Your irrational pet peeves

[Factorial]

That is truly an irrational pet peeve.

[Troy Loney]

A woman in my department has some breathing thing that's worse than a mouth breather. Her release of air through the nostril is audible. Is there some medical procedure I can suggest for her to undergo? She also just got married, I would freak out. I've subtly restricted sniffling in my living situation by getting up and getting my fiance a tissue every time she sniffles. I can't even fathom dealing with that, i'm really intolerant with mucus and mouth related noises, especially in the morning.

[blackjack68]

Is she fat?

Does she have a deviated septum?

Is this all the time or does she have a summer cold/allergies?

[Troy Loney]

All the time.

She's in between fat and thick. I'd consider the body type an unhealthy thick. Like a person her size could be attractive, but all excess size is in the form of fat, just bone and fat.

[PensFanInDC]

The napkin thing was just a small part of that night...

So I asked for the napkins and waited for them. The restaurant was pretty empty and our server only had 3 tables. I noticed he had gone behind the bar to pour a glass of wine. We didn't order wine so I assumed it was for another one of his tables. That's fine, we're not the only ones there and he needs to take care of everyone but taking 30 seconds to bring me some napkins would have been easy.

I walked up to the bar and saw 3 employees behind it; 2 servers/bartenders and 1 manager. I stood at the bar in full view of all 3 people. Each one, over the course of the next 2 minutes, made eye contact with me and said nothing. Then our waiter walked away to deliver the glass of wine. Then the other bartender/waiter walked away. At this point I was getting angry. Surely the manager would not walk away from the bar with a customer standing there. Well I was wrong and she started to walk away. I turned my body to watch her walk away and she turned back and asked, "Did you need something?"

I was dumbfounded. This was the conversation we had:

PFiDC: Did that just happen?
Manager: Did what just happen?
PFiDC: I stood here for at least 2 minutes with 3 employees behind the bar and made eye contact with each one and not a single one of you asked if I needed anything.
Manager: Well maybe they thought you worked here.
PFiDC: <looks down at purple polo shirt I am wearing>* Do your employees wear purple?
Manager: <laughs> No they don't.
PFiDC: Are you the manager?
Manager: Yes
PFiDC: Do you know who I am?
Manager: No
PFiDC: Then I guess I don't work for you.
Manager: <laughs again> I guess not.
PFiDC: I just want some napkins. My son spilled his drink 5 minutes ago and I asked our waiter for some napkins and they never came
Manager: <hands me 2 BAR NAPKINS> I'm sorry. Lots of times our employees huddle around the TV behind the bar and don't notice other things going on.
PFiDC: So you're telling me that your employees will watch TV and ignore customers
Manager: Yes
PFiDC: .....can I have some more napkins please. Bigger ones if you have them. Thank you...

I'm still kind of speechless at the unprofessional manner in which that occurred.


*the uniform for employees is all black with black tie. I was wearing purple and khaki.

[blackjack68]

Where was it?

[PensFanInDC]

The high class establishment known as Mimi's Cafe. None in PA.

[blackjack68]

Message to corporate.

I'm a stickler for service. It's something so easy, but yet unpracticed.

[PghSkins]

Radio commercials with horns or other sounds that could be confused with traffic sounds.

I was changing lanes on the turnpike today when one that has the Gateway Clipper horn was on. Sounds just like a rig's air horn. I almost shipped myself.

[Letang Is The Truth]

Message to corporate.

I'm a stickler for service. It's something so easy, but yet unpracticed.

Agree. You will surely receive freebies as well, the cost of acquiring a new customer is 5x greater than keeping a loyal customer. And if you don't get anything back, never return.

[PensFanInDC]

Message to corporate.

I'm a stickler for service. It's something so easy, but yet unpracticed.

As am I.

The story continues...

I tried multiple times to submit a message but I keep getting the "an error has occurred" message. No email is given so it has to be by this online form. I called the customer service number to ask for an email and was told they don't have one. She said I can tell her what happened but I am weary to do so. I have it all written down and want it dictated exactly the way I wrote it. She said the best she can do is give me the fax number for HR. I still don't really trust that but it may have to do. I'm going to keep trying the online form and if it doesn't work after multiple attempts today and tomorrow I will call back and speak with someone else. This is ridiculous.

[dodint]

The concept of giving 2 weeks notice when you're leaving a job. If my employer wanted to get rid of me I would be brought in the office, told that this is my last day and escorted out the door (yes, Ive experienced this), but if I decide to leave Im expected to give them 2 weeks to find and train a replacement.

