Menu Modifications

Menu item modifications have become common place at restaurants.  Some establishments allow side item substitutions while others may have a small charge for such a replacement.  I hate olives and request that they be left off of any item I order that contains them.  I believe that simple request such as these are completely reasonable and easily accomplished.  I am always happy to oblige with demands such as these because my extreme distaste for olives (and mushrooms for that matter) provide me with empathy when it comes to the issue of ingredients.  That said, there are some situations where ingredients are already premixed as in items like artichoke dips, macaroni and cheese, or coleslaw and are unable to be removed in their entirety.  But somewhere along the way the phrase “the customer is always right” became loosely translated to “I’m the customer and you have to give me whatever I want,” and it has carried with it an almost obnoxious sense of entitlement.  While omitting ingredients is a reasonable request adding items can be different.  Simple additions like a condiment or a dressing are one thing but I have seen many get down right gluttonous with their additions with items like extra cheese, bacon, avocado, barbecue sauce and sautéed mushrooms.  It should be expected for items like these to have an additional charge as these additions are not factored into the food cost of the menu item.  But what I find is outright ludicrous in behavior is ordering completely off the menu.  One time a guest seated at one of my coworkers tables requested shrimp cocktail as an appetizer when our place of employment offered nothing of the sort.  We did offer a fried shrimp platter that consisted of bite sized shrimp and two sides.  When my coworker informed his table that he could not facilitate the request his customer complained, “So much for pleasing the guest.” Now this guy thinks that we should be able to use these shrimp and whip up his request considering it seems we have the necessary ingredients: shrimp and cocktail sauce.  Obviously he doesn’t realize that pre-peeled frozen bite sized shrimp and a side of cocktail sauce does not a shrimp cocktail make.  Not only that but what he and most diners fail to recognize is that our entire ordering and ringing process is facilitated by computer.  On that computer we have buttons that directly correlate with the menu items and the prices reflected there.  I hit that button, that much of a charge is added to the bill and the name of said item is sent to a printer in the kitchen relaying to the cook what needs to be cooked.  There is no “shrimp cocktail” button on our computer.  What is there is a “fried shrimp” button that charges right under $20.  Now why would a guest want to pay $20 for an oversized and under satisfactory portion of a generic shrimp cocktail?  These computer systems also account for our inventory.  Therefore I can not ring up a $10 hamburger instead of the shrimp because then both the hamburger and the shrimp inventory counts would be off.  Another reason a server might not be able to fulfill a special request is because an item is simply not prepped.  This situation presents itself more often with diners that frequently visit a restaurant and know of certain entrees or side items that are sometimes featured off the menu and therefore should be available.  What those guest don’t realize is that the kitchens of restaurants function highly on preparation.  I’ll break that concept down a little.  Although lunch and dinner establishments typically don’t open until around 11a.m., the kitchen crew arrives at the wee hours in the morning to begin preparations on the days menu items.  As previously mentioned many items are premixed or partially precooked (items like pasta or some vegetables) in order to expedite kitchen to table service.  I’ll be more specific.  I once had a customer inquire about the availability of a lime chicken entrée that my restaurant used to offer more than three years before but was no longer on the menu.  When I told her that the kitchen was unable to prepare this dish she snapped, “Well you have chicken and you have lime.”  Now obviously seeing as how I was there five days a week to her one day a month I was well aware of the offering of ingredients at the chef’s disposal in my restaurant.  I had to politely educate this woman that the lime chicken was marinated in a tumbler in a white wine marinade for hours before it was cooked giving it its distinct flavor.  It was not something that could be recreated in a matter of minutes. Now some customers take the refusal of their special requests with understanding realizing that if we could do it we probably would but the majority of them pout like children acting as if you have just ruined their whole day by refusing them their special treatment.  Some treat me as if I take a personal satisfaction in denying them the impossible when really I could care less as I don‘t have to cook it regardless of what is ordered. To these spoiled crybabies, I say next time, get off your high horse and try ordering from the menu.  That’s what it’s there for.