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Hello! This is my first post, though I've been reading these boards for a while now. Custard Chick's post inspired me to post this, as I also used to work at the Bread Co. and I saw some pretty astounding customer ignorance there. I also used to work at a different sandwich shop (name rhymes with "Holy Moly"), and figured I'd include a few gems from my time there.
Fail.
Two middle-aged ladies came into my store and ordered cappuccinos. We offered multiple types of syrup, etc. that one could have in one's drink, but these ladies ordered plain cappuccinos. After I made their coffees they went and sat down to chat, but returned to the counter after a few minutes.
Me: Yours truly
SL: Silly ladies (It's been almost four years so I'll just treat them as one person since I can't remember who said what)
Me: Hello, can I help you with something?
SL: Yes, we got these cappuccinos and they taste funny.
Me: Oh, I'm sorry! (Sometimes co-worker's would forget to clean the steam wands, milk occasionally expired as it was wont to do, so I wanted to ensure something such as this hadn't happened) How exactly do they taste funny?
SL: Well, these cappuccinos taste really bitter! They don't taste like the ones from the gas station.
Me:
Um, okay, so they're too bitter? I can put some flavored syrup in them to sweeten them if you'd like.
SL: Sure, that's fine.
(I proceed to dump a TON of vanilla syrup in the drinks, give 'em a stir, and return them)
Me: Why don't you taste them and see if that helps.
(SL taste their coffees and are pleased)
SL: Thank you!
Now admittedly, this was in Indiana so people aren't necessarily "hip" to the latest trends, but who on earth thinks a $4.00 cappuccino, which is nothing more than unsweetened espresso and steamed milk in its various forms, is the same thing as the bag of powder (which seems to basically be coffee-flavored hot chocolate) that mixes with hot water when you press the button to get your $1.29 gas station "cappuccino?" I mean, generally it's a good idea to at least know what it is you're ingesting. Admittedly, the ladies were very pleasant and quite satisfied with my make-shift solution, but still.
Hard to say...
I often had people ordering food from me who had absolutely no idea how to pronounce what they were eating. Okay, so "asiago" is kind of tricky, as is "macchiato," but "cappuccino?" "Jalapeno?" "Quesadilla?" "TORTILLA?!?!" I mean, Taco Bell! Come on!
On a related note...
I once had to explain what an avocado was to a high-school age kid. No, really. The first sandwich shop I worked at (rhymes with "Holy Moly"), had a very large menu with something like 60 different sandwiches, all of which included specific toppings that varied from item to item (not including the make-your-own menu, where you could choose any combination of meat, toppings, etc.). Many of these sandwiches included avocado. I was pretty used to people wandering in and gaping at the menu for a few moments before they figured out what they wanted and ordered, and I was also used to answering various questions about the menu and how one could have one's sandwich made. This kid, who's definitely a teenager, comes in with his parents and sister and they check out the menu for a few minutes. They start to order and this is the conversation I had with him (pretty close to verbatim):
(Mom orders, it's the kid's turn)
Kid: What's an avocado?
Me: Umm...have you ever had guacamole?
Kid: Yeah.
Me: The green stuff it's made of is mashed-up avocado. You can have it taken off if you want.
Kid: Okay. I'll have <sandwich>.
WTF? I mean, I understand it's not a particularly common fruit (vegetable?)/sandwich topping, but guacamole is really common. Wouldn't you be curious why it was green?
That's all I have for now, but I have some crazy sandwich shop stories.
Fail.
Two middle-aged ladies came into my store and ordered cappuccinos. We offered multiple types of syrup, etc. that one could have in one's drink, but these ladies ordered plain cappuccinos. After I made their coffees they went and sat down to chat, but returned to the counter after a few minutes.
Me: Yours truly
SL: Silly ladies (It's been almost four years so I'll just treat them as one person since I can't remember who said what)
Me: Hello, can I help you with something?
SL: Yes, we got these cappuccinos and they taste funny.
Me: Oh, I'm sorry! (Sometimes co-worker's would forget to clean the steam wands, milk occasionally expired as it was wont to do, so I wanted to ensure something such as this hadn't happened) How exactly do they taste funny?
SL: Well, these cappuccinos taste really bitter! They don't taste like the ones from the gas station.
Me:
Um, okay, so they're too bitter? I can put some flavored syrup in them to sweeten them if you'd like.SL: Sure, that's fine.
(I proceed to dump a TON of vanilla syrup in the drinks, give 'em a stir, and return them)
Me: Why don't you taste them and see if that helps.
(SL taste their coffees and are pleased)
SL: Thank you!
Now admittedly, this was in Indiana so people aren't necessarily "hip" to the latest trends, but who on earth thinks a $4.00 cappuccino, which is nothing more than unsweetened espresso and steamed milk in its various forms, is the same thing as the bag of powder (which seems to basically be coffee-flavored hot chocolate) that mixes with hot water when you press the button to get your $1.29 gas station "cappuccino?" I mean, generally it's a good idea to at least know what it is you're ingesting. Admittedly, the ladies were very pleasant and quite satisfied with my make-shift solution, but still.
Hard to say...
I often had people ordering food from me who had absolutely no idea how to pronounce what they were eating. Okay, so "asiago" is kind of tricky, as is "macchiato," but "cappuccino?" "Jalapeno?" "Quesadilla?" "TORTILLA?!?!" I mean, Taco Bell! Come on!
On a related note...
I once had to explain what an avocado was to a high-school age kid. No, really. The first sandwich shop I worked at (rhymes with "Holy Moly"), had a very large menu with something like 60 different sandwiches, all of which included specific toppings that varied from item to item (not including the make-your-own menu, where you could choose any combination of meat, toppings, etc.). Many of these sandwiches included avocado. I was pretty used to people wandering in and gaping at the menu for a few moments before they figured out what they wanted and ordered, and I was also used to answering various questions about the menu and how one could have one's sandwich made. This kid, who's definitely a teenager, comes in with his parents and sister and they check out the menu for a few minutes. They start to order and this is the conversation I had with him (pretty close to verbatim):
(Mom orders, it's the kid's turn)
Kid: What's an avocado?
Me: Umm...have you ever had guacamole?
Kid: Yeah.
Me: The green stuff it's made of is mashed-up avocado. You can have it taken off if you want.
Kid: Okay. I'll have <sandwich>.
WTF? I mean, I understand it's not a particularly common fruit (vegetable?)/sandwich topping, but guacamole is really common. Wouldn't you be curious why it was green?
That's all I have for now, but I have some crazy sandwich shop stories.
Hey! She was from New York/New Jersey and had never had one until I showed her the joys of Taco Bell! Hahahahaha!
and gave a sideways glance at my friends to confirm, yes, I did hear what I though I heard. 
)
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