Sucky cook

[bean]

Last night, my mom and I went out to dinner at On The Border - a Tex-Mex chain out here.

She always requests her beef be well done, I usually request medium well. I had ordered a steak, she ordered a fajita steak. Mine came out just fine - maybe closer to medium, but it was still good. (looking back, we probably should have gone to a steakhouse, but it was late on a sunday night and not much was open).

Hers was practically mooing on the plate - it was barely even seared on the outside and actually cold in the middle, I wouldn't even call it rare, more like "left under a heat lamp for 5 minutes".

Normally I'm not one to complain, but we did flag our waitress down and explain the situation, she took care of it. I do remember her specifically requesting well done and the waitress repeating it back when we originally ordered.

Except my mom had a perfect view of the kitchen from where she was sitting. The cook threw a massive fit over it, and she told me it looked like he just walked off. A manager wound up cooking the order again. Granted, it was about 20 minutes before the kitchen closed, but my god...

Anyway, the same manager brought her an entire fresh plate - they redid everything, even the shrimp, bonus points in my eyes (and really not necessary). Big apology from the manager, we thanked them, and we left a 25% tip (I would have left more, since I work for tips, but my mom freaked out over me leaving so much as it is). They offered to knock a bit off the bill, we declined. (I was still in my Papa John's uniform as well)

[blas]

I'm not trying to belittle cooks in restaurants by any means, but at times they do get big headed and are a little bit ignorant to the fact that, well, if the food doesn't come out right, they still get their hourly wage. However, some customers aren't as compassionate and understanding as the OP, and a lot of people take the food out on the server, and therefore, the tip will be reduced, or, in most cases, there won't be a tip because of it. So, because of something the cook did, the server will be stuck with their $2.00something an hour wage before tips. Not fair, is it?

I'm very glad you didn't take the food out on the waitress, but then again, since you also work for tips, you probably have experienced things just like that.

When I waitressed, sometimes I would have given my entire paycheck to whip monkey dishes at the cooks every time they screwed up on the food and the customers stiffed me. DOUBLE if on the kitchen sheet (which is sent BY the server when they punch in the order) the order is specific, like well done for example, and it comes out nearly rare. The attitude some of those cooks would give me when THEY screwed up......I'm so glad I don't work in a restaurant anymore.

You were completely in the right, that cook should have gotten it right the first time, and that cook was throwing a temper tantrum over having to redo something that he/she should have paid more attention to in the first place.