'Customer had tantrum over being cut off': Servers and bartenders share their top cringe customer encounters

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Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Jan 11, 2024 4:00 PM EST

Perhaps everyone should have made their resolutions this year to be kinder to their servers and bartenders. If you're not part of the problem but you are witnessing a Karen customer throwing a tantrum for no good reason, perhaps you should consider stepping in and defending the people who have been on their feet for multiple hours and are just trying to get you your food and drinks the way you ordered them. No one is trying to mess up, and so much of what goes on in a bar or restaurant is outside of your server's control. 

Lest we forget, your server also has the power to make things harder for the customer. They could "accidentally" fumble your order or spill your drink all over your fancy attire. They could make it seem like the kitchen is more backed up than it is and let your food get cold. Some of them could even throw you out of the bar. Keep scrolling below for these top stories, which were compiled from Reddit's r/TalesFromYourServer subreddit. When you're done, check out these bad resume errors.

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  • 01
    "That's your job!! To talk to customers" F
    via Helena Lopes
  • 02
    Customer had tantrum over being cut off and bites my arm Short I had to cut someone off yesterday because he vomited in our bathroom, another employee happened to be in there and flagged me down. The guy, who was obviously wealthy, was trying to basically bribe me to keep serving him but I held my ground.
    via u/DirtyFozzy2
  • 03
    He got really disrespectful and was talking down to me because apparently that's what rich angry people do is talk down on lower class workers just doing their job. I reached across to grab his glass and this mother fjcker grabs my arm and bites down full force and doesn't let go for 6 or 7 seconds. I was screaming from the pain and I think that's why he stopped. My manager let me call the police but the guy left before they got there. I doubt anything will come from it because he's rich and I'm
    via u/DirtyFozzy2
  • 04
    PR trottingturtles 1 day ago . One Year That is pretty serious. I hope you got medical attention, a human bite can be very dangerous, it's a major infection risk. That's pretty crazy, he should honestly face charges for that 955 Reply Share
    via u/DirtyFozzy2
  • 05
    puddncake 1 day ago . Sue the rich guy, server days over. Settle out of court. 384 Reply Share
    via u/DirtyFozzy2
  • 06
    magiccitybhm. 1 day ago That's ridiculous. Did he by chance pay by credit card so you all have his name? Even if the police don't do anything, your owner and all of your managers should be in 100% agreement that this is banned for life. 380 Reply Share
    via u/DirtyFozzy2
  • 07
    Had to kick a friend out last night Short Bartending last night and I noticed a friend of mine was staring straight up no-blink daggers at another customer like a psychopath. All the people around him (also all my friends) kept trying to de-escalate him before he tried anything but it was like he was just locked in on this guy and seeing red and not hearing anything we said. Friend and I got into it once he stood up to go talk to his target and I regrettably had to be a huge to him just to get h
    via u/Safe_Negotiation8367
  • 08
    Edit: A bit of backstory...so this friend remembers and holds grudges. He has a victim mentality, nothing is ever his fault, everyone is against him, all that. So this probably isn't something that we can just laugh off because he was I'm not gonna lose any sleep over it though...he was a in my bar.
    via u/Safe_Negotiation8367
  • 09
    Tyler Nadel 6 days ago Sounds like a "friend"you needed to lose. A friend doesn't go into your place of employment and starts acting like a psychopath. Permanently ban his i. 405 Reply Share
    via u/Safe_Negotiation8367
  • 10
    . CryptoSlovakian - 6 days ago Trust me, at no point were you the one being the ....... 4 111 Reply Share
    via u/Safe_Negotiation8367
  • 11
    waconaty4eva 6 days ago Good for you. The customers/staff need to know you don't play favorites and don't tolerate that
    via u/Safe_Negotiation8367
  • 12
    Why haven't yet u been talking to me? That's your job! Medium I work at a breakfast diner and we open at 6:00 a.m. we've got a couple tables and a counter where people can sit.
    via u/Fit-Departure-7844
  • 13
    Today the first customer came in around 6:15. My coworker and I were sitting at the counter when they first came in, as we greeted them. They said they wanted to sit at the counter, we both quickly got up and I moved my coffee cup and blah blah blah.... Not even 5 minutes later someone else came in, and then tables are coming in at a steady Pace after that.
    via u/Fit-Departure-7844
  • 14
    That first guy at the counter was on my coworker's rotation, so she started his drinks and got him going and was talking to him like we do with customers. I was working on taking care of the guests at my tables.
    via u/Fit-Departure-7844
  • 15
    Towards the end of his meal, he calls me over and asks why I didn't talk to him the whole time he's been there. I was confused at this question and asked if anything was wrong with the service, and he said
    via u/Fit-Departure-7844
  • 16
    "Yes! You ignored me the whole time and only the other girl talked to me! I sit at the bar so I can have someone to talk to! When I came in you guys got up and ran away like I smelled bad or something. You should be talking to the customers at the bar. That's your job, to talk to the customers!"
    via u/Fit-Departure-7844
  • 17
    The manager quickly came over and stepped in, as I was actually kind of busy because by this time we had quite a few groups in the restaurant. She calmed him down and sent him on his way.
    via u/Fit-Departure-7844
  • 18
    magiccitybhm. 5 days ago A bar counter at a diner isn't the same as a bar where they serve alcohol. That guest was very much confused. Good job by the manager actually being there to handle it. 466 Reply Share
