know when you go to the mall and bring back a shirt without a receipt. They don't give you cash back, but they will give you an in store credit"

At this point she knew we were not coming off of any money. She snapped a Charles...with a...Chill out dude...don't talk to me like I am ignorant.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA....BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

She asked for the gift certificates so she could leave and told us she would see us when she came back.

these were my immediate thoughts:
1. this chick probably cleans hotel rooms for a living...saw the boxes and thought she could get some cash back from a bs story
2. If she lives in Dallas why is she going to come back here to use the certificates...we told her they were good at ANY store
3. GET YOUR STORIES STRAIGHT

Life Goes On

The outfit that I work for is corporate. So what that means is that I have no flexibility or control over ANYTHING...especially not the menu.

There are some times as managers you are slightly saddened when you cannot get your guest exactly what they want. And there are sometimes that you walk away from the table with a shit eating grin bc you are so tickled to tell someone no!!!

Today I got to do just that...multiple times!!! My girl Cheddin was waiting on the most pleasantly trashy table...close to the end

(I don't know why the last tables you get are always the worst)

They just had to see a manager bc the greasy ball of fat that they wanted was no longer on our menu!!! Stop the Press...write the President...this is an EMERGENCY!!!

So I walked over to the wrong table (at first) and said, "Hi ladies, Cheddin tells me that someone is upset that we no longer carry item X" One lady looked at me sideways...and the other fake sobbed loudly and said, "How could you do this to me..." The other lady laughed and said, "wrong table sweetheart...good luck with that one!!"

That put me in a lighthearted spirit...so I went over to the right table and knew who was going to complain when I rounded the corner. Yep...the one with no teeth!!!

Ok...understand...I am tatted up...I LOVE TATTOOS...but there are some tats that are TRASHY...and it looked like they all got together and got tattooed on this one table of women. The three women on one side all had the same tat in the same spot...and they had to be three generations of the same line of backwoodsers...

So back to terry no teeth...She had the most disappointed look on her face. So I smiled...and showed all my pearly whites...and said hello ladies, how are we doing today? (Knowing what would follow)...

Terry started in...The only reason we come to this restaurant is for item X...why would you get rid of such a signature item. I just don't get it...I want you to give someone my name & phone number so I could tell them (I think she was just bragging that she had a phone)

I apologized and offered them a solution...the same exact fried fat...just not in a ball...in little strings...and you could choose the sauce...but Terry wanted the mayo fatbath that was served with the fat ball...I DON'T KNOW WHAT PART ABOUT WE DON'T CARRY IT SHE DIDN'T GET...

The substitution was WAY cheaper for more fat strings...$1.49 per order instead of $8.99...so when they went out I checked on them. And what do you know they liked them. So the gluttonous wenches ordered 3 orders of them.

So I thought I was done with them and all was well...I was on my way out the door. I was done for my shift, when the server taking care of them came and found me...

He said, Terry no Teeth wants to speak to the manager that told her the fat strings were $1.49 a piece. He had her bill that she was questioning. She pointed out another menu item that was $8.99...and questioned it...

So I took her back the bill and went over it with her. I said mam...the order you are questioning is chicken strips, completely separate from the item you ordered right here...I pointed out the ONLY item that had a quantity of 3 that was totaled at $4.47. I said mam...if you take $1.49 and multiply it by 3, you get $4.47...

SIMPLE MATH

She said....ohhhh, yeah...I guess the name just threw me off. I just don't know what I am going to do next time, because this is just ridiculous.

So I wished her well...And hoped that the next time would not be on my shift

In the back of my mind I was thinking...PLEASE don't come here next time if all you are going to do is complain about something I have no control over...

IT IS NOT THAT SERIOUS...LIFE GOES ON!!!!

Server Justice

Two or three years ago I would have been with this table. Right in the thick of it...laughing off the stupid stuff and backhanding the rude...

I mean really...one time a group of us went to Hooters and my friend Jamaal asked the server, "So you have to have titties or ass to work here...I can see your tits...you must have a big ass, let me see"

after she turned around to show her ass he replied, "Hmmmm, you must have a really great personality." Yeah...those are my friends...good news is...we have all grown up a little bit.

So this week I got a reminder of my past. I am geared up to deal with these folks...so I helped a sister out. They wanted a strong drink...so I directed them to the strongest one we serve. It is also the most expensive one we serve. (I didn't tell him that...server justice)

So they were pretty impatient when I was getting the drink order...they wanted me to take the dinner order at the same time...no problem!!! I am on it.

The other guys wanted a drink...one was nice, and one was a jackass...he was my Jamaal...mannn I wish I could apologize to that Hooter's chick...so they came up with some concoction that didn't even sound good. And go figure...they didn't like it. So I tweeked it and magic.

I let the server do the upkeep, but guess who they asked for when they ordered another drink...yep...Can you send your manager by...

So I made them one of my favs...vodka, sprite, and a touch of grenadine!!! YUMMM!!!!

They liked it!!! They left my server exact change...that is how we were different. We gave them a hard time, but we left nice tips!!!

I guess that was a bit of karma for me...and some patron justice!!!