Last week I was sitting in my office wondering what to eat for lunch since I didn’t bring anything to eat. I happened to be in our break room and saw a collection of restaurant menus and began thumbing through them for suggestions.
I came across a place that I had heard of but had never been to, so I decided to go there – mostly because of how close it was to the office.
I walked in and looked around. The place was empty. There was a table of 4 ladies in the corner who looked like your basic bridge-playing women. Sitting in the booth next to them was another couple that looked like they were wrapping things up in order to leave.
Finally a server appeared and seated me at a table across the aisle from the foursome. By then, the other couple had left. As I looked around, I noticed a lot of the place was made of or covered in wood. It’s the kind of a place you might find overlooking a body of water, but all that was outside this place was a parking lot.
The server was tall, thin, dark hair, dark eyes and a very nice smile (pictured is an actress who is an approximation). She was wearing this sweater-jacket thing that moved like a cape behind her when she walked. Her communication with me was nothing but professional and exactly what you would expect from someone serving you food (i.e. – “would you like some more to drink?”)
So I ordered my food and it arrived – much later than I would have wanted. I only have an hour for lunch and I had been in the restaurant 25 minutes. This meant I needed to hustle through eating my food.
Funny side note: After I ordered and before the food arrived she brought by ketchup and mustard. I ordered a burger and fries (basically) so I went to squirt the ketchup on the plate because the fries looked a little dry (I don’t usually eat ketchup). I feel kind of stupid because I’m squeezing the bottle and nothing is coming out. So I just happen to unscrew the top to find the ‘shipping’ top is still attached. You know what I mean? When you buy a new bottle of something there’s a little piece of cardboard that you have to peel away before any of the product will come out – it was a new bottle of ketchup and that little piece of cardboard was still there. (Okay, I thought it was funny…)
Okay, so I’m wolfing down my lunch because I’ve got only 10 minutes before my lunch hour is over. The foursome in the corner pays their check and they leave. So I’m sitting in this empty restaurant – by myself – in the extremely far end of the restaurant. The place where food and drinks are picked up by the wait staff is all the way at the other end of the place. I can see someone heading to my table 5 minutes before they get there.
So the server appears after I’m done eating and she walks by to get my dirty plate. She has to do that usual thing where they throw all the little bits on to the plate and she asks me something about dessert. I tell her to just bring the check, please.
It is at this point that I’ll have you know that any time I was asked anything, I responded “yes, please” and whenever she refilled my drink or brought anything by I always said “thank you”.
Even now, I can’t think of a good reason why I did what I did. I figured the risk was low and the payoff COULD have been good. I checked the finger, there was no ring so I casually said to her “Hey, you’re kind of cute. Are you single?”
Nothing.
I go no response. I got no laugh. I got no face. I got nothing. She walks away carrying a dirty plate and an empty glass.
A few minutes pass and there is absolutely NO activity in this place. I don’t see her walking around and no other patrons have come in. With all this wood around, even the silence echoes.
A few more minutes pass and I realize I’m going to be late getting back to the office. About this time, I see an elderly man with a white t-shirt and glasses come down the aisle (pictured is an actor who is an approximation). He was bald and built like an ex-Marine, or something. (Actually, that is Charles Durning in the picture, but you get the idea). This was even more excruciating because he had kind of a funny walk – like maybe he had a hip replaced or something. I can see him coming from a mile away but I’m thinking he’s going to pass me by. He doesn’t.
Without saying a word, he lays the check on my table. It’s that little leather-ette book with the receipt in it. He hobbles off. I’m sitting there another minute or two, getting myself together to pay the check and leave, and I still haven’t seen the young lady who was previously serving me. I don’t know where she went.
I have just enough cash to pay the bill and leave a fair tip but no more (I was planning to pay with a credit card), so I leave the cash in the little book, put on my coat, look around one more time, and then leave.
I came across a place that I had heard of but had never been to, so I decided to go there – mostly because of how close it was to the office.
I walked in and looked around. The place was empty. There was a table of 4 ladies in the corner who looked like your basic bridge-playing women. Sitting in the booth next to them was another couple that looked like they were wrapping things up in order to leave.
Finally a server appeared and seated me at a table across the aisle from the foursome. By then, the other couple had left. As I looked around, I noticed a lot of the place was made of or covered in wood. It’s the kind of a place you might find overlooking a body of water, but all that was outside this place was a parking lot.
