Why I only order Chinese food over the phone . . .

[sms001]

VERY nice job holding back Anthony K. S.!

I know that if I like a place, I want to see them succeed, and I don't want to take it on myself to chase away any of their customers - even the extra sucky ones.

Others posting here have picked out a line or two from the dialog, but the one that would have really made my blood boil is "What are you doing here?" At that point the SC has acknowledged that he knows you don't work there, and yet still feels it is ok to ask a personal question like that of a stranger? I might of let fly with "Picking strawberries for the blueberry festival." or some other inanity. Nothing to jeopardize their patronage, but a good STFU and MYOB.

BTW, are you even Chinese? I realize that many (even some good ones) chinese food places are owned/operated by other ethnicities, but it would add some extra irony to your tale

Speaking of owned/operated by others, I've also seen a few "Chinese Food" places branch out into other (especially other Asian) foods. Often in smaller towns, they are the ones known for "exotic" cuisine already, and even better, a lot of the basic raw ingredients are already on hand.

[Anthony K. S.]

I'd like to thank all of you for your kind words of support. I really appreciate it.

I wonder if other nationalities have to deal with that nonsense?

Yes, indeed.

When I was still in college, I had a friend who told me a couple of stories of similar experiences. She had to deal with people who seemed to think that because she was black, she must know every other black person in the areas where she lived and worked.

People.

You know, I also wouldn't be the least bit surprised to find Italian people who avoid Italian restaurants for the same reason, or somebody with a Russian accent who stays away from Russian restaurants, and so forth. I've often found experiences like this to be more common than one might think at first.

So you may not have even looked Chinese, but because you were Asian, you automatically worked there, or knew the people there. Stereotypes blow.

Absolutely.

As a matter of fact, I'm not even Chinese. My family is actually of South Korean descent. Not that any of that changes anything in the story, though.

Interestingly enough, I've never had this problem in Korean restaurants. But, then again, the only Korean restaurants I've ever gone to regularly are located in the "Main Street" area of Flushing, NY.

That area has a very large Korean population. It's fairly common for local businesses to have signs, advertising, takeout menus, etc. that are written in both English and Korean. And, of course, this means that a large percentage of the patrons in local restaurants are going to be Korean.

I figure that it's harder for a person to justify assuming that an Asian person in a Korean restaurant must work there, when three-quarters of the people sitting and eating at the tables are Asian, too. It might be different for a Korean restaurant located somewhere else.

for example, I have had people tell me point blanke that because I don't follow the stereotypical mormon male characteristics I must be gay...

. . . That hurt my head.

I'm sorry you have to deal with that.

I will say it again : People.

I mean, geeze, if you saw someone walking about with a bottle of wine in each pants pocket, would YOU assume they were working?

I don't know. It depends on what kind of customers they've had to deal with.

Though so long as the fried rice and the sweet and sour chicken is good, I don't care if there's Greys in the kitchen...

Ooooooh . . . Sweet and sour chicken . . . That's always been one of my favorites.

That and the sweet and sour pork, and the boneless ribs . . . But for me, good Chinese food is always down to the fried rice. As long as the fried rice is good, everything else usually falls right into place.

The restaurant I was talking about in my original post had the BEST fried rice ever. That's why I liked that place so much. The Chinese restaurants I order from now are pretty good, but their fried rice just doesn't compare . . . Oh, how I miss that place.

Anthony...

1) I just filled up my truck with gas,

2) You made me hungry for Chineese food

3) Now I can't afford it!!!

Oops . . . Sorry about that . . .

[Anthony K. S.]

VERY nice job holding back Anthony K. S.!

I know that if I like a place, I want to see them succeed, and I don't want to take it on myself to chase away any of their customers - even the extra sucky ones.

Thank you very much.

As I said, in retrospect, it's a really good thing that the employee came back out when she did.

I'm not entirely sure what I would have wound up saying to that guy if I was pushed far enough, but I'm fairly certain I would have regretted it afterward.

