I get up every morning and shower even though I know that my hair will soon become greasy and my clothes will have food caked against its fabric. From the moment my alarm goes off at 6 a.m., I begin to mentally prepare myself for the day ahead of me. As it is everyday, I force a smile smile upon my face and practice my high-pitch giggle that I use with every customer so that they believe I am just beyond excited to serve them and all their needs. I consider what time it is and how many hours I will be spending that day with someone screaming at me that "they have to get back to work," or "it has been more than 10 minutes and I'm still waiting." All of which are the reasons why working in the food industry sucks.
I will stand outside the door to the restaurant with my hand rested on the handle. It takes several long, deep breaths before I finally tug at the door. I walk inside and the outside world shuts behind me. I am now trapped inside the food industry.
I cannot even clock in before a customer approaches the counter, both confused and annoyed why they haven't been served yet and concerned where the manger or boss is. Constantly, I am defending myself while explaining that if I could just go set my purse and keys down, that I will be right back to serve them. They huff and they puff as I turn my back on them.
The restaurant becomes packed with hungry humans. Each one I become personal with as I ask them the basic questions. "Hi, how are you?" "What can I get you today?" "Will this be for here or to go?"
These are perfectly polite questions and necessary to having their food order correct and out on time. However, to a customer these questions are a waste of their time. In their mind, I should know everything they want and what it is they're thinking, so they roll their eyes at me.
As I am constantly running back and forth to satisfy a customer while another will holler at me across the room asking where their food is and why it hasn't arrived. Again, I begin to run back and forth. It's all a constant cycle.
At the end of it all, when their food is made and ready, they don't say thank you. Instead they grab their food harshly, irritated that they just had to spend 10 minutes waiting to receive their food after making the choice themselves, to go inside a restaurant. Congratulations, 10 minutes of your life was spent glaring at the server who is trying their best to please you and is simply here just to earn minimum wage.
Working in the food industry sucks. Hungry human beings are dangerous; the slang term for that being, "hangry." Without food in our stomachs, we become irritable and flustered. If you choose to walk into a restaurant, however, understand that there are other customers in front of you. It takes time for food to be made. Lastly, most of us are just college students trying to pay our rent.
At the end of the day, I am covered in crumbs and flour. My hair is consistently greasy. I am unhappy and cranky. Working in the food industry does that to a human. In return, we go crazy after being yelled at and talked down to. I leave the restaurant with my hand on the door handle. I take a deep breath in and then out, and walk away...
Only to realize I will back here the next day to once again serve the food that will hopefully calm the storm of "hangry" humans. Working in the food industry sucks.
