Tips for the drive through.

[Whiskey]

Just A Post-Friday/Saturday Tip Guide:
1. I am under a timer at all times. If you want to be cute/funny/drunk at the window, take no more than 25-45 seconds to order.

2. If you insist on hitting on me (why would you do this?), when I tell you my boyfriend is that monitor full of orders, my second job, or anything else, take the hint. George Clooney couldn't get my phone number if I had six cars in drive and two more waiting to order.

3. If you thump your rock&roll/drum&bass/rap/country, I will shut my window. I don't care what it is. You are not my only customer, I still have to hear anyone else who wants food/my coworkers talking/etc.

4. Don't get excessive with the cussing. If you tell me you need "a g-d damn, motherf'in,** chicken sandwich", I will not hesitate to tell you to watch your mouth. My manager approves, none of us want to hear your HILARIOUS drunken use of potty words.

5. Don't take three minutes to order when we have a preview menu. I don't care if you "feel bad" that you're holding up other cars. Feel bad that I have to hear from my Manager about the drive through time when you don't. And you're still holding up other cars because you're taking three minutes to order at that board instead of the other one. So its double bad. DOUBLE BAD.

6. You have no reason to take three minutes to order. Ever. Stop it. Actually, in fairness, if you order more than 30$ in food, three minutes is fine. However, three minutes is fine IN CONJUNCTION with #13. GO PARK.

7. If you are in a line of three cars in front of you, and three cars behind you, AND you just ordered a crap ton of food, do not complain about the wait. You know what, don't complain about the wait at all. You are drunk and I should be calling the police.

7a. Cops love fast food. There are cops EVERYWHERE a fast food place is. I don't have to call the police, they're waiting for you at the corner, Bitchy McSwerve.

8. I will not throw away your empty alcohol beverages for you. No. Stop thrusting it at me. NO.

9. If you want to check your food, please do it in the parking lot. I do quite well on time, but any time I'm over is a bad time. The people who check their food are the ones that order one sandwich and a french fry but take an entire minute to do it.

10. Do not add orders at the window if you've taken longer than one minute to order and you've ordered more than ten dollars in food. We hate you and you just screwed my time. Do not look at me with a stink eye because I told you to go park in the parking lot.

11. Do not call corporate and tell them the female uniforms are "too baggy." Just.. ugh.

12. I will interrupt the crap out of your cell phone conversation. I do not care. You are not calling 911, it is not an emergency, take your food. I will speak progressively louder if you ignore me. I don't know that you dont have a hearing problem.

13. Do not complain about being parked. When I ask you to park, PARK. Don't just sit there and refuse. PARK. You will get your food in the same time, except you won't get me a lecture from my boss. PARK.

Things you SHOULD do:
1 (and only). Be understanding. Regardless of a new employee or old, if you are coming through during drunk-weekend rush, BE UNDERSTANDING. Stuff gets forgotten/misplaced, its horrible and it sucks, but it happens. If you're rude and yelling at me, i'll give you your food, apologize and send you on your way. If you're nice (and like the guy tonight who DROVE BACK then told me he "loved me" because I had his food hot and ready for him) I'll see what my manager will let me comp.

To the lady a couple weeks ago:
I forgot one of your sandwich bags on the counter. I apologized and ran and got it. Total time of yours wasted? One minute. I apologized, smiled sincerely, and gave you your 13th sandwich. Telling me, snottily, that I "should have given free food" will get you nothing but a thousand yard stare until you pull off. If your time was so valuable, how do you have time to wait for MORE FOOD TO BE COOKED? Am i missing something? Also, ask nicely, see what happens. I don't respond to rude besides the standard Customer Service Smile and Blank Stare (tm).



Authors note: I've never worked fast food. This is my first fast food job (though not first retail) and I'm still getting used to it. I tell EVERYONE this. Especially if there is a wait, even if its not my fault. Please, be a little sympathetic, I want you out as fast as you want to be out. Also: see "Tips you SHOULD do."


**I'm a bit sauced (..."a bit"..) and I don't want to offend anyone with my Off The Clock Potty Mouth (tm).

I hope I'm not crazy off base with my rants. Also, I hope I make sense. I work graveyard and the weekend shift. I get the entire drunken crowd that leaves the bars before and after last call. I still love this shift more than any because the amazing customers are the most amazing. And all my coworkers are insane because only crazy people work grave. Also, I work seventy hours a week. The lack of.. making sense (:\) is not entirely due to the sauce. Days I only work six to eight hours are considered days off. Oi.

