Ballston iHop

2 hours wait for food at iHop, after a fair few hours worth of lively drinking. We weren't lairy, weren't out of order, and just sat patiently for our food. An hour into the wait I said to the waitress Excuse me but we've been waiting a long time, and I've noticed that people who've arrived after us are being served sooner - do you know how long it'll take? She says 5 minutes. Every 5 minutes it'll be another 5 minutes. A bit later I said We're ordering a taxi now, if the food does finally arrive we expect a discount - I'm not paying for food that's so late.
When it came, 2 hours after the order went in, a couple of the meals were cold. I called over the waitress and said You don't want to have to make this again, and I'm starving so i'll just eat it, but please tell the manager that when our meal has finally come it's cold.

All eaten up, the $50 bill arrives with a tinge of embarassment and I don't let them off the hook. I'm not being funny but we've waited over two hours for our food and you're going to charge me for the cup of coffee that I drank whilst I waited? She returns having taken off the drinks from the bill, and I say When I said that we wanted a discount, I expected more than $5... She says that the manager will speak to us but he's at the front desk. We thought that he should come to us, but he wouldn't, and that's ok.

We get to the desk, I understand you've been busy tonight but I don't think I should have to pay for a meal that's 2 hours late, and cold. We apologise, we sorry, but can't give a discount.... So you're going to charge me for a cold meal, that shouldn't have been served since the meat wasn't even cooked properly? We are at the entrance, and several people are waiting to be seated including a tall guy with a goatee. The manager strikes off half the bill, which is fair enough and we send over the cash and make an exit. Just as I leave I hear the goatee mutter They're trying to pay with pounds...

What was that? I ask. I don't think he realised that i'd hear. Jav also heard, and steps up beside me. The others are now outside. He didn't mean to say anything says the policeman at the entrance. But he did say something - What did you say? asks Jav. As we stand there giving it the eyeball goatee takes a side step so that he's stood behind the copper, protected. A few words are spoken but we leave, laughing at the prick.

Jump into a cab and who pulls up beside us at the lights? Fuck off English he says, and Nick (from Missouri) give's him an earful. The window didn't wind down and we couldn't get out - as soon as the lights change off he flies, safe within the shell of his knobhead car.

Just on the off-chance that he's reading this now, and recognises the story - Get in touch pal.

Comments

[exile]

Be very careful in the US when getting into rucks. This is not England, you can't dish the Jon Woodgate treatment out to someone & get away with it like you can back home.

[exile]

actually you should have just walked after 10 minutes (what do I-hope think they are doing? Playing at the Shleifer-Vishny model?)

Everton are shite BTW - you'll enjoy your new home next season (League 1)

[the-man-in-black]

Yeh remember people carry handguns! even if they are arseholes and cowards - they have guns, and these are the kinds of people who will actually carry them and wave them around to look tough.

Is it the first time you got some 'racist' abuse? I remember my sister working in a bar in NYC being told by a black women to hurry her white trash ass up to serve here a drink.

[AJE]

http://thefilter.blogs.com/thefilter/2004/11/tale_from_new_y.html

[shabba]

'This is not England' - Exile clearly hasn't heard of 'birkenhead justice'.

[exile]

'This is not England'. I suspect even the Road End circa 78-86 would have been in trouble here, let alone the Urchins.

Of course, a decent mixed crew a-la the Milk Cup 84 may have been ok.

[exile]

BTW - shouldn't Shabba sign himself 'shabba the wool'?

The Road End were first .....

& I lament the demise of The End (though Sampson et al would not have cared for Mises - Derek Hatton yes, Mises or Boettke, no)

[AJE]

to be fair, during the incident in question there was a mix of reds and blues, (though there was no Alan Hansen to come in and use his hands...)

I don't know who you mean by Sampson - Kevin Sampson? - but i like the idea of Mises and Boettke being debated in the Cabbage... As someone who has actually debated Mises and Boettke in the Gwladys, i'd imagine across the park the talks' more about Charles and Camilla eh?

[exile's shite tachinni tracky top]

I somehow can't imagine boettke in the arkles.

how i miss the happy days of 85 & the sound of breaking manc

i assume the gwladys found mises far more entertaining than the match (what was the debate? you should blog on it).

& what about dickend kraft viewing the reds a as 'brand'! i suppose he thinks catholicism is a brand too

if only the kop would sing solidarnosc like against lodz in 83 (those days are dead & will never return - the kop now are drowned out if an away fan farts)

long live market communism a-la wolff-resnick style.
enjoy everton making it to the last 16 (in the table, rather than the champions league, that is)!

[stanley park was a very apt name in the early 80's!]

Though to be fair, the reds-blueshite european cup final in 86 would have been a cracker had belgian builders not intervened

[higson's is the austrian drink of choice]

exile - you've not been in the arkles since 85 - so there

& you've not been the match since 85 - so there again

rafa is a misesian with dalglishian tendencies; moyes is a hayekian

& who the fuck am i to say the mises institute are crazy!

[harry kewell's shite haircut]

get a wedge Kewelly lad!

[road end austrians]

we don't carry mises,
we do not carry lead,
we only carry mas-colell,
to bore you out of your head

......

there was an airline disaster ....

[william bull]

this is getting worse than the ends letter page!

[big mad zippy of the rainbow city service lunatic axe-handle & spikey stick Lacoste-Fila alliance]

definitely turning into the ends letters pages

rainbow ran a combined emmerdale-bristol city mob at euston in 82!