makanlah di restoran oriental cravings di one utama! eh lupa.. tak halal.

It's 12.44am, which means one thing: Happy Chinese New Year people! =D

This timing couldn't have been better for me to talk a bit about my current sem break job, especially when the previous Sunday Star's your say section had been touching on the (closely) related issues.

1. Ten of the worst.
2. Respect please.
3. No excuse for bad service.

As some of you might have already known, I've been helping out my aunt at her restaurant in 1utama, Oriental Cravings, since December. If you don't, well i'm helping out at my aunt at her restaurant in 1utama, Oriental Cravings. =P

Front view of OC

Of course, there are those days (almost on a daily basis. ALMOST) where you meet with customers who are erm.. a tad too unnecessarily rude/snotty. but never to the point of ruining my whole day lar *keeps fingers crossed*. when you're in this line, you HAVE to have control of your own personal emotions in check. which is one important thing that i've learned throughout this experience, thus brings me to why i agree on Timothy on how there is no reason for a bad service.

Being in the service line where you meet different people from all walks of life during your working hours is where you should be ready (in my opinion) to make the best out of the situation in keeping the customers happy. No matter how much they are testing your patience. Yes. I do think that that is part of our job. There's no such thing, or place, for us to be all 'take it or leave it'. I think that's just taking things a little too personal. (p/s: Miss Vaneetha, so how bout a slight push for my PR grade? =D)

Back view of OC

How is it that some people could walk to a customer's table like they're all out to get you is beyond my understanding. Isn't that in the job description when you first applied? Rule No.1: Have to smile and be courteous to customers at all times even if all you want to do is stab them with their own fork.

I'm speaking as both a first hand customer and a waitress. Of course I would like to be served by a happy person. No, I don't want to see that look on your face as if your hamster just died. That is just plain unnecessary. As for the customers, it would be nice if they could be polite to their server. Generally speaking, you wouldn't want to talk/be talked to by someone who's face looked as if they're sucking a lemon which never seems to finish its taste do you? I think that's just unnecessary.

Like the other day when there was this slightly wacked out customer who was lashing out on me about how the people who were smoking were getting on her nerves. Erm.. lady, you did requested for a seat outside which i had clearly informed you that it is a smoking area and you declined my offer to seat you inside which is a non-smoking area so erm.. your complain really isn't making much sense to me. So do you want me to stop the others from smoking just so that you could continue with your meal in peace and pollution-free air? because then i would be eaten alive by the others as well for making a ridiculous request. btw, do you mind not yelling on at me because the last thing i need now is to have my hearing impaired just because youre having a bad day. oh and you wanna hear the story bout my housemate's dead hamsters and how they all died? i could even add in every single one of their sexually explicit names foc. =/

Though it has only been two months, but that doesn't mean that i haven't met my fair share of wacko customers now have i?

But i do have to admit that sometimes the customers do get a tad too much as well. Do they not understand that the server's job is to serve and the cook's job to cook? Although we run as a body/organization, but sometimes please be a little more considerate when your meal is running a little slow when the restaurant is obviously running on full steam already. We can't help it that everyone decided to all makan at the same time. Do you think we don't wish that we could take over the kitchen staffs place so that we could serve your meals within 15mins just so that we would not have to get our heads bitten off? Trust me when i say that it's best to leave the cooks to their job so that the hospital doesn't have to bring a stomach pump eventhough i do make a mean dish of mashed potatoes.

The point is that you have been informed before-hand that your orders will run a little late. Because then you can choose if you are willing to wait a little while or decide to try out another eatery. If we didn't, then it is our fault. But it would be nice if you could understand if we are so busy in keeping up with the others as well that it had slipped our mind to do so. Needless to say that it is our fault, but please don't make it harder for us than it already is. It would be nice to not be yelled at, but if you decided that there is a need to do it then, oh well. That's all i'm saying.

There are days when the place is so packed that the only thing you could think about is the hours more to go before the messenger/waitress/supervisor/miss may, notifies the customers that it would be the last order for the day *cue cheesy orchestra music*.

However, there are also days where we (waitresses) are on this psychadelic high in trying to clean out all the day's specials! You should see my friend Jane high 5ing everyone all the way from the customers's tables to the counter when something off the menu is sold. That woman's enthusiasm and commitment to her job is seriously infectious!

This whole whirlwind of an experience had indeed taught me how to be both a better customer and waitress. So people, smile lar everyone once in a while. =D

p/s: im always so tempted to add in a lame pun intended line of the joker asking "why so serious?" everytime i see a customer who looks like shes related to victor's hamsters (dead) but then there is this deafining silence in my head followed by a cyber nerd's annoying voice saying "awkwardddd" and then an image of miu miu pops into my head. *shifty eyes*

"I love my job. I love my job."

- Emily, The Devil wears Prada.