[TonyF]

When it comes to being timed, I don't understand how it's YOUR fault if THEY are the ones that can't make up their minds or like being flagrant time-wasters. Forgive my ignorance.

Our store kinda works the same. If a transaction takes more than thirty seconds, a customer service survey number pops up at the bottom of the receipt asking how the cashier did. So, we get penalized because the customer fumbles around their purse or insists I hear their stand-up routine.

It makes no sense. What do they expect us to do? Tell them to can it and hurry up? Order for them? Reach in and snatch the money from them?

**I'm a bit sauced (..."a bit"..) and I don't want to offend anyone with my Off The Clock Potty Mouth (tm).

The best way to calm down after work.

[Whiskey]

I don't understand how it's YOUR fault if THEY are the ones that can't make up their minds or like being flagrant time-wasters.

The timer makes no distinction between the time they pulled to the menu to the time they left the drive through.

If a transaction takes more than thirty seconds, a customer service survey number pops up at the bottom of the receipt asking how the cashier did....we get penalized

This. If they don't like how long they waited, regardless that they ordered 30$ of food with four cars in front and three behind them, we get penalized.

What do they expect us to do?

Bend time and space. Then they'll ask for free fries while they HAD TO WAIT for you to bend time and space.

The best way to calm down after work.

Quoting for truth. You should get an automatic 30% discount from alcoholic distributors just for working retail.

[fireheart]

11. Do not call corporate and tell them the female uniforms are "too baggy." Just.. ugh.

I had the opposite problem. Our uniforms are basically identical, however the older female uniforms were semi-fitted. Basically, they also emphasized the breast area. Thankfully the new female uniforms are either straight cut or semi-fitted, but the semi-fitted ones aren't as emphasizing on the chest area.
When we ordered the old shirts, we were told to go up a size from our normal clothing. These ones are two sizes up.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

The timer thing is how I know that when they are hiring managers, they actually look for

1. People who have never worked with the public
2. People with literally no common sense whatsoever.

[SG15Z]

Just A Post-Friday/Saturday Tip Guide:
1. I am under a timer at all times. If you want to be cute/funny/drunk at the window, take no more than 25-45 seconds to order.

They time you guys?! I guess I shouldn't be surprised they time cashiers at grocery stores why not fast food. I don't understand why they time us at the tendering time though. It's not our fault the person takes FOREVER to find money to pay with.

3. If you thump your rock&roll/drum&bass/rap/country, I will shut my window. I don't care what it is. You are not my only customer, I still have to hear anyone else who wants food/my coworkers talking/etc.

I've always assumed the radio being on would be an annoyance. That's why I always turn off my radio. I don't understand why people leave there's not only on, but really loud too.

6. You have no reason to take three minutes to order. Ever. Stop it. Actually, in fairness, if you order more than 30$ in food, three minutes is fine. However, three minutes is fine IN CONJUNCTION with #13. GO PARK.

If there's a preview menu then yes it should NEVER take that long unless it's a big order. If there isn't a preview menu I would understand, as there's always that one person in the back seat that won't make up their freakin mind!

7. If you are in a line of three cars in front of you, and three cars behind you, AND you just ordered a crap ton of food, do not complain about the wait. You know what, don't complain about the wait at all. You are drunk and I should be calling the police.

If their is a line period I wouldn't complain about the wait. They're busy of course it's gonna take a while!

7a. Cops love fast food. There are cops EVERYWHERE a fast food place is. I don't have to call the police, they're waiting for you at the corner, Bitchy McSwerve.

They also usually patrol as close to the grocery stores as possible, though sometimes they can't make it in time. BUt yes I always see cops around a certain fast food place.

9. If you want to check your food, please do it in the parking lot. I do quite well on time, but any time I'm over is a bad time. The people who check their food are the ones that order one sandwich and a french fry but take an entire minute to do it.

I always check my food. Period. I've gotten to work/home countless times missing something, and I hate pulling into the parking lot because then you either have to go inside or pull around back to the window, and since I usually go when they're busy I'd have to wait another 15 minutes. So yeah I'd rather check then so the problem can be fixed then and their and I don't have to wait again.

Sorry if you're being timed, but you know what? Who gives a s***?! It's not your fault so don't worry about it. Just tell who ever yells at you to f*** off you can't force the customer to hurry.

12. I will interrupt the crap out of your cell phone conversation. I do not care. You are not calling 911, it is not an emergency, take your food. I will speak progressively louder if you ignore me. I don't know that you dont have a hearing problem.

I'm so using that next time.

