'Chili dog [but] sub chicken noodle soup for chili': 20+ servers share the strangest orders from difficult customers

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Ben Weiss • Writer and Editor
Feb 16, 2024 4:00 PM EST

Some customers are so particular with their orders one has to wonder why they went to a restaurant in the first place. If you're going to be that difficult, it will be a much better use of everyone's time if you stay home and make your own food. Part of going to a restaurant means choosing from the options that have been presented to you (they call it a menu). It's one thing if you have an allergy or would like to make an easy adjustment to an order. 

However, it's quite another thing to request for three new key ingredients to be substituted in and a bunch of ingredients to be taken out. Clearly, these entitled customers have never worked as servers or kitchen workers before because their "simple requests" are really just simple ways to make enemies out of the people who are serving you food. 

Keep scrolling below for this collection of the strangest orders from difficult customers, according to these Redditors. For more content like this, check out this compilation of "unwritten" rules about adulting.

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  • 01
    r/AskReddit Posted by u/Repulsive_Compote955 B Servers at restaurants, what's the strangest thing someone's asked for? Burst (275
    via Jessie McCall
  • 02
    Honestnt We had a woman send a grilled chicken salad back because it was cold. So we cooked some new chicken and made sure to send it back while still warm. She sent it back again. The entire salad wasn't hot enough for her. We microwaved her salad. She ate it. I don't know man.
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 03
    shadowgnome396 · 8 mo. ago Once a very thin, middle aged woman came in. She couldn't have weighed more than 100 pounds soaking wet. She asked what our biggest steak was. I told her it was the 24 oz. ribeye. She said, "okay I'll have that." Our steaks came with two sides, so I asked which ones she'd like. She said "I don't want sides." I told her they were included in the price, and she still refused them. I bring out her steak and she begins eating. She's about a third of the way through when I
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 04
    jreed356. Honestly, I'd say the weirdest thing was that while I was a server at a restaurant in the Royal Hawaiian, a guest asked me to book a shark adventure tour. It had nothing to do with my job or even the hotel. Those tours were entirely separate businesses. I took his black card, went to guest services, picked up a pamphlet, and booked the tour. He tipped me $250 dollars. Totally worth it! Share 15.5k
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 05
    mrfancypantsssss A tablecloth! A gentleman sh himself at a booth and asked for a tablecloth so he could walk out with it wrapped around him, I still serve him to this day and that was around 15yrs ago, no shame. Back he comes once a week. We never asked about getting the tablecloth back... ↑ 8.4k ↓ Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 06
    [deleted] A middle aged lady insisted she didn't like soda water or sparkling water so instead asked for a white wine spritzer without the white wine... there are two ingredients to a white wine spritzer. White wine and soda water. 6.3k Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 07
    -eDgAR- I used to work at a Japanese restaurant and I once had someone come up to me and ask me if we had any low sodium soy sauce. The request itself was not so strange and I gave him the bottle we kept behind the counter. The strange thing was what he used the soy sauce for, which was pouring some of it into his Pepsi. 5.4k Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 08
    Sunless_Tatooine "Chicken is vegetarian." Lady orders pizza with chicken, for the table. Rest of the table argued with her that they're vegetarians. She can have chicken on her own pizza with chicken. She replied chicken is vegetarian... refused to understand that her friends were trying to get a vegetarian meal. ✩ 4.3k ↓ Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 09
    ReturnOfTheBanned. One time at a Mexican restaurant my brain glitched and I asked for chopsticks. Poor girl froze up and said, "I'll... ask my manager but... I don't think we have those..." 4.1k ↓ Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 10
    wooldoor2{ "can I have the chicken salad please, but instead of corn I want peppers, instead of raisins, dates, and instead of pineapple, apple. Ah, and no chicken, thank you!" 3.6k Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 11
