Yeah, I've been there. It wasn't as bad as everyone told me it was. I learned a lot from working fast food, and I'm honestly glad I did it. The hours were tough, the atmosphere was cramped and chaotic, and energy had to be high to keep the orders flowing smoothly. While I worked hard to do my job, there were some days when serving person after person was a handful, and though they didn't know it, there were a lot of things they could have done to ease the process. I'm sure I can speak for most fast food workers in saying this, so here are some things that we would like you to know.
1. We can hear you over the speaker.
The speaker doesn't exactly turn off. When a customer pulls up beside the menu in the drive thru, the first thing you'd expect is probably "Hi, welcome to my restaurant..." and when it doesn't happen right away, I've had my fair share of people asking where we are and assuming we are ignoring them. We can hear every customer, and we honestly aren't trying to be rude. If we don't ask for the order right away or we ask for your patience, we are likely helping another customer and every word you say, we know about. If you want to have conversations you don't want overheard, I'd wait until you're out of the line.
2. The drive thru is meant to go at a quick pace.
It is completely understandable to ask for a little bit of time to look over the menu in the drive thru. We understand that a carful of indecisive kids can be stressful when asking everyone whether they want apple slices or fries (the answer is always fries) so it is okay to take a little bit to decide. However, if it is lunch hour and the line is really being held up, it helps us if you have some idea of what everyone wants before you reach the speaker. I have seen people get out of line and leave the restaurant because a family is taking a long time. We will try to our job as quickly as we can, and we need your help too.
3. Car windows = bad times.
If your window isn't rolled down all the way in the drive thu, it's really hard for us to notice, especially if it's dark outside. One time I almost lost four sodas when my drink tray hit the half-opened car window.
4. Hitting on us could get really awkward.
So, one time someone asked for my number in the drive through. He played it off when I refused, but the only thing was... he was still stuck behind another car. So he had to wait there, with me there on the other side of the window, avoiding eye contact. For way too long. So if you plan on flirting with us, just know that you don't always have an escape if things don't go your way.
5. We're trying our best, honestly.
Sometimes we get orders wrong. Sometimes we can't get orders ready as quickly as usual because the ice cream machine broke, or we need to run to the freezer to get more fries. We are trying the best we can, and we do ask for your patience. Runnin a business that never really slows down can be tricky when something goes wrong.
6. The drive thru comes first.
That's what we are taught. The drive thru needs to move the fastest, and customers waiting in the dining room for their food are always served next. While we're trying to keep it at an even pace for both operations, sometimes our system messes up and we have to compensate. So if you're dining in and your order is being put on hold, please understand that your order will be our next priority.
7. We close when we close.
This goes for anyone in the food service industry. If we close at eleven, please don't come in at 10:59 demanding a lot of food. We've probably already packed up our condiments, cleaned off every table, and turned off the fryers. Working fast food requires a lot of preparation and careful break down of our stock, so it is very frustrating when we have to set it all back up again when we should be doing our final checks of the restaurant. Please be respectful of our time.
8. We see you putting soda in the water cup.
We're not blind to it. Might I remind you that we are making minimum wage?
9. We can get to know our customers.
Just because we work at a quick pace and we see hundreds of people fly through our restaurant a day, doesn't mean we don't truly get to know anyone. When I was working there was a lady who came through the drive thru every night before we closed. Every time, she just ordreed a tiny chocolate ice cream cone. We always knew it was her because she would always say a quiet little "hello" to us. The one night she decided to try a vanilla ice cream was a turning point in all our lives, and I will never forget her smile and her gratitude.
