The Return of Java-House Jack

BLOGGING ABOUT WHATEVER

ENTRY - 12

TITLE: The Return of Java-House Jack

AUTHOUR: J. William Bell

DATE POSTED: 2025-08-21

Just in case you didn't read the relevant prior post; I have a very passionate and opinionated friend who we will call "Jack." Jack has been working in the Foodservice & Hospitality industry for over a decade, and he has a lot to say about it, especially after a hard week on the job and a few beers. I was once told that 1 out of every 4 people in North America work in some kind of restaurant-type job; so it is tragically possible that some of the things and people Jack has to talk about will be very familiar, sobering, and darkly funny.

Editing his comments so that I can; in good conscience; put them into this blog is an interesting challenge, and potentially my own self-imposed form of torture.

Because I still want to believe that I am a Patriotic Canadian (despite the obvious flaws within Canada's leadership and management, at the time of this writing); I once asked Jack how serving his fellow Canadians can be a challenge; he had this to say (with a certain amount of editing on my part-- you're welcome!!!):

ATTITUDE

Canadians, and it doesn't matter if they're a new or natural citizen, can have really stinky attitudes; even when they personify the extreme opposites of an unpleasant attitude. I'll try to explain this as simple as possible.

Sometimes you get a customer who has a very "Me-centric" attitude. They talk down to you. They have to provide long and very detailed instructions for every aspect of their order; and they throw a very passive-aggressive tantrum if they believe that you are not paying them enough attention and being directly or indirectly disagreeable with them. They live and act according to some kind of sick pseudo-religious belief that they are an aristocrat who is interacting with a lowly peasant: which is specifically you, the person who is wearing a uniform with a name tag, and is traditionally expected to display a friendly and helpful demeanor.

Or you might end up dealing with a customer who has a very "Deferring" attitude. They take forever to make a decision about practically everything. And; almost every sentence they say begins with a phrase like:

"I don't mean to be a bother, but--"

"Now I know you're really going to hate me for this, but--"

"Oh! I just realized that I don't want my sandwich that way; is it too late to change it to--?"

What really ticks me off when I have to interact with a customer like this is the tone of their voice. It sounds pathetic; now, in their defense, they might have a history of being abused. Or, they might have a history of being spoiled rotten by somebody who was very patient. But then there is also the possibility that this whole ^being overly polite & nice^ routine is just a sick and sadistic performance; because they are a very disturbed person.

This kind of customer, Me-centric and/or Deferring, really does have to leave a generous tip. If they don't, they probably will be among the first to die during a revolution.

EDUCATION LEVEL & USE OF INTELLIGENCE

Imagine; for a moment, that there is a kid in a classroom somewhere; any age; and they are very bored. Not only are they profoundly bored, they also don't respect intelligence, and they resent anybody who appears to be smarter than them and feels no shame whatsoever as they advertise their smartness. Sometimes, kids like these grow up into adults, and they intentionally use the least amount of brain-power they've got in everything they do. And if you call them out on it; you might have to get into a shouting match or fistfight with them.

If you have to provide somebody like this with customer service, or ask them to repeat their lunch order, hopefully; they are humble enough and kind enough to realize that they really do need to step up with their brains right now. It takes talent to speak ^stupid^ eloquently-- especially when you have to deal with someone who ^feels^ threatened when you use a word that has more than three syllables in it, and requires the kind of pronounciation you'd expect from well-educated royalty.

One of my gym teachers, an undisputed master in his field; once told me something that comes in handy when you find yourself dealing with a slow-brain-snob:

"Courtesy is a two-way street."

If you can understand what that means, you might be able to graduate from high-school.

^DIVERSITY^ is not a Strength (!?!)

Canada, and a few other countries that classify themselves as "prosperous," have been experimenting with mass-group immigration for quite a few years now. On the one hand, the rationale behind this is that as a free country with prosperity to spare; they should not deny entry and citizenship to others who wish to find some prosperity of their own, and enjoy it here. On the other hand, there is also a potential for some political gerrymandering by flooding a country with foreigners who will favour the political party that lets them in, until they realize that it is not in their best interests to support a political party that is only interested in staying in power, and will gladly sacrifice their useful idiots/pawns in order to do that. This effects the foodservice and hospitality industry significantly; as a workplace and as a business.

Lets just say for the sake of simulation; a large number of immigrants from Freedonia are permitted into Canada, and they settle down into somewhere called Smalltown. Suddenly Smalltown's local franchise of THE JAVA-HOUSE has a boost in its staff and customers who do not speak English as their first language. These new staff members and customers bring their cultural norms into the restaurant too.

What used to be a place where anybody struggling to find a job could get one, now becomes a place where it's cheaper to hire the foreigner/new-citizen than to hire somebody local. Where it used to be a place where it was reasonably easy to order a meal and get it within a reasonable amount of time, there are now language barriers and hopefully only small cultural misunderstandings. Add in the negative attitude clashes and intelligence-level resentments, and you: the now very over-worked and under-appreciated restaurant staff-member, who is probably working their wazoos off for minimum wage; have to deal with a lot of stress and frustration in the workplace. There can even be an "Us versus Them" mentality being played out between the staff and the customers simultaneously.

This can be a recipe for a lot of potential disaster, and probably just a few of the many reasons why most restaurant staff, from the owner all the way down to the dishwasher, and lower, tend to be alcoholics, chain-smokers, stress-eaters, and eager users of modern chemistry.

After sharing all of this with me, Jack then reminded me of his almost-golden rule: "Patient and polite customers who know what the frak they want are sometimes rare; treat them with dignity and respect."

And Jack still has more to say, but we'll save that for a future post.

God help us all.

Excelsior!