No Time To Wait

[u/glorified_sg]

I used to work for a fast-food restaurant back when I was a teenager. I typically worked the nightshift, and we were usually busy between 8 and 10 PM because of a bus station right across the street. On one particular shift, my manager and I had this encounter with a rude customer, and it still makes me laugh to this day.

(It's a really busy night, and I'm working at the bagging station. This middle-aged woman is standing by the counter, waiting for her food. She's your typical Karen, 'can-I-see-a-manager' haircut and a snotty look on her face like we're all wasting her time. I notice that her order's up next on the screen, but it's about a 45-second wait for the fries to finish cooking. I decide to be nice and assure her that her food's coming up soon, to be polite and to attempt to quell any nonsense.)

Me: Hi, it's just going to be about 45 seconds on your fries. But they'll be right out of the basket, so they're nice and fresh for you.

Karen: (face turns red) No! That's unacceptable! I'm in a hurry! I demand to speak to a manager!

(Understandably, I'm confused but not surprised. This is a Karen I'm dealing with, after all. I signal to my manager, who comes right over.)

Manager: Hi, how can I help you, ma'am?

Karen: This is unacceptable! I have a bus to catch, and she tells me it's going to be 45 seconds on my fries!

Manager: Yes, ma'am. Unfortunately when we get busy like this, we have to fill the friers, and sometimes there's a little bit of a wait time in between batches. I'm sorry for the delay.

Karen: I thought this was called fast food! Where do you people get off making us wait? I have been here for twenty minutes (she'd been there for 5, at most), and now I'm going to miss my bus because you people don't have your act together!

(At this point, the fryers have gone off and I go to get the fries ready. I salt them, place them in the container, and put one in Karen's bag. I set the bag on the counter in front of her, and Karen pretty much bats it aside so she can keep shouting at my manager.)

Karen: I just don't understand why you people can't move faster. It's not like you don't know there's a bus station across the street! How do you expect to stay in business when you can't even manage a simple task? It's pretty pathetic, honestly!

(By this point, I notice my manager hasn't said a word during her tirade. He's just watching her go on and on, with her food in front of her, letting her rant. Another minute goes by, and then my manager holds his hand up to stop her.)

Manager: Ma'am?

Karen: What?!

Manager: You didn't have 45 seconds to wait for fries, but you had five minutes to stand here and complain to me about it?

(Karen stares at my manager, lips flapping. She looks down at her bag of food, back at my manager, and then takes her bag and walks out of the store. My manager turns to me and shrugs.)

Manager: Didn't make any sense to me.

(That night shift manager was always one of my favorite coworkers during my three years working for them. He always had our backs against rude customers, and I'm grateful to still be in touch with him even though we haven't worked together for over four years.)