# Rough days at work - Let it out!!



## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

I think this may be a half decent idea for a thread.
So many of us are working the line day in and day out, and yet sometimes we hold things in, we dont vent, or we dont share out experiences due to the lack of interest or understanding of others. We dont let it out, we dont, even if it is just to let it out to maybe have others laugh at the situation.

So feel free to post about your rough days, have a laugh, and let it out so tomorrow can be a better day.

So did anyone else here have a rough day today??


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## linecookliz (Jun 8, 2017)

I knew I would need this thread, lol.

I just started at an upscale restaurant. I was in my 3rd day of training. The kitchen is completely open. Right now I'm on salads, tapas and desserts. 

Anywho, a customer said I was 'manhandling' her salad, yet ate every leaf of lettuce on the plate. I was doing what I was trained to do so that each leaf gets dressed. She compliments the guy training me saying she would hire him in a heart beat, yet bitches to me. I don't get it. I just said 'oh' and walked away. She complained to the chef and he also walked away.


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## foodpump (Oct 10, 2005)

My worst day?

Coming in to work early, pull in, and the security guard hss his foot on the bumper of his car, yakking away on his phone. Right beside him is a 5 foot hole in my shop window. I ask him when the cops are are coming, he replies:
" Cops? No, why?"
Without hurting your delicate ears with my choice of language, I asked the (deleted) to slowly turn around and guage the size of hole in my window.
His famous reply?
"Oh..."

No the guard was calling in a report that the entire front of the building was flooded. Seems the water main connection to the complex broke and was flooding the front yard.

My break in had nothing to do with the water main, intruders broke into my cafe so they could chop a hole in my wall to get to neighboring suite to steal their computers. 

Lost the morning by cleaning up the mess, then the city boys turned off the water for two days so they could do repairs. Had to call up all my catering customersand tell thrm to cancel their orders, because I had no water at all.

A week later the landlord sends out bills to all the tennants in the complex for "their share" of the water main replacement.......

I hope I don't die a bitter old fart.....


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## chefross (May 5, 2010)

foodpump said:


> My worst day?
> 
> Coming in to work early, pull in, and the security guard hss his foot on the bumper of his car, yakking away on his phone. Right beside him is a 5 foot hole in my shop window. I ask him when the cops are are coming, he replies:
> " Cops? No, why?"
> ...


I think you just shut down the thread with that one foodpump


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## frankie007 (Jan 17, 2015)

Amen to that!


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## linecookliz (Jun 8, 2017)

@chefross I think he did also, lol. The thread was a fun concept though to bitch about your day.


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## chefwriter (Oct 31, 2012)

From now on every time I think I've had a bad day, I'll remember foodpumps' post.


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## azenjoys (Jun 28, 2017)

Ok - I need to vent - I walked in to the shared commercial kitchen space I *just started working in last week* to find it disgustingly filthy and just completely unbelievably dirty for the second time and I am *furious*. Like, who does that? Who just walks away from a kitchen that looks like (insert bad word here) and just doesn't care? What kind of trash person thinks this is an acceptable way to leave space for someone else? Who leaves shared resources just absolutely unusable? How can *anyone* walk into a kitchen that looks like this one did and not *immediately* start scrubbing before doing anything food related? And where is management? Why have they not addressed this stuff? WHY IS THERE SPILLED STUFF ALL OVER THE WALL? WHY IS THERE SPILLED STUFF ALL OVER THE FREEZER FLOOR? WHY IS THERE FOOD COMPLETELY CLOGGING THE SINK IN THE DISH PIT? WHY ARE THERE DIRTY TOWELS ON THE FLOOR AND LITTLE BITS OF WADDED UP PLASTIC WRAP AND POPCORN AND CHERRY TOMATOES??????? ARE YOU KIDDING ME WITH THIS???????????????? 

I feel like I am going to have a brain aneurysm or rage stroke.