    via u/Fit-Departure-7844
  • 19
    01 Faora_Ul A similar thing happened to me years ago. A woman and a guy came in, there weren't any booths available so they wanted to sit at the bar. The bartender was busy and asked me take care of them so I greeted them and took their order. 5 minutes later they asked the bartender to serve them because I was "too quiet". 5 days ago This literally only happens in the US. The servers are not your buddies. If you need to talk to someone talk to a friend. 182 Reply Share ...
    via u/Fit-Departure-7844
  • 20
    Fit-Departure-7844 OP. 5 days ago Yeah the whole "be my friend" part if serving is hard for me. I'm a great server and choose this career, I'm efficient, friendly, good at banter... But when they start asking personal questions and want conversation that isn't on script, I don't like it. 112 Reply Share
    via u/Fit-Departure-7844
  • 21
    Please tell me I'm not crazy Short Have been a server for years but now just an office worker. Dealt with cash and cards and all sorts of payments over the years. Am no stranger to "your total is $.74" so you dig around for $.74 to get only dollars back.
    via u/tachycardicIVu
  • 22
    The other night I went out with my in- laws and husband. Our bill was $86.02. MIL put down $100.02 with a $100 bill and 2 pennies. Server comes back with $13 clipped to the tray and says "I owe you $.98, gotta go break a $1" and I'm like no you can just give us one more dollar since we gave you $.02" and y'all. she would not let up. She insisted that because we gave her those two pennies that that's what warranted $.98 change to us. I even broke out my calculator on my phone ($100.02 - $86.02 =
    via u/tachycardicIVu
  • 23
    Edit: yes she did tip, just for some reason she put that cash down on the table then handed the $100 over and still asked for change from it. Ideally it would have been a simpler "keep the change" moment but MIL doesn't quite operate that way and can get overwhelmed/flustered with this sort of thing so we didn't want to get too involved.
    via u/tachycardicIVu
  • 24
    Camp_Fire_Friendly - 7 days ago . Last week I bought something that was marked as "half off", but it rang up at the full price of $3.99. I alerted the cashier who was happy to make the correction. She stopped, looked me in the eye and asked me what half of $3.99 would be. She really didn't know. I told her to ring it up at $2.00. She asked if I was sure. Yep, 2 and 2 would make 4, and $3.99 was basically 4. She still looked confused, but breathed a sigh of relief and thanked me. Nice that she wa
    via u/tachycardicIVu
  • 25
    IDICbeliever 7 days ago . Why? Because a mental skill (like basic arithmetic) is easily lost, ignored, never learned, whatever. I've had people unable to figure simple change - like can I just get dimes for my $2? Equally bad is a kid who says he can tell time but means only on a digital clock! An analog (one with hands) blows their mind. 164 Reply Share
    via u/tachycardicIVu
  • 26
    Aspy17 7 days ago When I was a server many years ago we had to do our checks by hand. I mean we wrote down the price of each item ordered, added it all up, calculated the tax, and totaled the check. Someone with poor math skills did not last long back then. 95 Reply Share
    via u/tachycardicIVu
  • 27
    Regular thinks he's my boss Medium I work at a small dive bar where 90% of the time it's great. No corporate or managers lording over you. You can talk, dress, act how you want. Owners are super great people, very chill. Except they've given this small group of regulars (the type who come in everyday from 2pm- 10/11) idea that because they're all friends that these regulars have more power than just an average customer.
    via u/Countryfan_
  • 28
    Last night, I come in at 6pm. It's dead. There is three girls working including me. There's that said table of regulars and then each girl has maybe 3 tables each. About an hour into me being there I have two tables. Now even though we are a dive bar we do really try to provide table service as much as possible unless it's like slammed at the counter. So I I'm standing at one of my tables who is a very well- known good tipper and big spender couple chatting with them.
    via u/Countryfan_
  • 29
    One of my coworkers comes up to the table to inform me that I need to be moving around more because regular said I need to and not just stand there chit chatting "being lazy" I was kind of shocked at the audacity of my coworker to accept that from him and not speak up in my defense. This isn't the first time this has happened
    via u/Countryfan_
  • 30
    with him over stepping. On a slow night I was on my phone because there was only three people in the bar including him and he complained to my coworker and for looking at my called me a phone. He's just horribly miserable, Found out my coworker was trans and he made awful comments to her, he's cheap, argues every chance he gets about his bill. And yet all my coworkers feel bad for him. Which I do to but not enough to put up with his disrespect. I so badly want to either tell this man off or not
    via u/Countryfan_
  • 31
    awotherspoon · 3 days ago Two things, first real quick: how well do the regulars know the owners/people who actually have authority over your employment? That informs how far you ought to take the second point: Someone posted (in here or another server sub) a while back that they got a lot more satisfaction from their job by thinking of themselves as an independent contractor. They will do whatever makes them the most money and screw everyone else. When people ask for recommendations, you recomm
    via u/Countryfan_
  • 32
    So the only reason a 'regular' should take your attention away from a known good tipper, is if said regular has the power to get you fired, reducing your income to zero... in which case, let the good tippers know where you're applying next because that place if they will let the regulars walk all over you 257 Reply Share
    via u/Countryfan_

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