Although, sadly, it didn't do much good in the end. The restaurant still wound up closing down.

BTW, are you even Chinese? I realize that many (even some good ones) chinese food places are owned/operated by other ethnicities, but it would add some extra irony to your tale

As a matter of fact, I'm not. My family is from South Korea, and I still have a fair number of relatives in Seoul.

I don't really expect people to be able to tell that I'm Korean (as opposed to any other Asian descent) just by looking at me. Truth be told, I've often had difficulty distinguishing between them myself.

But, of course, none of that really changes anything in the story. It does, as you said, add a bit of extra irony to it, though.

[anotherroundplease]

I lived in a very small town for a while. It was such a bubble. I went mullet counting at Wal Mart for fun (personal record-14 in one hour). They had one chinese restaurant in the county, run by 'Johnny'. Johnny was a really cool guy, only he had a heavy accent. The things he put up with. My favorite was a big dumbass redneck trying to show off (probably for my benefit, I'm a female with all my teeth, quite a catch in those parts). He asked Johnny 'so what do you do? Don't all you guys like ka-ra-te, or ju-jitz-you (spelled as pronounced)? Johnny looked right at him and said, 'I like tekas hold 'em. You like ass kick? (again, as pronounced). I nearly wet myself laughing.

[Anriana]

Well hey, Chinese people make up such a small number of the American population that you guys must all know each other, right? I mean, you're probably the owner's nephew.

/eyeroll

[Meegz]

As a matter of fact, I'm not even Chinese. My family is actually of South Korean descent. Not that any of that changes anything in the story, though.

When I worked a restaurant with a bunch of South Koreans, I took a liking to learning a bit of the language, so if I needed something, I could just call out what it was and we all had fun with it. Geez, customers would complain saying that I lived in AMERICA, I never had to learn to speak to them! Speak ENGLISH! What the crap!

Edit: Ahn nyong ha sae yo!

[Leopardmadcat]

In retrospect, it really is a good thing that she came out when she did. If I had to deal with that guy any longer, I probably would have said something I would have really regretted.

And that boys and girls is part of the problem... People are too polite to these idiots, they are afraid they might say something to upset them. THEY NEED TO BE VERBALY SMACKED UPSIDE THE HEAD! It's the only way to get their attention! If you're polite to them they just ignore you! (QED).

What you needed to do with that fucktard is something like this:

"Hey asshole, I don't work here, and I don't take orders from you! If you're such a 'Great customer' you would KNOW that I don't work here. Now Fuck off and leave me alone."

[Samaliel]

There's no need to be rude, but they definitely need to be told off. Body language can work a lot better than "colorful vocabulary".

[Barefootgirl]

Chinese restaurants and takeaways in the UK often have a strange form of curry on the menu. It is not nice. If you want curry, go to the Indian place which is as often as not in the same street as the Chinese ! They have proper curry, it will be nicer !

Resorting to foul language simply lowers you to the level of the SC, it may be endlessly satisfying, but ultimately just makes you look like the same sort of pondlife as they are.

I'm having tandoori chicken for dinner tonight

[Pixagi]

Extra 50 points if you're not actually Chinese.

Near the last place I lived at there was a Halal fast food chicken place I loved to get food at because it was cheap and yummy.

Now, this is an important fact: this HALAL place is in a MUSLIM neighborhood populated mostly by PAKISTANI and BANGLADESHI people. Yeah, there was a fair amount of people from other areas as well (Russians, Hebrews, Blacks, Hispanics, Brooklyn Italians etc.), but it was predominately people from those two specific countries and a few from the Middle East and India. For the less PC, Arabs.

Another important fact: I'm Biracial. My father is black (and very, very dark. Not ebony, but like a dark West Indian). My mother is whiter then printer paper. My sister and I fall dead middle between the two. While my sister looks Blasian (not quite Black, not quite Asian...), I look Puerto Rican or Dominican.