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## pete (Oct 7, 2001)

azenjoys said:


> Ok - I need to vent - I walked in to the shared commercial kitchen space I *just started working in last week* to find it disgustingly filthy and just completely unbelievably dirty for the second time and I am *furious*. Like, who does that? Who just walks away from a kitchen that looks like (insert bad word here) and just doesn't care? What kind of trash person thinks this is an acceptable way to leave space for someone else? Who leaves shared resources just absolutely unusable? How can *anyone* walk into a kitchen that looks like this one did and not *immediately* start scrubbing before doing anything food related? And where is management? Why have they not addressed this stuff? WHY IS THERE SPILLED STUFF ALL OVER THE WALL? WHY IS THERE SPILLED STUFF ALL OVER THE FREEZER FLOOR? WHY IS THERE FOOD COMPLETELY CLOGGING THE SINK IN THE DISH PIT? WHY ARE THERE DIRTY TOWELS ON THE FLOOR AND LITTLE BITS OF WADDED UP PLASTIC WRAP AND POPCORN AND CHERRY TOMATOES??????? ARE YOU KIDDING ME WITH THIS????????????????
> 
> I feel like I am going to have a brain aneurysm or rage stroke.


I would take pictures and notify management of what has happened. If they are serious about keeping clients they will address the issue immediately with the offender. If not their place will get a reputation and they will soon find themselves without clients.


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## pete (Oct 7, 2001)

Wow foodpump that truly is a bad day!!!! I've got nothing that dramatic, but working in a jail, with inmate workers, each and every day can be an "adventure" such as the time a guy asked me how they grow and harvest sauerkraut-"it's so small, it must take forever."


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## azenjoys (Jun 28, 2017)

pete said:


> I would take pictures and notify management of what has happened. If they are serious about keeping clients they will address the issue immediately with the offender. If not their place will get a reputation and they will soon find themselves without clients.


I sure did! Manager got an email from me with about 20 pictures before I left the space. I also want to make sure I'm documenting everything so I have leverage if the situation doesn't improve and I want to break my lease.


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## redbeerd cantu (Aug 7, 2013)

foodpump said:


> My worst day?
> 
> A week later the landlord sends out bills to all the tennants in the complex for "their share" of the water main replacement.......


Wait, what? Was that legal? Isn't that what you pay rent for?


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## foodpump (Oct 10, 2005)

If its in the lease, its legal. We paid good money to have a lawyer read the lease before we signed it. When we contacted him regarding "our share", he said,
"Ooops that one must have slipped by me..."


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## redbeerd cantu (Aug 7, 2013)

foodpump said:


> If its in the lease, its legal. We paid good money to have a lawyer read the lease before we signed it. When we contacted him regarding "our share", he said,
> "Ooops that one must have slipped by me..."


Oof!


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## kaiquekuisine (Apr 11, 2013)

Yesterday was probably the shittiest day I had had in awhile.
Im at a new place, working saute, this restaurant is quite busy, and the dinner rush is gruesome. I´m only 22 but I´ve been holding my end of the line pretty good lately, and saute has always been fun for me.
But yesterday was Sunday, and it was the very first Sunday of the month after people receive there salaries here in my country, so the place was packed, as soon as it opened, till the time it was closed.
I basically worked 10 hours straight with no time for breaks, no time to use the bathroom or to drink water, but whatever ìm okay with that as long as I´m killing it.
Except yesterday after a few hours of doing okay, the other cooks started complaining, started getting all down and whatnot, and just bringing the kitchen down into an abyss of negativety. A few hours later, place is still packed, and we all begin to struggle, and the printer doesnt stop.
I had put out all my orders, and I start to assist with plating, and dessert, but out of no where the printer bursts a bunch of orders for me, and suddenly I´m up to my neck in orders.
The other cook that works with me on saute, she stays behind to assist those who are in bad shape, I tackle saute on my own, the first hour is fine, second hour is okay, third hour I´m screwed. Dinner rush and I´m deep in the weeds, I need to communicate to the station closest to mine that orders need to be backed up, my stove is full, I´m dying, I get some help, but just way too many orders.
Never seen the place so crowded. We´re turning tables like crazy, but the orders don´t stop. One client is pissed for waiting too long, so someone gets his ticket, which was on another station (for some absurd reason) and places it in front of all my other orders... when I´m already backed up and late on other tickets, I send the items as fast as possible, but this really put a hault on my system. The night just drags on.

Anyway to cut it short, we struggle, put out all the orders, the night drags on, I just accept the situation and do the best to feed everyone, avoiding to go any further into the weeds. Each table turned at least 4-5 times. But at the end of the shift I felt dead. Got home, and now it´s Monday and in a few hours i have to go back to work, face the music and just see what will be in store for today. Obviously i don´t expect good good feed back from my superiors after yesterdays fiasco.

