Wibu about this "seat saving" incident in the Michelin starred restaurant that is...

[IHaveNoShameLeft]

McDonalds. (Apologies for the thread title!)

Have name changed incase I was being unreasonable, so here goes:

I went to McDonald's yesterday with dd aged 5. I NEVER go in there on a Saturday, but she's recently started school so decided to treat her with a quick lunch and day in town.

We took our order upstairs and found that it was chockablock. I walked further in and found one small empty stool seat for dd and she sat down. There was a woman waiting at the table without any food and she told me she was saving the seats for friends. I told her I was only putting dd down to eat. She was getting more and more aggravated by dd sitting there.

Suddenly she tapped me on my arm and told me seats were empty behind me. I wanted to leave dd there as I couldn't be arsed to move again, but seeing as this idiot was about to suffer a heart attack for us taking her friends space I picked up Dd and put her down on the empty seat.

I had just put her down and was about to sit down myself when a woman jumped out of nowhere and declared she was saving the seat for someone and that we couldn't sit there. I looked at her. No food in her hands. I replied loudly (so other woman heard me too) that you can't save seats for people when you have no food. There are others who have paid and have food to eat. She got angry and started shouting at me about why I hadn't moved other people. I looked at her and said loudly, "you can't save seats for people that aren't here. Show me any rules about seat saving and I'll move". I sat down and started eating. She stood and stared at me (trying to intimidate me) for about 3 mins, during which time no one had come up with her food. She then huffed loudly and walked off.

Now, normally I would have not even imagined doing something like this. But I feel I've grown up a lot and am becoming less and less caring about what people will think of me. I told DH, and he agrees with what I did. I had food to eat and the seats were empty. I had already been forced to move by another woman, and I wasn't going to start moving around the whole place with a child.

So wibu?

[AmazingBouncingFerret]

YWNBU.

Well done for standing your ground.

[INeedThatForkOff]

YANBU. Sounds like a stressful start to the day out though. How did your DD deal with it?

[MrsMangoBiscuit]

Good for you! YWNBU.

[IHaveNoShameLeft]

She got a bit scared of the woman staring at me. We had a brilliant day out afterwards though and I think she's forgotten about it.

[PoppadomPreach]

YANBU. And double points for getting the shouty woman to stomp off in a huff!

[Gumby]

When we go my dcs sit at an empty table while I order

Otherwise they'd be cluttering up the queue

[ditavonteesed]

in my local mall there are signs saying you can not save seats. you were soright and well done for standing up to her.

[Snog]

Don't go there again

[ImpatientOne]

YANBU

I get very annoyed by the whole seat saving brigade but I know this subject can be quite controversial

Only appropriate for people with mobility problems or when it would be dangerous for small children to be around people with hot things on trays IMHO. For example my mum cannot walk without stick and struggles to stand, she may go & sit while I get food but would never refuse to let anyone else sit there as she wouldn't be 'saving' a seat just using one iyswim!

From the OP it doesn't sound like this was the case...

[JackThePumpkinKing]

Nice one :)

[MousyMouse]

ywnbu
I rarely go to this scotish deli for the same reason.

[IHaveNoShameLeft]

Gumby, if she had children, I wouldn't have done this, but she was an adult with no children. I had a child with me wanting to eat her food.

[storminabuttercup]

You were right, if it was busy you would probably have finished by the time they got their food.

[pigletmania]

YANBU at all, good on you. What is the rhyme about this, a poster came up with a fantastic rhyme on a similar thread

[mellowcat]

IMO YWNBU, I have my own special rules in these situations. I f there are lots of spaces I keep an eye out and get the good seats (booth etc) if they become available. If there are limited or no seats then I get food and wait to sit down like everyone else.

[pigletmania]

I would have said to her no food no seat

[pigletmania]

Or no eats no seat

[janey68]

She seriously expected to sit at a table with no food and prevent customers with food from sitting and eating it? Ignorant bitch! Well dome for being sensible and standing your ground

[Kalisi]

I must admit, I am guilty of seat saving if in a group but I would always let someone take my seat if they had food already. Especially in places such as Macdonalds where food is generally eaten quicker than the queue goes down.

[IHaveNoShameLeft]

Oh good, I'm getting nice replies, Phew!

I like "no eats no seats" pigletmania

[Loveweekends10]

That's why I don't eat at McDonald's.

[flossy101]

Yanbu!

If I were u I'd be proud of myself for saying something! I normally quietly seethe!

[KittyFane1]

Loveweekendss Not just McDonald's customers do this you know! John Lewis 'place to eat' has it's very own army of seat savers!

[cheekydevil]

Yabu for going to that place. better?

[KittyFane1]

Also, the staff in the M+S coffee shop put signs on the tables they have just cleared reserving them for customers who have already purchased their food.