Plinky Prompt: Share a Strange Restaurant Experience
When I was 18 I met this guy named Rob (that's a whole other story but I'll summarize--there was a church activity...all the girls were excited he was coming, I'd never met him and was anything but interested in guys at that time. He came, they cooed, I ignored... he called me. *smile*) and went on a few dates with him. The first date we went down to Salt Lake City to see the Christmas lights at Temple Square and then out to eat at a place across the street.
I ordered the Fillet Mignon, pink but not bleeding.
We waited for our food and chatted about eating rare meat (he thought it was gross, I said I liked it pink). It was a nice time and he was cute enough that I was trying to be impressive.
The food came back and the waitress handed me my meat... it was still moving. It was so red you could question whether or not it had actually been on the burner.
In any other situation, I might have just eaten it, but after the conversation we had had I didn't want to gross him out, so I sent it back.
The waitress scowled at me and argued that I had said 'pink.'
Two minutes later it came back.
It was still moving and now I was wondering if they had done anything to it the second time around. I summoned the waitress.
"Pink, but not bleeding. Bit's of brown around the edges and warm please."
She scowled, grabbed my plate and stalked off.
"It's not good enough." I heard from across the restaurant. "No... she obviously doesn't know what she's talking about. Whatever, just cook it all the way."
This lady was beginning to annoy me and I was beyond caring who I was with.
Everyone else had been waiting for me to start their food. I encouraged them to eat before their food got cold.
I waited.
And waited.
And waited.
And waited.
Finally the waitress came back... and handed us our ticket.
No food came, but she had been sure to charge us for it.
I was mortified. Talk about making an impression on your first date. Plus the only thing they gave us as reconciliation was a new ticket without my meal on it. So we left, disgruntled and, for me, hungry.
My date felt bad, he wanted to go grab me food at a fast food joint. I said it was fine, I wasn't that hungry anyway (lie).
It was a rather terrible experience, but I learned a lesson.
Years later my girlfriends and I went out to eat on my birthday. We were going to go eat at a place I loved (Mimi's Cafe) and then go see a movie. Since we were such a large group we called ahead, as we always did, to prepare them.
It took them forever to bring us our food! So long in fact that we missed our movie. My friends were mad, but unwilling to do anything. I wasn't so shy. I asked for the manager, explained to him that we had missed our movie and now we all had to get home to take our babysitters home. So we had payed to sit at his restaurant.
He apologized profusely and gave us the entire meal for free.
I went back. I loved that place.
Lesson: It's worth it to speak up. (But don't yell, you never get anything when you lose your temper.)
I ordered the Fillet Mignon, pink but not bleeding.
We waited for our food and chatted about eating rare meat (he thought it was gross, I said I liked it pink). It was a nice time and he was cute enough that I was trying to be impressive.
The food came back and the waitress handed me my meat... it was still moving. It was so red you could question whether or not it had actually been on the burner.
In any other situation, I might have just eaten it, but after the conversation we had had I didn't want to gross him out, so I sent it back.
The waitress scowled at me and argued that I had said 'pink.'
Two minutes later it came back.
It was still moving and now I was wondering if they had done anything to it the second time around. I summoned the waitress.
"Pink, but not bleeding. Bit's of brown around the edges and warm please."
She scowled, grabbed my plate and stalked off.
"It's not good enough." I heard from across the restaurant. "No... she obviously doesn't know what she's talking about. Whatever, just cook it all the way."
This lady was beginning to annoy me and I was beyond caring who I was with.
Everyone else had been waiting for me to start their food. I encouraged them to eat before their food got cold.
I waited.
And waited.
And waited.
And waited.
Finally the waitress came back... and handed us our ticket.
No food came, but she had been sure to charge us for it.
I was mortified. Talk about making an impression on your first date. Plus the only thing they gave us as reconciliation was a new ticket without my meal on it. So we left, disgruntled and, for me, hungry.
My date felt bad, he wanted to go grab me food at a fast food joint. I said it was fine, I wasn't that hungry anyway (lie).
It was a rather terrible experience, but I learned a lesson.
Years later my girlfriends and I went out to eat on my birthday. We were going to go eat at a place I loved (Mimi's Cafe) and then go see a movie. Since we were such a large group we called ahead, as we always did, to prepare them.
It took them forever to bring us our food! So long in fact that we missed our movie. My friends were mad, but unwilling to do anything. I wasn't so shy. I asked for the manager, explained to him that we had missed our movie and now we all had to get home to take our babysitters home. So we had payed to sit at his restaurant.
He apologized profusely and gave us the entire meal for free.
I went back. I loved that place.
Lesson: It's worth it to speak up. (But don't yell, you never get anything when you lose your temper.)
Comments
So did your date leave a tip for the waitress after she didn't give you any food?
I'm a firm believer in tipping according to the service given and I don't if the service was really bad and they don't have a good excuse like being the only person that showed up for work.
But so glad to hear it all worked out at Mimi's a few years later!
Cheers,
Avery