Anyway sometimes all you can do is truck on...
From last Monday to yesterday, it has been brutal, but in no way did i feel presured, or did i find myself so deep in the weeds. Tuesday we hit our record in sales, and i pulled off saute fine, on my own for the most part and I was no where near the weeds. Yet yesterday we were slaughtered...


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## phaedrus (Dec 23, 2004)

Some days you eat the bear, some days the bear eats you. I know it's hard not to beat yourself up but try not to, KK- there's only so much you can do. Get 'em next time!


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## linecookliz (Jun 8, 2017)

Attitude can be everything, at times. For the most part it sounds like you are doing really well! Find a way to relax and just push on.


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## cm-chef (Oct 21, 2014)

Spent past 4 past days getting a mix game bird dish prepped for NYE. Came in today, can’t find the confit legs of the pheasant squab and the impossible to find cemani chicken‘s all gone! I do chicken drumsticks confit in Wagyu fat then fried yo like hot wings as a bar dish on the menu...fìng dumb shìts cooked all the game up for bar food! How you can’t tell the difference between squab, pheasants and flicking clicking lags that are black from the regular stuff you’ve been serving for years IDK??? No to mention I had them “ hidden “ IE top shelf covered in walk in labeled socks for NYE
I want to kill some one!


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## linecookliz (Jun 8, 2017)

Wow!! @cm-chef I could not imagine. I would hate to be the cook that fucked up. Sounds like someone got lazy or just didn't care. What are you going to do for NYE now? I'm curious to see what you come up with.


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## phaedrus (Dec 23, 2004)

Wow, that sucks!


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## passthegravy (Jan 9, 2014)

Uff.
I think I'm being stitched up by 2 guys on the line.
(3 months in to a place in the top 160 in Europe, it's not Michelin but expectations are high)

The first, I 'took' his station.... he got kicked off it a month ago and has been making it as hard as possible for me to succeed, today for example, busy Friday, he tells me he's left the carrots and potatoes I need (my station and his lunch station share a dish)... I had a lot to prep today and didn't think to check, big mistake, the potatoes were fucked and the carrots all different shapes and cut badly, unusable.
I realised only as service was starting and Head Chef's eyes were widening in disbelief as he pulled out the destroyed spuds.

The second guy.
We work side by side, he's been at the place over 2 years, and has told me straight up (after a few beers) that he knowingly leaves me in the shit because he wants my station and is only looking out for himself.

I do all the meat dishes on the grill, their garnishes on my 4 burners, plus the mussels, plus grilling garnish for the starter station, plus ALL THIS CUNT'S FUCKING GARNISH. The fucker literally just has to pan fry fish, cook gnocchis, and then add sauce.... 
Fucker was even behind on his prep today so I jumped in, blanched his damn gnocchis for him and fixed all his veg prep.
I'll never be one to stitch someone else up, one team one dream and all.
Even jumped on to cut shrimps for the cold section because I saw him sweating bullets right before service hit.

A few weeks back I kept calling out the lunch team for fucking up my prep, or taking all my staples and not replacing, and the sous (solid guy) chewed me out telling me to stop blaming the others and to just keep my mouth shut and fix my shit.

So now I feel like I can't call out either guy, and I think the second one is taking advantage of that.

Had a shit service today and made myself look like a right rookie twat.

Fuming, was dying for a beer but went straight home and munched a sandwich instead so I can go back swinging tomorrow.

Gonna sneak in the back early and get a big gastro of all my prep items ready so that I can hit the ground running.

But fuck me, it's 2am and I'm still too angry to sleep.

Cheers for the rant space, and Foodpump, hope you have better luck this month mate!


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## Flatheadfoodie (Jan 18, 2018)

I’m at a brew pub in a little tourist trap of a town that explodes for June-August. We just found out the prep kitchen we use for catering, commissary prep, and cold storage is no longer ours. This means we can’t run our current menu as there simply isn’t enough damn space for storage and prep cooking. So we literally have to come up with a menu that the owners can get behind, figure out how the hell to prep it, get our suppliers on board, retrain employees, rearrange every goddamn thing in the building, and somehow still turn a couple 4 grand hours a night for the next 3 months. We did get our health inspection today (a-) so I dont have to worry about that anymore, but I’m seriously confused about how to pull this off.


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