13. Do not complain about being parked. When I ask you to park, PARK. Don't just sit there and refuse. PARK. You will get your food in the same time, except you won't get me a lecture from my boss. PARK.

That and the people behind your ass can be served too. It's called being courteous.

Things you SHOULD do:
1 (and only). Be understanding. Regardless of a new employee or old, if you are coming through during drunk-weekend rush, BE UNDERSTANDING. Stuff gets forgotten/misplaced, its horrible and it sucks, but it happens. If you're rude and yelling at me, i'll give you your food, apologize and send you on your way. If you're nice (and like the guy tonight who DROVE BACK then told me he "loved me" because I had his food hot and ready for him) I'll see what my manager will let me comp.

This is true in any form of service. Retail, fast food, restaurants. Things happen, we're only human. If you're really awesome about it you might get free stuff for the inconvenience. If your a prick, you'll get the evil stare, and the bare minimum of service.

Also, I work seventy hours a week. The lack of.. making sense (:\) is not entirely due to the sauce. Days I only work six to eight hours are considered days off. Oi.

Damn. Seventy hours! Geeze. I'm guessing 2 jobs right?

[Stormraven]

I keep my radio on, but I always turn the volume down when I'm paying or receiving my food. Simple courtesy.

[Green_Fairy]

oh whiskey...you're officially one of my favorite people on this forum. drive thru pretty much sucks. being timed on drive thru sucks even harder, this i know. at my old store, we had a time limit that was only possible if there wasn't anyone else in line or in the store. so...when it got busy, we never made time. it freaking sucked.

I don't know that you dont have a hearing problem.

i'm also gonna use this. yay for being snarky!

. I will not throw away your empty alcohol beverages for you. No. Stop thrusting it at me. NO.

i've never had someone ask me to throw away their booze for them, but i've had plenty of people ask me to throw away their coffee cups. then they get all pissed off when i tell them there's a trash can 15 feet in front of them that would be happy to take it

If you thump your rock&roll/drum&bass/rap/country, I will shut my window. I don't care what it is. You are not my only customer, I still have to hear anyone else who wants food/my coworkers talking/etc.

i don't understand this. i really don't. is there heart beat tied in with the music so they'll die if it's not cranked up to "holy shit you broke my window"? when i can hear someone's music both through the window and the headset (microphone's about 20 feet behind them)...it's too loud.

I've never worked fast food. This is my first fast food job (though not first retail) and I'm still getting used to it.

welcome. i pray you never have a drink thrown at you and your window stays intact.

[Food Lady]

I used to be a shift mngr at BK. I got fired due to A) drive times and B) prep and cleaning that didn't get done. The cause (90%) of this? Drunk customers taking up all my time and drug-addict staff not showing up for work. I will not do it again.

[Sunsetsky]

I worked at Burger King for 6 months. They always threw me on drive thru. I really hated it. We actually had a whiteboard with our times per day compared with other stores. I will never work fastfood again. Worst job ever.

Actually...no. The job I had at the theater was the worst job ever.

[South Texan]

Then there is the stupid one who drives up to the menu board without a clue as to what she wants, says "Gimme a minute" when greeted on the speaker, then HONKS her horn to get your attention never thinking that maybe the mic is on and her LOUD horn will blare into the ear of everyone wearing a headset. Then she giggles as if it was cute when (or if) she realizes that what she did inflicted pain on us.

I really hated that type.

(And saying something like "Please order whenever you are ready" never seemed to keep her hand off the horn, either.)

[Whiskey]

Extra long response! I didn't quote names, sorry :\

I know that when they are hiring managers, they actually look for

1. People who have never worked with the public
2. People with literally no common sense whatsoever.

The new owners of my store want to cut the drive thru time from five minutes to three minutes. Thats from the time they pull up to the order board. Some of our food takes longer than three minutes to cook.

. Just tell who ever yells at you to f*** off you can't force the customer to hurry.

In a dream world, I would. In reality, my manager will give my job to someone else immediately. I try to be super quick on the orders I can so if I get a bag checker it doesnt kill my average time. It evens out. That one was a little unreasonable, but I'm also talking about the 1:30AM-4AM drunk rush hour when theres cars out the drive through and around half the building. Any other time or day I really don't care.

That and the people behind your ass can be served too.

This is why we park. Your food is going to take two minutes and the guy behind you is bagged and ready. If everyones going to take an unholy amount of time, we don't park because no one will get anywhere any faster. Also, people seem to be REALLY receptive to "Oh gosh we're understocked and had to cook your meat from frozen, it'll take a minute or two extra, could you park around front?" I don't know why.

evil stare

I get real monotone and have a thousand yard stare. According to everyone who's ever seen it, its very, very unnerving. I think I mentioned it before. Its extra effective if you don't blink. Or turn your head slightly if you do blink.

