So, I’m married to a vegetarian who happens to be an attorney.
If you are reading this, you probably know this fact. But what you may not know is that when a vegetarian ingests meat, their stomach gets very upset. What is worst though, is that it is akin to an alcoholic taking a chug of a drink only to find out it had alcohol in it. Years of vigilance, gone. Gone are the years of self-imposed prohibition. Gone is the sanctity of their body. They feel violated. It makes them angry. It makes them want to sue, if they can sue. It certainly doesn’t make them want to go back to the place that contaminated their body.
That feeling that they’ve “kept clean” for 23 years is gone.
And this is what I explained to the manager today at the Glory Days in Frederick.
I stressed to the waitress… that this is for a vegetarian… as I was ordering.
“There should be no bacon, no meat of any kind.”
What we got halfway through my wife’s lunch was contrary to that. Some surprise bacon made it into her veggieburger wrap, and I tried to convince her that she caught it in time. But when there are pieces sitting on the plate and one on her fork, you have to wonder. So, all day yesterday she was not feeling all that well. Not enough to go to the emergency room and get her stomach pumped, not enough to make her unable to do her job. But, again… years of philosophical and dietary control wasted.
It is pretty hard for a vegetarian, married to an omnivore [I'll eat a hubcap if you put Tabasco on it], to find good quality meals unless you make them at home. Not always possible, time wise, convenience wise. Certainly not for us because we don’t have meat-eater food in the house so I usually go out for food during lunch. Still…
We’ve been going to that Glory Days since it opened. I was one of the first people through the door. We’ve enjoyed our times there. We were known by the staff, my baby was known as the unofficial mascot of Glory Days Frederick. It was funny how everyone just loved him. But now I feel that I can’t trust either the reading skills of the cooks, or the ability of the wait-staff to properly write down what is ordered. Seeing my wife physically ill, and psychologically upset… did the same to me. It got me to the point that I don’t think I’ll go back there, I’ll certainly relay the story to friends and family if they offer up Glory Days as a destination for food. Trust and Reputation is really all that we have. It is the reason I started Mobble.com, so people could more adequately relate and quantify those characteristics that make up our experiences.
Some may think it isn’t a big deal. “She wasn’t the alcoholic in your example.” But what if she was? What if she had a food allergy? Should we write it off and not be upset? How about not blog about it as a means of venting the frustration that accompanies a bad lunch? We didn’t just not get what we ordered. They crossed a line either through willful action because she ordered a vegetarian meal, or through incompetence. Either way, after 23 years, my wife just ate bacon. Something she hasn’t eaten since she was able to make that decision.
Well, I’m not one of those people. I don’t just write things off. Particularly when you interact with the public by providing a service. Complaining doesn’t fix the matter. They took her meal off the check. Left mine to pay. Out of stupidity in not wanting to blame the waitress [we don't know who failed, just that the entire process did]… I left a tip.
My wife can’t get back the 23 years of being a vegetarian. She has to start over. We won’t be back. They will shrug, others will shrug. Just put yourself in those shoes for a second and see if you shrug your shoulders. Picture yourself doing something for longer than most people hold a career, only to see some careless or malevolent person wipe away your hard work. As I asked the manager… “Have you ever done ANYTHING for 23 years?” To which I get the response “No sir, I haven’t.” And I respond with “Now understand that your careless action has wiped away 23 years of work, practice and self-discipline.”
“Sorry.”
Time to start eating in. Which doesn’t help the local economy because you can only buy from big stores with remote HQ’s. GD was local. We tipped 20+ percent. We spent way too much money there. That is all gone now too. Us suggesting that we take a group of people there for dinner… gone.
“Sorry.”