In my line of work, because I work with military classified information, putting in a two weeks notice will instantly shift you from your contract to PTO. Whatever is left over after the two weeks gets paid out. But you can't put in two weeks notice and then keep working.

Along your line of thinking there is a movement (snarky or not) towards billing prospective employers for the time spent going through convoluted job interviews and then not getting hired. I've never heard of anyone collecting, though.

[newarenanow]

When you just settle onto the bowl in an empty work bathroom and someone else walks in.

[newarenanow]

If there is a company that does not have an email in today's day and age, and you have to fax a complaint, I'd never go there again just for that.

[Letang Is The Truth]

If there is a company that does not have an email in today's day and age, and you have to fax a complaint, I'd never go there again just for that.

+1

any company that makes it that hard to provide feedback does not get patronized by this gentleman

[mac5155]

When you just settle onto the bowl in an empty work bathroom and someone else walks in.

Or when you're the first in, and another one comes right in... then proceeds to start wiping right as youstart to wipe. Dude, FIFO.

[stopper40]

The high class establishment known as Mimi's Cafe. None in PA.

I find it very hard to believe that the corporate HQ of a national chain would be very happy about one of their managers being that openly flippant towards a guest. Instead of going through corporate might i suggest trying to find out who the district or regional managers are. If they get involved it will surely get back to the manager(s) involved and things will come down on them.

[PensFanInDC]

The high class establishment known as Mimi's Cafe. None in PA.

I find it very hard to believe that the corporate HQ of a national chain would be very happy about one of their managers being that openly flippant towards a guest. Instead of going through corporate might i suggest trying to find out who the district or regional managers are. If they get involved it will surely get back to the manager(s) involved and things will come down on them.

I've thought about this and it is an option. We hadn't eaten there in a while and some friends told us the service had gone downhill. We had a bogo coupon so we decided to go anyway. The service was always fantastic and in most cases above and beyond. My fear is that there was a change in management and that rustling the bushes so close to home won't do anything. Then again it is a start. I already called the location already and asked for the GMs email and was denied. I may have to go in person...

[dodint]

Never understood why people go to great lengths to complain, unless they want something for free (not you in this case, just stuff I saw at ENP). I'm happy to vote with my dollars and not go back. If I do happen to have a bad time somewhere and do bump into a manager, I don't take the free stuff because more bad stuff is just bad. There is so much choice out there I'm not going to try to mold a restaurant to my expectation when I can just find one that already has its act together.

[PensFanInDC]

It's a service industry complaint. By registering the complaint the idea is to make the service better for the next guy.

[Crankshaft]

Never understood why people go to great lengths to complain, unless they want something for free (not you in this case, just stuff I saw at ENP). I'm happy to vote with my dollars and not go back. If I do happen to have a bad time somewhere and do bump into a manager, I don't take the free stuff because more bad stuff is just bad. There is so much choice out there I'm not going to try to mold a restaurant to my expectation when I can just find one that already has its act together.

Agreed. I would never got out of my way to try and take on a bad situation. I will just not go back. If I was really motivated, I would just hit up social media, post a bad review and move on with my life.

I will, however, go out of my way to pass on compliments on exceptional service.

[PensFanInDC]

Reported

[dodint]

It's a service industry complaint. By registering the complaint the idea is to make the service better for the next guy.

Right, and that's noble, but my way also works. Either the restaurant goes out of business or it fixes itself. And, like Crank said, online reviews are pretty quick, easy, and informative for future diners. Restaurant reviews haven't been ruined by the professional-reviewers that now dominate Amazon, yet.

Also, I just recently went on Google and gave a sports store a bad review for selling me the wrong inline wheels. It took like 3 minutes and now it's out there for future consumers to be aware. Better than the BBB.

But, from the service side, restaurants hate that. I went to an ENP management course once and they talk about Walkers & Talkers. Talkers whine and get what they want over and over, and walkers are never heard from again. They really can't stand the missed opportunity walkers represent.

[Letang Is The Truth]

so by your approach, you are not giving the business an opportunity to correct itself. yes they may have screwed up. alert the management, allow them to address the problem, profit

[dodint]

Why do I owe the business anything? That's absurd to me. I'm not their QA program. I'm not there to beta test their dining experience. Deliver or don't. And it's not some kind of grudge list, I'll go back after a while to see what's up, but they're taken out of rotation until I meander back or word of mouth gets back to me that things are improved. There is a restaurant here in NC where we love the food, but the service is painfully slow. So now we just get takeout from the bar since we can order ahead. I'm not completely rigid. Also, there is a Dennys between Columbus and Pittsburgh I'll never go into again because the one bad experience combined with the plethora of choices means that I owe it to myself not to take that chance again, I don't owe anything to them.