30 Stories Of Customers From Hell That These Servers Just Had To Vent About Online

About a week ago, I (20F) had a two-top come in for some burgers. They barely touched the food, but every time I asked if everything was okay with their food, they said yes. When they left, they tipped me $0. A few days after, we got a one-star review from these people complaining about the food, and the fact that we charged them full-price. Why couldn’t they have spoken up? I would’ve fixed it and gotten them something else — it was just so frustrating.

Them: 'We'll have a bottle of rosé.' The server: 'I'm sorry, but we just sold the last chilled bottle.' Them: 'I see some on the counter.' The server: 'Yes, but it's not chilled — it's the display bottle, and it won't taste great. May I suggest this chilled macerated white wine that'll give you a similar flavor profile, but taste much better?' Them: 'Ugh, orange wine?!? Gross. Just bring that display bottle of rosé and a bucket of ice, and it'll cool down fast enough.' The server coming to me, the owner: 'That bottle won't cool down like they think.' Me, to the server: 'You're right, but give it to them anyway...' [An hour later]: Them: 'You don't have to take it off the bill, but this rosé is terrible. It tastes like a wine cooler, and it's warm.' The server, screaming on the inside but smiling on the outside: 'I understand.' The server to me: 'I F**KING TOLD THEM.' Me to the server: 'Leave that s**t on the bill.'

Cafes aren’t your personal library, or even a public library.

Customer posted on her Instagram, tagging my workplace and identifying me by name (whom she asked for from my coworker). Was upset because I had said she needed to give up her table for other customers. She had been sitting there for 2 hours, only ordered a single cup of coffee, which she requested to “top up” hot milk for.

Said she was undergoing an “urgent job interview” and that i had interrupted her, causing her to have to exit the interview abruptly.

Ain’t my fault you don’t know how to manage your life, lady. Cafes aren’t your home, and we DO have the right to ask you to leave (why are customers always surprised that we can do that?)

Karen tries to customize her own dish, doesn't like it, chef comes out, rips her a new one, and forces her to pay for it. (not my story, paraphrased with permission from a coworker) Karen and her family come into a family-owned local seafood eatery, and she's immediately disappointed that they don't carry her favorite seasonal dish (mango-papaya mahi mahi), which needs to be explained to her. She says it's the only reason she came and insists they make something as close to it as possible. After much haranguing and cross-communication, the chef settles on a tilapia with mango salsa as the closest compromise. After the food is delivered, Karen takes one bite and decides, "No, it just doesn't taste the same. I think I'll just have pasta instead." The server brings the plate back to the kitchen, and the chef is f**kin livid. He storms out and slams the plate back in front of her and goes off, "We bent over backwards in the kitchen to accommodate you! This is the only dish you're getting tonight, and you're paying for it!" It must have done the trick, because she just accepted her fate. She and the husband switched plates, and apparently he thought it tasted awesome. They paid out and that was that. On their way out, Karen asked when they would have the mango-papaya mahi mahi again, to which it had to be explained a third time what "seasonal" means.

My wife and I were out to eat last night, and overheard customers at the next table harassing their server about whether he knew Jesus, and tried to get him to agree to go to church. He was non-committal, and said he never found much 'connection' with religion. But, they kept at him for a long time — inside, I bet he was screaming that he had other tables to get to. I loved his parting words, though: 'If your soup is cold by now, let me know if you'd like to order a fresh one!'

Do people even listen to what comes out of their mouths?

A guest walks into brunch and orders our smoked salmon plate. The only dairy in this particular dish is a ramekin of cream cheese that is served on the side.

A couple minutes later I’m in the kitchen getting coffee for another table. I turn around and smoked salmon lady has followed me to the kitchen.

When I turn around and see her, I ask “Is there something you need?”

She says, “I forgot I’m not eating dairy, so can I change my order to the buttermilk pancakes?”

Confused at what I just heard, I ask “The buttermilk pancakes? There is dairy in the pancakes...”

“Well as long as it’s not a lot it’s ok.”

Lady..... it’s like the main ingredient. It’s in the name. BUTTERMILK pancakes. Do people really listen to the stupidity that comes out of their face holes??? I can’t.

I had my first-ever dine and dash today! It was the last table of the night (a family of four — two adults and two kids). The kids spilled two drinks, and I told them I’d be sure to leave the second one off the bill because accidents happen. But then, two drinks and an entire bowl of popcorn spilled (not to mention the fries, broccoli, and mashed potatoes were left ALL over the floor, booth, and table). They knew they were leaving me with a huge mess, and that they weren’t going to pay for their meal.
The kicker is, they did hand me $28 in cash for being 'the best waitress ever' — but I had a feeling they would dine and dash. I asked my manager to go to their car with the bill because I had closing duties, but my manager said no — 'It would be rude.' They got away, and I kept the $28 — but my manager said I had to cover the whole $83 meal. I reminded him I asked him to get them and he said no, so it wasn’t on me that they got away. Unfortunately, our security cameras didn't record any of it — it just goes to show you they truly got away with it, but at least I got a nice tip?

I had a pair come in, and I was on register, so I had the pleasure of serving them. They grabbed a menu and sat down — all was well. 'I want Eggs Benedict with sausage' she said. On our menu, we have bacon and eggs, a classic breakfast that has eggs and sausages, and an on-theme meal called Eggs Benedict. So, I asked her some questions, figured out she's talking about the on-theme meal Eggs Benedict, so we do that and add some sausage to it. She asked me to make sure it had hollandaise, so I did that. Then, she asked for another Eggs Benedict meal — awesome! I rang her up, and all was well until... The food came out, and there were two Eggs Benedict meals — apparently, she 'didn't want hollandaise on one of them,' but f**k me for not reading her mind, right? We started remaking them, but halfway through, they decided that no: They just wanted a refund because I 'specifically f**ked it up too much.' Because they couldn't be bothered reading the menu or at the very least telling me what they wanted! Anyway, at least I got a free Eggs Bene out of it, so that's cool (and they even promised they wouldn't come back — I hope they stick to it)!

“Please, no mayo. I’m allergic to mayonnaise.”

Between my husband and a woman at his table last night—

“Okay, ma’am, now is it the egg or the oil we need to be worried about?”

“...it’s the combination.”

“...okay. I’ll alert the kitchen.”

I love this industry so much.

I had my restaurant booked out for a private sports event for 150 people. This didn't happen often, and it's only the second private event I've worked (I was hoping it'd be smoother this time around). We were working with the info the organizers gave us, which we were led to believe had been communicated to the guests. If guests had a pink lanyard, they were paying for drinks as they went — and if they had a gray lanyard, it meant they had a pre-paid package and got free refills on beer, wine, and soft drinks. What's important to note is that they did NOT get spirits included. The organizers told us to stop serving drinks at 1:15 p.m., get their checks paid, and get everyone ready to depart to the game. This is where things started getting interesting... A table with gray lanyards got confused when I brought over their bill. One guy asked: 'What the f**k is this?' The refills of beer they'd had were included in their package, so they only had to pay for the double vodkas they ordered. 'Since when?' and I told him that was the original plan. He yelled at me about how he ordered the premium package, wasn't supposed to have to pay, and that this was a f**king disgrace. After gently explaining to him we followed the organizers' orders, he demanded I go get someone in charge. I got the main organizer — he spoke to them, then spoke to my manager. I have no idea what happened, but somehow, the guy didn't end up paying for the spirits, and they were put on the organizers' tab instead. I understand if the guy thought he was getting everything included, but bro: I am not the person to yell at. And, in my opinion, it's a lack of organization and clarity on the organizers' part — not ours.