Damn. Seventy hours! Geeze. I'm guessing 2 jobs right?

Yeah, two jobs. Seventy is my average. I'll probably work more like seventy five, sometimes eighty. This coming week is only sixty though. Im glad it started when school was almost out. I have to take my exams early just so I dont lose one of my jobs :\

there's a trash can 15 feet in front of them that would be happy to take it

Thanks Speaking of Barista (your icon), after a long day on my feet in drive I hit a Very Famous Coffee Company and someone actually took their trash to the drive thru trash can. And set it on top. I almost lost my mind. I threw it away for him and went and took a nap because I almost threw it at their car. I have no patience and very little impulse control when I'm tired.

i pray you never have a drink thrown at you

I will get fired and go to jail for assault. I will come through the window. I have a very low tolerance for people treating me less than human and I will lose my mind on somebody.

I used to be a shift mngr at BK. I got fired due to A) drive times and B) prep and cleaning that didn't get done. The cause (90%) of this? Drunk customers taking up all my time and drug-addict staff not showing up for work. I will not do it again.

Yep. Fast food doesn't drug test because its too expensive then complains all their employees don't work fast enough/hard enough. They come to WORK high. What do you really expect? My job is pretty secure because I don't do drugs and I show up for all my shifts. And I'm dedicated grave because I love grave and they can't keep anyone on that shift.

Then there is the stupid one who drives up to the menu board without a clue as to what she wants, says "Gimme a minute" when greeted on the speaker, then HONKS her horn to get your attention never thinking that maybe the mic is on and her LOUD horn will blare into the ear of everyone wearing a headset. Then she giggles as if it was cute when (or if) she realizes that what she did inflicted pain on us.

"Welcome to Happy Fun Food Place what can I get you? *silence* Order whenever youre ready"

-three minutes pass-

"HELLO ARE YOU THERE IM READY TO ORDER HELLO OH GOD PLEASE GIVE ME FOOD IM A DIABETIC AND I"M GOING INTO SHOCK SOMEON EHELP I NEED FOODRAHKJSHAL:GFPUASDIGFSDUGF"

"what can I get you?"

"Can I get a...... oh wait I don't know hold on.."

edit:
Addendum to The Tips: If you have a diesel engine, or just a very loud engine, shut it off please. I know its inconvenient and probably hurts you terribly to shut your car off or whatever, but its either that or I keep repeating "I'm sorry, I can't hear you" and just guess as to what youre trying to order.

[Green_Fairy]

edit:
Addendum to The Tips: If you have a diesel engine, or just a very loud engine, shut it off please. I know its inconvenient and probably hurts you terribly to shut your car off or whatever, but its either that or I keep repeating "I'm sorry, I can't hear you" and just guess as to what youre trying to order.

aaaahahahahaha yer cute. i used to work down the street from a navel air base. the jet noise ooooooh the jet noise..."welcome to green apron coffee you're here with greeny and the entire united states navey what can we get started for yoooou..."
also, with the diesel thing? yeeeeah. marines love their diesels. ho man i'm so glad i'm not in that store anymore.

someone actually took their trash to the drive thru trash can. And set it on top. I almost lost my mind. I threw it away for him and went and took a nap because I almost threw it at their car. I have no patience and very little impulse control when I'm tired.

"oh hey this trash can is full to the point of over-flowing. so instead of doing the logical thing and hold onto my bag o' crap until i get home/work/the store, i'm going to drop my bag o' crap on the ground in front of the trashcan! oh hey bushes! even better!"
...people are awesome

[Merriweather]

I always check my food. Period. I've gotten to work/home countless times missing something, and I hate pulling into the parking lot because then you either have to go inside or pull around back to the window, and since I usually go when they're busy I'd have to wait another 15 minutes. So yeah I'd rather check then so the problem can be fixed then and their and I don't have to wait again.

Sorry if you're being timed, but you know what? Who gives a s***?! It's not your fault so don't worry about it. Just tell who ever yells at you to f*** off you can't force the customer to hurry.

Trouble is, the person yelling may be the boss - and no matter how much right is on your side, he has the power to fire you over your times. So if you depend on your paycheck for things like, oh, rent or food for your kids, then you do have to give a s*** about your time, even if it isn't your fault it takes so long.

[Sauletekis]

George Clooney couldn't get my phone number if I had six cars in drive and two more waiting to order.

You sure about that?