I work in a place that has some of the best customers you could ever ask for. You know the ones; at any given time they can make your job easier, less stressful, or just plain fun. While we’re happy to serve most of our customers, there are some who just deserve a little bit of recognition.
Mr. & Mrs. Easygoing
These are the couples that come in every Friday night. They’ve been regulars for longer than I have worked here which is 6 years. Mrs. Easygoing usually comes in around 7:00 when our wait is at its longest, smiles at me and says, “We’ll just be at the bar until our table is ready. No rush.” They never complain about the wait and sometimes even give up their table to others who don’t have quite the patience they do. They’re always happy and thank me for taking good care of them. In addition, they’re so pleasant to the servers that everyone loves when I seat them in their section.
Amazing Grandma
This is a lady who makes me laugh and really brings me joy when she comes in. Usually she is with her daughter, sometimes her teenage grandson brings her in, and at other times it’s the whole family. She and her daughter have both shared with me why she always chooses our place. Not because of the food, but because of me. Don’t get me wrong, they love the food, but they appreciate how much I take care of them, from making sure they get the booth they like to taking time to ask how she’s doing and listen to whatever story or anecdote she wants to talk about with me. Ever the fashonista, she loves to see what I’m wearing and always has a sweet compliment. It also makes her night to tip me for taking care of her. One night she shocked the heck out of me when after commenting on my cute dress and telling me she wished she could still wear it she placed my tip right in my cleavage! Needless to say, this is another table our servers are always happy to take care of.
Heroes
We love our military men and women; veteran and active duty and are always thrilled to have the opportunity to thank them for their service. In the 6 years I’ve worked here, I don’t recall seeing one of our heroes pay for a meal. No, we are not in a position to offer free dining, but one or another of us who work there and also several of our customers have paid their tab. One of the best moments we have is when we get to tell them that someone has picked up his or her tab. The look on their face and their appreciation is worth every cent and more.
The Single Diner
This is the customer who is either single or wants to grab a drink or a bite when their significant other isn’t around. They tell us that the reason they come here is because they never feel odd or out of place dining alone. Usually they want to sit at the bar not only because the bartender is great to talk with, but because they’ve gotten to know so many of our other customers they just feel comfortable.
The Retired Couple
There is a specific couple that used to come in for lunch at least twice a week. When I first met them, I thought they were a little brusque but took the time to get to know them. They turned out to be quite an entertaining couple with wonderful stories to tell, and their sense of humor was hysterical. Mrs. Retired Couple has passed away and Mr. still liked to come in for lunch with us. Our portions are quite large so he would sometimes ask for a smaller portion (2 potato skins instead of 6, or no side with a sandwich). Ordinarily we don’t do that, but for him we did. The thing is, he didn’t do it because he was being cheap; just the opposite. He’d insist on paying full price, he just didn’t want to waste the food. He barely ate and told us he had no appetite because of how much he missed her, always adding a little story of how much he loved her. His daughter came in one day just to thank us because he told her how much we always take care of him, whether it was conversation or sending home a container of his favorite soup for dinner that night.
These are just a few of the ‘Customers We Love’. I will post another blog soon to sing the praises of more.