The server was tall, thin, dark hair, dark eyes and a very nice smile (pictured is an actress who is an approximation). She was wearing this sweater-jacket thing that moved like a cape behind her when she walked. Her communication with me was nothing but professional and exactly what you would expect from someone serving you food (i.e. – “would you like some more to drink?”)So I ordered my food and it arrived – much later than I would have wanted. I only have an hour for lunch and I had been in the restaurant 25 minutes. This meant I needed to hustle through eating my food.
Funny side note: After I ordered and before the food arrived she brought by ketchup and mustard. I ordered a burger and fries (basically) so I went to squirt the ketchup on the plate because the fries looked a little dry (I don’t usually eat ketchup). I feel kind of stupid because I’m squeezing the bottle and nothing is coming out. So I just happen to unscrew the top to find the ‘shipping’ top is still attached. You know what I mean? When you buy a new bottle of something there’s a little piece of cardboard that you have to peel away before any of the product will come out – it was a new bottle of ketchup and that little piece of cardboard was still there. (Okay, I thought it was funny…)
Okay, so I’m wolfing down my lunch because I’ve got only 10 minutes before my lunch hour is over. The foursome in the corner pays their check and they leave. So I’m sitting in this empty restaurant – by myself – in the extremely far end of the restaurant. The place where food and drinks are picked up by the wait staff is all the way at the other end of the place. I can see someone heading to my table 5 minutes before they get there.
So the server appears after I’m done eating and she walks by to get my dirty plate. She has to do that usual thing where they throw all the little bits on to the plate and she asks me something about dessert. I tell her to just bring the check, please.
It is at this point that I’ll have you know that any time I was asked anything, I responded “yes, please” and whenever she refilled my drink or brought anything by I always said “thank you”.
Even now, I can’t think of a good reason why I did what I did. I figured the risk was low and the payoff COULD have been good. I checked the finger, there was no ring so I casually said to her “Hey, you’re kind of cute. Are you single?”
Nothing.
I go no response. I got no laugh. I got no face. I got nothing. She walks away carrying a dirty plate and an empty glass.
A few minutes pass and there is absolutely NO activity in this place. I don’t see her walking around and no other patrons have come in. With all this wood around, even the silence echoes.
A few more minutes pass and I realize I’m going to be late getting back to the office. About this time, I see an elderly man with a white t-shirt and glasses come down the aisle (pictured is an actor who is an approximation). He was bald and built like an ex-Marine, or something. (Actually, that is Charles Durning in the picture, but you get the idea). This was even more excruciating because he had kind of a funny walk – like maybe he had a hip replaced or something. I can see him coming from a mile away but I’m thinking he’s going to pass me by. He doesn’t.Without saying a word, he lays the check on my table. It’s that little leather-ette book with the receipt in it. He hobbles off. I’m sitting there another minute or two, getting myself together to pay the check and leave, and I still haven’t seen the young lady who was previously serving me. I don’t know where she went.
I have just enough cash to pay the bill and leave a fair tip but no more (I was planning to pay with a credit card), so I leave the cash in the little book, put on my coat, look around one more time, and then leave.
But, it's funny how the mind works...
As I sat writing this just now, I thought about something that didn’t occur to me at the time and now I’m slightly embarrassed. As I was recounting the steps in my head this thought jumped into my head: What if she didn’t hear me?
I don’t know how she could have NOT heard me. I wasn’t whispering and the place was empty – so I assumed she was just giving me the cold shoulder. Maybe she was lost in her own thoughts. Maybe she was calculating what the tip should be from me based on the total of the food and drink.
Maybe, just maybe she didn’t hear me.
So this makes my snarky Facebook status SO not worth it anymore.
As I sat writing this just now, I thought about something that didn’t occur to me at the time and now I’m slightly embarrassed. As I was recounting the steps in my head this thought jumped into my head: What if she didn’t hear me?
I don’t know how she could have NOT heard me. I wasn’t whispering and the place was empty – so I assumed she was just giving me the cold shoulder. Maybe she was lost in her own thoughts. Maybe she was calculating what the tip should be from me based on the total of the food and drink.
Maybe, just maybe she didn’t hear me.
So this makes my snarky Facebook status SO not worth it anymore.