    himechans. i used to work at olive garden. there was a lady that would come in at least once a week and she was dubbed by us staff as "pepperoncini lady". she would want you to open a new bag of the pepperoncini's we used in the salads and pour out the juice in a cup, she would literally straight up drink the juice. she would also get a bowl of pepperoncinis and just eat them. ↑ 3.5k ↓ Share ...
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 12
    tehvillageidiot. I had a couple that told me to wait before I prebussed their table so the man could lick every plate clean first. They had multiple apps and entrees between them and he licked every single one CLEAN before I was allowed to take it. They weren't in a private booth or anything. The other guests could see this happening. 3.4k Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 13
    cannotaccessorize. Years ago I worked at this amazing Breton French creperie in San Francisco, phenomenal food with a pretty small menu. Guy comes in and orders a sweet crepe with vanilla ice cream. No biggie. Then he wants to add a sunny side up egg and parsley to this crepe. I ask him a number of times if he's sure he knows what he's getting and that it's not 2 separate crepes (1 sweet and 1 savory). He assures me. Of course when I ring it in, the kitchen thinks I made a mistake to which I ass
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 14
    pm_me_ur_LOU_BEGA Not a server but my grandma would bring in her own bread to restaurants and ask them to toast it as a side for her breakfast.
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 15
    Jackal209. A whole bottle of fish sauce. And they used the whole bottle of fish sauce. 3.2k Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 16
    pollypocketpussy. Chili dog, sub chicken noodle soup for chili. She took a bite and said "oh, I made a mistake." ↑ 3.1k ↓ Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 17
    jjwax. A grilled cheese, atkins style (this was like early 2000s) My boss told me to microwave 3 slices of cheese and charge her $8 for it. She was thrilled 2.9k Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 18
    horton_hears_a_homie. The place I worked at had little water cups on the table and we kept them filled for customers. I sat a party of two women (who said they were waiting for a third person) and went to fill their water cups. When I asked if I should fill the third one or wait for the third person to arrive, one woman said "Oh, no need, he's trying to quit." I thought it was a joke, and when the third person (a man) got there, I went to fill his water. He said "No, don't fill it, I'm trying to
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 19
    jsphwllr House salad.... Hold the lettuce and all other vegetables. Extra croutons, extra cheese, extra dressing. Literally a plate of croutons cheese and dressing. ↑ 2.6k ↓ Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 20
    [deleted] In college I worked at a burrito shop on campus. One night this guy who was stoned out of his mind ordered a burrito with everything on it, 3x salsa, sour cream, extra beans, meat, rice, everything. I could barely wrap the burrito. He walks over and sits at a table and takes one bite and all the burrito contents shot out the bottom. He just went "oh no" and then just started eating it out of his lap and off the table. It was entertaining to watch. 2.3k Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 21
    dr239. Ranch with everything. Don't get me wrong, I love my ranch dressing too. But people want it on the things you'd never expect. $60 steak? 'Can I get a side of ranch for the steak?' Soup. 'Can I get ranch with that?' Spaghetti. 'Would you like me to grate some fresh cheese on top?' 'No, but can I get ranch for it?' 2.3k Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 22
    Guacamole86Avocados. Guacamole without avocados - the whole reason behind my name. She was completely serious too... 2.2k Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 23
    rainysunbun Guy came in with a large group, must've had a recent surgery or something cause he asked for his meal to be blended. He ordered a lasagna ... 2.1k ↓ Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 24
    Saltyseabanshee This man told me he couldn't have anything that has been "ground up" at some point. So like, can't use anything with flour in it. Not because the gluten, but because it was made small at one point. My man, that is not a thing. 2.1k ↓ Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955
  • 25
    dystopiapro Former cook: had someone order a quesadilla without the cheese one time. I thought that was pretty funny. ↑ 2.0k ↓ Share
    via u/Repulsive_Compote955

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server servers karen-customer askreddit restaurant entitled customers server life entitled food reddit thread Reddit tales from your server entitled people
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