Don't you have a drivethru?

[Randomdawning]

Background:
I was working at a factory at this time, and I was on my way home after visiting family with my boyfriend and had to go to work early, 7am. it was 10pm and not many places were open to eat and I was too tired to make anything at home. I also avoid drive-thrus like the plague. So we decided to eat at the steak&shake which is 24/7, and also has a drive-thru.

We are seated and order our drinks and food immediately, knowing what we wanted, a burger, fries, and soda. The only waitress takes our order. We watch as 3 other, larger groups are seated, order, eat their food, and leave. The waitress is also flirting with a coworker constantly. Forty minutes have passed and we have yet to even get our drinks, forget our food. We decide to leave due to getting no service and I need to up in less than 8 hours.

When we are getting up from the table, the manager shows up with our food order. We tell her we had been waiting for almost an hour and that we don't want the food and won't come back. From the look on the manager's face I would say that the waitress was probably unemployed the next day.

[MoonCat]

I think I would have told them they can either box it up and give it to me for free, or toss it. But I don't blame you for just walking out.

[Bright_Star]

For waiting that long I would have torn that manager a new one.

[wagegoth]

Was there a problem getting the waitress's attention?

I've actually walked up to a server and asked for help if I'm having problems. Frankly, I won't sit around that long, especially if later customers are served ahead of me.

[Ben_Who]

I've been to a couple of restaurants - there's a place that's notorious for completely forgetting you exist - where someone wearing a tie comes running up with the food as we're putting on our coats to leave. On one occasion, when I went up to pay for the drinks that were the only thing we got in an hour or more, I saw the pizza we'd ordered sitting half-congealed at the pass, where it had apparently been for quite some time. The manager stared at the pizza, then at me and my party, then back at the pizza, and you could see the color drain from his face.

I sometimes wonder what's up with the manager-in-the-nick-of-time thing. It sort of implies that a) they know you've been waiting a long time and b) your food is actually ready. The only thing I can figure is that it's like it was at the pizza place - someone spots you getting up to leave with frustration on your face and realizes that the food that's been cooling at the pass for the last 20 minutes must belong to you.

[Andara Bledin]

In some cases of "manager at the last minute" I suspect that the manager figured out you got lost and had your stuff made (or made again) and it was just happenstance that his coming out at the same time as you're getting up to leave.

In other cases, it could be that the food was waiting all that time, and I sure as hell wouldn't want to eat it by then.

But I'm the sort that if I don't have my food in 20 minutes and had seen others being served, I'd be proactive about it. I'm pushy like that.

^-.-^