Yes we are closed

[MMATM]

- if you were given something for free here once, it was called a "sample" and does not mean that the price is zero

- the samples that are out for customers to take are determined by whatever is newly added to the menu. we will not cut up your favorite pastry and put it out for samples just because you ask us to. especially not after the time we did and you took the whole plate

- yes the community bulletin board is for community use. no we do not check it every day for out-of-date flyers and postings other than our own

[bigjimaz]

The classic response?

I'm sorry Sir/Madam. Your watch was not available so we used ours.

[Kelly Lynne]

If your posted hours say 'open till 10 PM', please stay open till 10 PM. (And if I come in at 1 minute before closing, I deserve to be sneered at.)

The complete no-win situation. If you lock up 5-10 minutes early, you're not following your advertised hours, and someone who comes in at that time can't be waited on, which isn't fair to them--technically, you should be open. And yet, if you don't, some jerk comes in at 9:59 and stays til 10:30, no matter how much you sneer at them.

Personally, I think it might be a good idea to set the clocks out front 5-10 minutes faster than the timeclocks employees use to punch in (and suggest employees set their watches by the timeclock as the "real store time"). That way, you can close by the clock that's fast and if you're helping one last customer who came in at five of (which is really ten or 15 of), you might still be able to close on time. But, then, I'm sneaky like that.

Also, I'm all in favor of posting any "weirdness" about your hours for customers to see. For example, I work out at Curves. They close at a certain time, but that means that you need to come in for your workout a half hour *before* that time. The close time isn't the "no one else can come in" time, but the "everyone needs to leave" time. No biggie, because they post this pretty clearly at most of their locations.

Similarly, I used to work at the snack bar of my college. We'd usually close the grill and sandwich making station some time before close (because otherwise we'd be there all night cleaning up), but people could still buy deep fried items (which are nice and quick) or get something from the fridge right up until closing time. As a customer, this bugged me, because I would come in half an hour before close wanting a sandwich, and everything was put away. Then, as an employee, I understood why it was necessary, but I think it should've been published as part of our hours. Open til midnight, grill and sandwich station open til 11.