you know, i’ve been working in hospitality for some time, and i chose to make it my career.
i thought it was all glamour and travelling.
well, let me tell you… there was travelling. behind the glamour were long hours, weekends and public holidays spent working while everyone else was enjoying theirs.
i always find that hospitality isn’t for everyone. you either love it or you hate it. sometimes you love it and still go home wondering what just happened that day.
over the years, i’ve come across a few guest experiences that have stayed with me. some weren’t very funny at the time, but looking back… i can laugh about them now.
and if you’ve worked in hospitality, you might recognise a few.
when i used to work in the states, i often heard “the customer is always right” or “the customer is king.”
personally, i believe a customer is a customer.
of course we should look after them. that’s our job.
during my training days, i was in the kitchen getting some food when another trainee came in crying.
the manager asked her what had happened.
she explained that the guests at her table were making fun of her because she couldn’t speak or understand their language. they understood english, but didn’t want to speak it with her. instead, they continued in their own language and were rude to her.
the manager asked me to take over the table because i spoke their language.
so i went over and started speaking in english.
then they started talking about me in their language.
well… i understood that too.
so i started speaking to them in their language.
you should have seen their faces.
priceless…
apparently, they weren’t expecting that.
another incident happened early in my hospitality career. we had a dinner booking for two people.
it was so long ago that i don’t remember their whole order, but i do remember that one of them ordered a steak, medium rare.
the evening seemed to be going fine. every time i checked on the table, they seemed to be enjoying their meals.
once they finished their main courses, i went over to clear the plates and asked how everything was.
that’s when he told me he didn’t like the steak. he said it wasn’t medium rare and it was tough.
i looked at him. then i looked at his plate.
he had finished everything. the plate was clean.
i was confused…
i had checked on them during the meal. now that there was nothing left, he was telling me something was wrong?
then he said he shouldn’t have to pay for the steak.
at that stage, i didn’t really know what to do, so i asked my manager to speak with them. afterwards, my manager told me to take the steak off the bill.
that experience stayed with me. how were we supposed to fix something we only heard about after it had all been eaten?
if you’ve worked in hospitality, you’ve probably looked at an empty plate and wondered the same thing.
and apparently, one steak story wasn’t enough.
another time, two guys came in for lunch. one ordered a steak and the other had chicken.
after their meals, the one who ordered the steak told me it was tough and wasn’t edible.
and let me point out… the steak was gone. again, a clean plate.
so i said to him, “but you finished the steak?”
he told me his friend had eaten it because he was hungry.
ah… so his friend had the chicken and the steak that apparently wasn’t edible.
i smiled and walked away…
working in hospitality, you meet all sorts of people. some make your day better. others give you a story you’re still telling and laughing about years later.
i chose this career, and after all these years, i’m still here. but that polite smile has hidden quite a few thoughts along the way.
if you’ve worked in hospitality, what guest experience has stayed with you? share yours in the comments… i’m sure i’m not the only one lol.
and do you believe “the customer is always right”?
there are more stories, of course. quite a few, actually…
to be continued… behind the polite smile, part 2.
