Jerry Mabbott's Blog

I went into a restaurant one morning and ordered breakfast. I said, “I would like two eggs very runny, hash browns and toast burned as much as possible and cold coffee”. The waitress said, “Don’t be ridiculous. We don’t serve food that way”. I said, “That’s weird. You did yesterday”.

Have you ever sent food back because it wasn’t to your liking? Many people won’t, for fear of offending someone. Others are afraid they will have ingredients added that might be disgusting. I’m not one to accept anything wrong with what I buy.

My Dad used to tell me that the minute you accept poor service or craftsmanship, that’s all you’ll get. You will settle for bad customer service, poor quality items that you buy, and you’ll deserve it because you’ll accept it.

Heather and I were at a fine restaurant which served up the best Mexican food in Southern California. I ordered tamales, my favorite Mexican food. When our food was served, I told the waiter that there was hair in my food and would he please bring another plate without the hair.

Within a few minutes, he returned with another plate the same way! I complained about kitchen cleanliness and the importance of wearing hair nets. He leaned over and whispered to me that when they bake it to melt the cheese, part of the husk burns and some stands from the husk can resemble hair.

I wanted to find somewhere to hide. That was embarrassing, to say the least. I thanked him for his explanation, apologized profusely, tipped him very well and got our food to go. What a moron I was. Heather kept reminding me that she had told me so, and she was right.

Now, I think twice about sending food back. As many times as I fit the description perfectly, I hate feeling like a moron.