FAST FOOD EATERIES, TIME TO PULL UP YOUR SOCKS
Employers should train staff well to provide quality service
THE recent 29th Sea Games ended on a high note when Malaysia emerged as the overall winner, sweeping 145 gold medals.
The closing ceremony ended exactly the way many Malaysians were hoping for — an announcement of a public holiday on Sept 4 to mark the celebration.
My family and I decided to spend some quality time together, as common holidays were hard to come by.
We decided to head to a fastfood outlet in Cheras for dinner, after a long day indulging in seafood and frolicking with monkeys in Kuala Selangor.
However, we went home on a sour note following our experience at the eatery that night.
We saw that there were a number of vacant tables as we walked past the restaurant, and proceeded to ask the waitress for a table when we reached the entrance.
The lady gave us a blank expression, before walking away without saying a word.
We were then made to wait for about 10 minutes at the entrance.
After realising that she was not coming back to us, we proceeded to approach another waitress, who then quickly took us to a table that was filled with dirty dishes.
I saw another waitress, and proceeded to ask her to have our table cleaned. She simply shot me a hostile stare, before looking away in disgust and promptly continued talking to one of her colleagues.
Stunned, I sat down and muttered to myself angrily. We had to wait for a while before someone else came over and cleared our table.
After ordering and upon the arrival of our meal, we realised that the dish was prepared hastily and quite poorly.
The butter inside the garlic bread was still hardened and cold.
In addition, it could be quite clearly seen that extra water had been added to the mushroom soup, which made it watery and quite bland.
The pizza itself was stiff and most definitely did not live up to expectations.
In the middle of our meal, we noticed a lady walking about from table to table, holding a bottle and a bag.
She ultimately reached our table in an attempt to sell some skincare products. We told her that we were not interested, but she refused to budge.
We informed her to leave us alone, and she finally left our table and proceeded to approach other customers.
Clearly, we left feeling extremely disappointed.
The lackadaisical attitude and rude behaviour of the staff at the eatery was beyond appalling.
Is politeness a little too much to ask for? Is friendliness a little too much to expect? Is professionalism a little too much to demand for?
I don’t have experience working in the service industry, so perhaps, I may be overreacting.
However, I am quite aware that there are certain rules and etiquettes one must adhere to in order to survive in the industry.
For example, direct sales are usually not permitted in most eateries, especially in shopping malls, as it is considered intruding on customers’ dining experience.
Moreover, employees in the service industry are required to be well-mannered and respectful towards customers, as their business revenues depend on the latter.
I took to Facebook to express my displeasure, and many friends and acquaintances shared their unpleasant experiences when visiting this particular fast food eatery’s various chains all over the country.
I knew then that I was not alone, and that this issue needs to be brought to light.
Despite lodging numerous complaints, nothing is being done about this.
It is important to take note of the fact that impoliteness and a blasé attitude will not go far if one is to survive in the working world, especially so in the service industry.
Employers should take the time to train their staff well, and employees should put in the effort to provide quality service.
Otherwise, how are we going to teach our children to be responsible and cultured, if what they see daily is the complete opposite?
A little goes a long way, and it is high time some positive changes were made.
Is politeness a little too much to ask for? Is friendliness a little too much to expect? Is professionalism a little too much to demand for?