To hate customers

[rahjama]

Somewhat lighthearted.

Working in hospitality/retail, what things do customers do that really, really annoy you when you're working? I'll start

• Booking for 6 people and then saying "Hope it's okay we're now a party of 194"

• Paying in cash but they're 1-20p short. "Can you cover it?" No I cannot

• Sitting on tables that are dirty/unset/in the process of being cleaned when there are clean and set tables literally next to them. Then complaining about the lack of cutlery.

• Buying the cheapest pint, saying it's flat/doesn't taste right, then swapping for the most expensive pint.

• Picking up an allergen menu and then saying "is this all you do?" No that's all we do GLUTEN FREE it says at the top!!!!!!!!!

When they get to the bar which is 3 deep and you make eye contact, go over, then they turn round to their mates 'right wha you aving?'. Then you get the order, put it in the till, say thatll be x. Only then do they reach into their pocket for their wallet.

Quite often trying to get bloody reception to scan loyalty card

I used to work in a soft play next door to a weatherspoons. We used to get people kicking off because:

We wouldn't let them bring in the hot plates of food they'd ordered next door whilst they supervised their children.

We only had plastic cups for cold drinks and I couldn't magic up a glass.

Wanted to leave their children and go next door and didn't understand why a 16 year old with no childcare experience, a till to cover, tables to clean, coffee to make, make sure the 40-odd kids were OK, clean up the inevitable pee puddles, with a door onto main road, was a spectacularly poor parenting decision.

Worse still, the parents who would sneak off leaving their children unsupervised.

When during peak time we had a 2 hour limit on play, parents would tell their kids they could have ten more minutes after I had called them out.

The people who would rock up 10 minutes before closing and kick off because i wouldnt stay open for them.

Also, the sheer amount of parents who knew their kid had had a pee or poo in the play area and not tell us.

Sounds like a good selling opportunity here. I would have kept two or three generic tartans for exactly these occasions and said there isn’t an exact match but I would say one of these tartans (producing the generic ones) would be the closest thing. Then you could probably sell them loads of touristy type products made up in them.

It may have helped that I was about 8.5m pregnant at the time….

Question for cafe staff. Why when I order a hot drink and a meal does the drink always come ages before the food so it's getting cold by the time I can eat? Why should I have to specify that they come together? Surely it's obvious?

Worked in retail. I've always said the job would be a lot easier without customers!
Always loved it when they'd ask to speak to the manager, and I could tel them they already were!

No, we have to clean that up as soon as they leave... usually in rush hour when you are flat out.

It's clear you've never worked in hospitality.

They could get annoyed instead
after all they know you’ve got to get Maureen the supervisor’s attention, who then has to go and get the same product so that it can scan. All the while people behind him giving him “looks”

I still remember the man who was getting in a huge round for at least 20 people, asked for each drink one by one from his list - and ordered the Guinness last!

Around 20 years ago I used to work in a children’s soft play that was connected to a restaurant and bar. Two women brought in four children in to play and then sat in restaurant and started drinking. The abuse every member of staff got when the barman cut them off after a bottle of wine each. After abusing every member demanded to see the manager who told them his barman’s word was final and they had two options start drinking soft drinks or he could call them a taxi.

The initial comments by the customers seem reasonable as you put it above, but it's the follow up that annoys.

Customer asks advice about the best route - you give it to them then they tell you that you are wrong.

Someone asks for an item that another shop says you have - when you tell the customer you don't have it, they insist you must have it in stock because the other sahop said you do, and argue the point.

Yes, the waiter/waitress DOES day who asked for the XYZ, which was clear in the posts above.

That is just extraordinary

Did the patient survive?

When shouting 'glasses please' in the pub at closing time there's always some dick takes his glasses of and hands them to me, i always said 'congratulations you are the 100th person to do that this week'

Pub customers tearing up beer mats and putting their feet on the tables and chairs, they always seem to be teachers!

Why would it come out together?
The drinks and food are made (usually) by different people in a different area and almost certainly the drink will be ready before the food.
If it was done your way there would be way more complaints as people would be sat there waiting for both rather than enjoying a drink whilst their food is cooked.

My daughter works in airport security. She's only new, so they have her dealing with all the trays. My daughter is the nicest person you could meet, and would go out of her way to help anyone, but she cannot believe how stupid some of the general public are.
And when she joined a month ago, she couldn't understand why a good many of her workmates were grumpy bastards. She's starting to get it

If I was in the supermarket buying a bag of onions (or anything else) I would pick up the bag, examine the onions and if I found a damaged one I would put the bag down and chose another.

When you order online your shop is supposed to be as good as if you have done it yourself so I don't think this person was unreasonable in wanting some money back for the damaged onion. The bag would probably end up yellow stickered and someone else would get it discounted.

Why should a customer pay for some damaged, cheap onion or expensive tea pot, it's still damaged.

The parents who think it is charming that little Jasper and Olivia can express themselves so vivaciously by scampering all around the restaurant, tripping up the waiters, while they focus on their hair of the dog Bloody Marys at Sunday lunch.

t.

@CorsicaDreaming on the very remote chance I can be ID’d, there is a Privacy thing I take very seriously. I’ve performed CPR more than once, and I would hate it if any of these passengers or their family members thought I was making light of the situation. I am happy to make light of the oblivious idiot asking for a coffee though. What a tool!

Ex weekend retail here, back in my student days. I worked in Waterstones in Chester (1997/8ish). One Christmas, we had a queue out the shop door and were running around like blue-arsed flies. I and another lass were on the ground floor which included children's books. Woman and young daughter got to end of the line and woman paid for child's book. I handed the book to the child, who said 'Thank you'. Mother loudly exclaimed in horror 'You DON'T thank the shop girl Jocasta!'
Still makes me 'WTF' all these years later, rude cow. If you're reading this 'Shop Girl' Mel (other assistant) I miss those days and your sense of humour when dealing with shit like that!

@gingerhills - and expect everyone to look upon their antics with giant, adoring, manga-eyes. Spill something hot on one of those dervishes and they have lawyers on speed-dial.

It's obvious to you because you want it that way, and I'd say you're in the minority because most people want their drink while waiting for their food - which is why it's done that way around (borne out by you saying they 'always' do it).
The staff aren't mind readers, if you want something that differs from normal service then ask for it to be done that way, why is it a hardship to ask for what you actually want, so you get what you actually want?

There's a certain type of person you encounter in service industries that seem to design situations so they can feel aggrieved and hard done by.

The classic, "Oi! You!".

I don't respond. My name isn't Oi.