Have you ever had a bad experience as a restaurant patron?
Since the United States began developing a huge service sector economy, many Americans have gained experience working as waiters and waitresses. Sometimes jobs in the food service industry involve considerable stress.
An event involving a protracted dining experience during 2014 gained the attention of a wide Internet audience and still continues to attract online comments today! Steve and Makenzie Schultz chose to eat at a sushi restaurant one evening.
They soon discovered they’d selected an establishment with a severe staffing shortage problem. Their waiter raced to provide service to 12 busy tables and a bar. Although he treated every customer courteously and patiently, he clearly could not keep pace with the scheduling needs of all of the patrons.
Steve and Makenzie Schultz waited 20 minutes to receive glasses of water.
Their waiter could not serve meals quickly due to the press of other business. The couple passed another 40 minutes waiting for the appetizer course. In this situation, some restaurant customers will express frustration at encountering delays.
Some leave no tip, and a few write critical comments on notes to the wait staff. However, Steve and Makenzie Schultz reacted very differently!
They left the frazzled server a tip of $100 and a thank-you message. Both of them had previous experience in the restaurant industry and they could appreciate the waiter’s situation. Their act of kindness circulated on Facebook and resulted in over 11,000 comments during the past two years.
