Anyone who has worked in the fast-food industry is familiar with demanding customers. Whether expecting every server to remember what their “usual” order is, or to have a menu item made in a ridiculously specific way, customers can make the strangest requests.
Many such workers have taken to TikTok to share their gripes. One of the latest is @al_the_pal_, who shared that in addition to having customers hand her money and cards out of their bras, she has had customers demand that she make breakfast items at 4:30pm, well after her employer has set the cutoff time for its breakfast menu.
The issues she faces often stem from a lack of patience, as she demonstrates with a reenacted interaction with a customer who asks where her drink is just as @al_the_pal_ says she is reaching over to get it.
Other interactions the poster reenacts to share what she deals with on a daily basis include having customers ignore her greeting when they first pull up to a drive-thru and then insist they were ignored the whole time when they are ready to place their order.
“Hello,” she says loudly, imitating the customer. “I’ve been waiting here d*mn five minutes. Jeez.”
@al_the_pal_ part 2 of why i LOOOOVE working in the food service industry <33 let me know more of your work horror stories!! i love hearing them!! #food #service #serviceindustry #foodworker #ugh #work #workstories ♬ original sound – allison <3
The Daily Dot has reached out to @al_the_pal_ via Instagram direct message.
Many viewers shared that they had similar interactions with customers while working in food service.
“Once had a customer order $50 worth of food and couldn’t pay for it then asked me what she should do and stared at me like I was gonna let her off,” one commenter wrote.
“My favorite questions I’ve ever gotten are, ‘how many in the twelve pack?’ & ‘what meat is on the chicken quesodilla?’” another user said.
“Like two days ago some dude sat at the speaker for five minutes on the phone with his doctor and i could hear the entire convo,” a viewer commented.
Others suggested food service jobs should be a compulsory rite of passage, to avoid a lack of empathy at the drive-thru window.
“I wish it was a requirement for all humans to work food service for at least 6 mths,” one commenter wrote.
“Everyone should have to work in retail or food service once in their lives,” another shared.
“I firmly believe everyone should have to work retail at some point in their life,” yet another user echoed.
