Fine. I Will Write about the Marcy’s Diner Owner Who Screamed at the 2-Year-Old

Source: themindofifer

OK. Fine. You win. I will write about the lady who yelled at the two-year-old who was throwing a fit because of pancakes. (You can catch up on the hoopla here.)

I'm not writing about this because I think it is an important discussion the internet should be having right now. As always, there is a lot of other stuff going on that would be more worth your time. But, because you asked me to... and because I am grateful for something… anything not Donald Trump related in my news feed... I am going to write about it. Also, it was only a week ago that Stevie and I were in a crowded breakfast cafe with Duchess and screaming/crying Captain waiting on… yes… pancakes. So it's relatable!

Luckily, no on screamed at me, Stevie, or my two-year-old. Instead, do you know what the waitress did? She came up and said “Ahh, poor guy. Is there anything I can do?”

And I said, “Actually if you could snag us some crayons and a paper it would get him to calm down
really quick.”

“Oh! I’m sorry. We usually give those to kids when they come in!”

“Not a problem at all. If it doesn’t work, I’ll take him outside and cheer him up.”

About 30 seconds of crying later the waitress returned.

“I’m so sorry. It looks like we’re out of crayons, but I got these crackers for him to snack on while we finish up the pancakes. We’re pretty busy, but I think your food will be up soon.”

“That is perfect, thank you. You are so awesome.” I said, really meaning it and adding money to her tip in my mind.

“No problem at all.” It wasn’t her job to sooth my crying kid. It was mine and Stevie’s job. But our efforts weren’t working and we had 4 plates of breakfast food on the way. That’s what good service is, going above and beyond the expectations of your customers, especially in difficult situations.

Captain ate his crackers. Then Captain ate his pancakes and the rest of us ate our breakfasts. Everyone was happy. I tipped her well and we will definitely be going back.

Unfortunate picture of angry lady.

It was a wonderful experience that could have been really shitty if we were treated the way the lady in Maine treated her customer. By the way, it was Penny Ann’s Cafe in Draper, Utah where this happened. If you want to spread some internet love to counter all the internet anger out there, their Yelp Page would be a great place to start. And if you’re in Draper, Utah you should stop in. Try the pancakes.

Here’s the thing. I don’t think it was cool of the owner of the cafe in Maine to get in that kid’s face, but you’re free to disagree with me. I believe that she escalated an already difficult and awkward situation, and made it worse for the customers with the screaming kid AND the other customers in the diner.

As a business owner, with a vested interest in the satisfaction of her customers there are better and more effective approaches to customer service than “rage spiral." Just look at the example I gave above.

But hey, it’s her restaurant, and it’s her right to handle the situation how she sees fit. It sounds like she has plenty of support from angry people on the Internet. For me, the bottom line is that if I had seen her screaming at a child in her restaurant, or it had been my child, I wouldn’t be returning with my family to that restaurant. Not because I don’t think she has the right to do it, but because I don’t like watching people be complete assholes to each other while I eat scrambled eggs. I’ll just go to Penny Ann’s Cafe in Draper Utah instead. It's a shorter drive and they are nicer.

This is not a sponsored post. Penny Ann's Cafe has no idea I am writing this. Also, be sure to follow Ask Your Dad on Facebook... we have all-you-can-eat pancakes. EDIT: Sorry, we just ran out of pancakes. You can cry about it if you want. I won't yell at you. 

BTW, the mom of the crying kid has now told her side of the story. You can find it here.