I Am Disgusted

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 12 May 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Kiama	12 May 2002
I work in a Silver Service restaurant during the weekends. Saturday night, something happened which totally disgusted me. A table of 8, supposedly a surprise birthday party, were booked. The day before, one of the party had phoned in with Credit Card details, saying he would pay for it. When it came for this party to leave, after their meals, Shell, (The waitress for that table) was sorting out all the details and plummed the Credit Card number into the till. It didnt work, so she tried again... By the time she had realised that these details were fake the party had left, leaving Shell with a bill of nearly £100 to pay. (It is the duty of the waiters and waitresses to make sure the correct money is given in at the end of each night. Any differences come out of their pocket.) We thought we might be able to trace the party by their registration from CCTV cameras in the car park, but they had actually parked right in front of the CCTV camera that was broken: The ONLY camera that was broken! The CCTV footage we have of them leaving the building is useless, cuz they wore hats and scarves and long jackets... I am digusted that people do this. I urge anybody who is reading this to help prevent this hapening again. I don't think people realise that it comes out of the one tiny waitresses pocket, not the big company's pocket, when they walk out without paying a bill. If you have friends who do this, please talk them out of it! I have a couple of friends who used to, but they soon stopped... I just think it is awful what happened... Kiama

Umbrae	12 May 2002
That blows. At times like that, a fingernail, a piece of hair, or an unwashed fork would come in handy… …for there are times… I spent 13 years in food and beverage...people can be such thoughtless, inhumane pigs at times. But paybacks do happen…most times we are not around to get the pleasure of watching…(but there are times…).

Jimilyn	12 May 2002
Poor Shell! Well, I suppose there is one less restaurant that those people will ever be able to frequent again. Unfortunately for Shell, she still had to pay the 100 pounds. But at least we know that whatever energy you put out is the type of energy you attract. Not much of a consolation when stiffed for a bill of that amount, though. I guess some people see it as something funny or something they can get away with. I see it as people who believe that it is moral and ethical to steal. That's what those people are, plain and simple...thieves. And at 100 pounds, they aren't even petty thieves. That's a sizable chunk of change. Well, I'm sending love and light to Shell. Jimilyn

fairyhedgehog	12 May 2002
I'm really shocked. £100 is a huge amount to pay out of a waitresses salary. I think it is awful that she has to make it up herself, the restaurant should have checked, they had time. But how the thieves could do this is beyond me. I'm always worried to leave a reasonable tip, because I know waiters/waitresses don't get paid much. But to /steal/ all that from the restaurant leaves me speechless.

jade	12 May 2002
karma is a beautiful thing. you can run but you can't hide from it. love jade

Spasticgirlie	12 May 2002
I have got to say that is absolutely awful. I have never stolen in my life and I dont know how people can live with themselves if they do. Especially if it is that much. Like the other day at the mall I picked up this nail polish and I forgot i had it in my hand while my friend was asking if they pierce ears. They told her to go next door and we left. In the other store I realized I had something in my hand and was like Oh goodness what is this. I went and quickly told my friend. So we went back next door acted like we were looking at the nail polish and then I purchased it. I had to have it for my senior ball dress anyways. LOL I was so embarrassed. But I dont think I could have lived with the guild if I had kept it and put it on my fingernails.

Rhiannon	13 May 2002
I just don't understand people who can do that! I used to work in fast food (i couldn't be a waitress, i get aggravated with people too easily) and even so I never "stiff" my waiter/waitress when I go to a restaurant! I always clean up after myself and my children and I always tip high! Even if I get lousy service I still leave the minimum amount! Food service workers work harder than anyone thinks and they are just as stressed out as any other job! What losers to do that! Rhiannon :)

Sam	15 May 2002
Quote: Originally posted by jade karma is a beautiful thing. you can run but you can't hide from it. I totally agree. what goes around, comes around!

Nightwalker	15 May 2002
Quote: Originally posted by Kiama By the time she had realised that these details were fake the party had left, leaving Shell with a bill of nearly £100 to pay. (It is the duty of the waiters and waitresses to make sure the correct money is given in at the end of each night. Any differences come out of their pocket.)... I just think it is awful what happened... Kiama This is horrid what these people did. I've worked in food service ever since high school, and I thought I'd seen every dine and dash exit ever thought up until now. But why does the restaurant make the waitresses/waiters make up the differences? It's not their fault if people are jerks. The place where I work has never done this. The boss just chalks it up to experience, tells the waitress to be a bit more careful about keeping an eye on her customers(ther are two doors leading in and out of the dining room) and that's the end of it. I won't even let my kids joke about doing a dine and dash. It only hurts everyone in the end. Nightwalker

jakyle	15 May 2002
This kinda cra* pis$es me off!! I work in a grocery store, and am tired of people ripping us off all the time. The sad part is that we basically are aloud to do nothing, unless we "see" them actually take merchandise out of the store. Even then we can get in trouble for trying to apprehend the person, because our store doesn't want a lawsuit on their hands if we get hurt! Is there a bank or neighboring store close by to where the restaurant is? If so, they have cameras too. Maybe you might want to look into that. Are you sure that that was the only camera that wasn't working? I hate to tell you this, but a lot of times Owners usually don't have them turned on, or they only have the cameras to make people "think" they are being watched. The reason being is those tapes are expensive. Plus, since the Owner doesn't really have to worry about the $$$ coming out of his pocket......(do you follow me?")Bull crappppolla. Sorry this happened....

catlin	15 May 2002
Hi friends, During my universitiy time I also worked as a waitress for a while (for 3 years to be exact). I remembered one time a guy also tricked me with his credit card. The funny thing was that I had a queer feeling before I served this guy but you cannot select your clients so I had to bring him the stuff he had ordered. I was left with a bill of about 15 € I had to pay out of my pocket. There was another guy who also tried to trick me but I started to make such a big fuss and took his passport from him so the guy was obliged to come back the other day to pay his bill (ok, I was not allowed to take the passport from him but I didn't care for that because I was so mad with rage and I did not intend to stay in this cafe any longer so I didn't mind the "lecture" my coworker gave to me afterwards. I really enjoyed the feeling to yell at that scum and to see how he shrank back from me. I hope he had learned his lesson and never tried again to trick a waitress. Today I am gald that I don't work any longer as waitress because such things do occur more often with the increasing loss of respect to the property of others.

Kiama	15 May 2002
I think I've seen pretty much most of he scams people can try! Some of them are quite creative too, and you've gotta hand it to them: They've got guts. Nasty guts, but guts all the same. The most creative one I actually had to deal with myself was a really kind, nice family, with two kids, who were veggies. They came in for breakfast, and I really liked them. They ate their veggie breakfasts, even though the restaurant I work in doesn't cater for veggies (Its called the Beefeater. Our speciality is steak.) Then, when they came to pay for the brakfast, the father came up to me and refused to pay (It was quite a high bill too) because he claimed we had cooked our hash browns in the same grill as bacon, which is illegal. I know we don't do that, cuz hash browns go in a frying pan, and bacon goes under the grill. I told him that I thought he was only saying that to get out of paying, and he still insisted that the hash browns tasted of bacon. Now, we are a Silver Service restaurant, and we do respect people's eating habits. We do not let the meat we cook come into any contact with vegetables or non-meat products until they are actually on the plate. I told this man he didn't know what he was talking about and we weren't gonna give him and his famly free meals just cuz he thought it tasted like bacon. I was very annoyed by now. So, he walked away, muttering obscenities. Kiama

The I Am Disgusted thread was originally posted on 12 May 2002 in the Chat board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Chat, or read more archived threads.