I hate going to a restaurant to sit down and eat less than half an hour before closing--more if their food takes a while. I have to keep reminding my boyfriend of this, as he's never had to work a crappy food service job.
I managed a restaurant. When customers got led bottoms at closing time, I would walk right up to them, and in an exuberant tone and volume, say: "Thank you all for coming tonight! We are awfully glad you came. We hate to see you have to leave now. Please do come again. Goodnight now." They usually stand up after the first sentence. I just keep talking as I gesture them to the door.
This isnt France. Deal with it or try and move there. You signed up for the deadend job. Now deal with the jackholes.
What's alarming is the trend among wage slavers to think they can have a job without customers.
Good on you, Horny Hippo! Unfortunately many owners want their employees to stay open for as long as the money justifies it: why not? They don't have to stay late. Not everyone gets to be so assertive while working for somebody else.
I always let the crew do a half assed job of cleaning up the coffee shop, because they liked to rush in order to leave in a hurry. I gave them all the tips, as well, taking no cut for myself. Then I stayed all night to re-clean and finish stalking the adjoining convenient store shelves. The owners gave me shit for staying so late. They preferred to have blenders with rotten, dried fruit stuck on them, then to have to pay me more than thirty hours. Even the employees hated my guts, because I made them stand rather than sit behind the counter. They preferred to have their boyfriends nuzzle up or their girlfriends on their laps while ringing up the cash register. Who can blame them for that?
Another moment of IA "Only in Portland!" hubris. Okay, hubris might not be the right word, but do you think this shit happens exclusively within the Portland city limits? Get real. I'm sure that more than a few servers-turned writers have picked up sweet book / movie deals bitching about this same kind of shit in AMERICAN CITY X, what's holding you back? Oh, that's right: it's a tired fucking complaint.
What's alarming is the trend among wage slavers to think they can have a job without customers.
Weirdo.