Listen, everyone. I get that sometimes when you’re paying for a service, you feel entitled. But NO ONE ever deserves to be treated like garbage, regardless of what your expectations are when you visit a restaurant.
Right?
Last weekend, I hit up one of my favorite places to get breakfast: Buckley Farm.
Yet another Ballston Spa gem, Buckley Farm offers breakfast from 9-12 on Saturday & Sundays and lunch from 12-4.
We sat down and it’s a small place – but the food is amazing. I mean, it is a farm, so they’re working with some of the best, freshest ingredients.
The people who work there are also SO NICE. Like ridiculously nice, it makes me want to be a better person. And when we sat down, they said they were really busy and to please be understanding that it might take a little while for the food to come out. We also ordered a lot of food because we like to eat.
So at that moment, we were like okay well it was great for them to let us know it’ll be a while, because now we don’t have expectations for the food to be out in 10 minutes. We also had the opportunity to say “oh we have somewhere we have to be, so we’ll have to pass on eating here today.”
We stayed.
A couple and their son came in shortly after we ordered and sat down. Assuming they got the same run-down, they stayed. We got our food. Right after we got our food, the woman stormed towards the kitchen and came back to her seat, grabbed her bag and said “it’s going to be another 15 minutes. WE’RE LEAVING.”
Straight up got her stuff, got her family and got up out of there. No money was left on the table. No money was paid for her and her man’s coffee that they drank while waiting. No money was left for the food that they ordered and was being prepared for them.
Two minutes after they sped out of the parking lot, the waitress came out with their food. And then turned around and brought it back into the kitchen. TWO MINUTES.
Honestly at the time I was so enraged, I couldn’t get myself to write anything.
But now that I have had a little bit of time to assess the situation, I still feel as though those people were EXTREMELY rude.
I get it. Waiting for your food sucks. Especially when you’re waiting for a long time.
But you know what sucks even more? When a restaurant TELLS YOU that your food is going to take a while, you agree to it, and then YOU LEAVE. WITHOUT PAYING.
See? Now I’m getting fired up about it again.
I don’t believe there’s a place for people like that. If you’re going to be rude and act like an ungrateful ass when you go out to eat, I’d prefer you just stay home.
Kindly,
A fellow diner/relatively good human
PS – An actual review will be coming soon.
PPS – Buckley Farm, I still love you.
4 Comments
If you’re not willing to wait for great food, then you don’t deserve good food. She can take her family over to the Malta Diner and get some horrible food real quick.
ps. You have gears?
I love Buckley Farm also (they are willing to answer all my weird butchering questions and swap sausage recipes when asked. – seriously good people), but the place is small, what do people expect? I really feel like no one takes the time to enjoy things anymore. If it’s gonna be 15 minutes have a conversation with the people you are with, sip your coffee and relax!!
Ashley,
I agree with your take on the above scenario, as long as they did receive the same heads up as you, but we will probably never be sure of that. I too love Buckley Farms’ food, and the freshest of the fresh premise. Love the atmosphere, taking my Grand kids to see the animals and have breakfast or lunch. I enjoy being able to buy fresh meats and poultry right at the farm. They’re local to me, and I love that their business is keeping the land as an unspoiled farm with great views. I get that they are a small business, and I know that is not easy. All of that aside, they are no longer a new business, they have been open a few years now, and from what I have witnessed business has continued to grow. Unfortunately, the size and quality of their service has not grown with the business. The last 3 visits we’ve had have not been good experiences; excessively long waits, poor food quality control, frantic, overworked server….not what we are looking for when we go out for a meal. I would like to see all of these issues resolved so we can return for their usually great fresh food.