So, while waiting for my food, Dude @ Counter calls up a woman to get her order. She grabs it, checks it, and then asks if there's any fresh Macaroni.

A: Like I said, it's a fast food place. Not gonna happen.
B: D@C is a lovable douche and loves to fuck with people who have any type of delusion that they're gonna get anything different from what he's serving.

SC: Do you have any FRESH Macaroni?
D@C: ...Fresh?
Me: ... (Thinking: Crap...)
SC: (saying this slower now) Yes, Frrresssh Maacaroooni.
D@C (shit eating grin goes here): Noooo Freeessssh Maaacaronnnni
Now, instead of just excepting the truth, she went straight for the suck and turned to me.
SC: You speak Spanish, right?
Me: O_o Uh, noooo...
At this point, D@C goes in the back to check on my order.
SC (rolling her eyes at me): Whatever, I bet you get special service.
Me: ... No...
Sc: Whatever.
Me: ...
D@C returns with my order and I leave, hearing "Do-o you-o have-o..." as I leave.

[draftermatt]

When I was still in college, I had a friend who told me a couple of stories of similar experiences. She had to deal with people who seemed to think that because she was black, she must know every other black person in the areas where she lived and worked.

Works the other way too. The area I live in is mostly populated by white people. Down the road a ways is Baltimore, which is mostly populated by black people.

I took a class in college with a woman who was teaching at an elementary school in Baltimore. She and another teacher (male) were the only white people in the school. All the students assumed they were married.

[Jester]

...better than the dried up hunks of beef they try to pass as "barbeque" around here (Oh, to be back in the South).

Okay, I am not going to argue that the South doesn't have great barbecue. They most certainly do. To say otherwise would be the sign of someone who went to the University of Arizona is a bleeding idiot.

That being said, I have often been pleasantly surprised when I can get great barbecue in areas where you wouldn't think you would. I came across a wonderful barbecue place, for example, during my time in San Francisco. Yes. San Francisco.

Oh, don't get me wrong, I don't doubt that the place(s) in your area you were referring to do not make the cut for barbecue. And there are tons of barbecue places in many places. But when you find that hidden gem, it is AWESOME!

Just thought I'd point that out. Now, back to watching the Top Chef 4 finale.

GO STEPHANIE!

[redmountaingoldfish]

I'm not sure if curry on the menu at a Chineese place is a midwest thing or what because I've never seen it outside of the Midwest (ohio, indiana, pensylvania etc) area.

I live in the midwest and have never seen it. So its probably a much more local thing.

[Jester]

To touch tangentially on the thrust of the OP, I have met people who, upon finding out that I am Jewish (by descent, don't really practice it at all) are confused if they see me eating, say, bacon. Others are stunned to find out I am not rich.

Yes, kids, we all know that all Jews are rich, and all of them keep kosher. Yeah, right. And all Asians are great with math and work in Chinese restaurants, all Hispanics are lazy and unemployed or in gangs or drug dealers, all blacks are criminals or thugs or rappers, all Russians are Communists, all French people are rude and don't bathe, all of the English have bad teeth, all Muslims and Arabs are terrorists who will stop at nothing to kill us all, all Italians are in the Mafia, all Irish are loud obnoxious drunks, all redheads have violent tempers, all blondes are bubbleheads, and all Germans are violent warmongers.

Let's see, did I miss anyone? I'm sure I missed a few. But the point is made. Stereotypes, while they may be based in some small amount of truth (let's face it, most Asian restaurants WILL have Asians working there, though of course most Asians DON'T work in Asian restaurants), do not stand true for the entirety of a group. Any group. Hey, I'd love to live up to the Jewish stereotype of being rich, I really would. Instead, I am cursed with only living up to the positive black stereotype we all know about.

Yep. You know what I'm talking about. That's right. I can dance!

[Samaliel]

Hey, just because we, French people, made a point of being a complete pain in the back of every other country throughout History doesn't give you the right to call us 'rude' ! I resent that !