Has a waiter ever spilled soup on you?

[Guest]

My beau and I were having a pre-opera dinner at a snazzy restaurant near the Dorothy Pavilion Center when our meal was interrupted with a blood-curdling scream from 2 tables away, a scream which attracted the entire restaurant's attention. We didn't see what happened, but it appeared the waiter spilled some of a customer's soup on her shirt. It was wiped off the shirt, and the whole restaurant staff seem to be attending to the customer. After it was cleaned up, the blouse seemed fine. The customer demanded to speak with the manager. "Chris" commented that the customer was a typical "Karen," and even had "one of those Karen" haircuts. The woman who accompanied her looked like she had failed cosmetic work on her lips, and had the appearance of a chimpanzee. I guess there are a lot more victims of bad cosmetic work here in LA than I'm used to seeing when I was in the SF area. 

So have any of you had a waiter spill some soup on you? What was your reaction? Did you end up speaking with the manager? Was your meal comped? 

[Guest]

I’ve had something spilled on me at least three times that I can recall.  Each time was an accident where the server was genuinely apologetic while I tried to downplay significance.  Twice, the manager offered to comp the meal and I refused to accept because I felt nothing more than inconvenienced.  I suppose that if it had been a nasty glass of red wine on an expensive blazer, I’d graciously accept dry cleaning cost reimbursement…but I’ve not faced that situation. 
 

so, Meg Ryan was the companion to “Karen” from the description you gave?

Edited December 2, 2021 by BnaC

[+ MysticMenace]

nope...but if these are my waiters...they can spill more than just soup on or inside me...

[jeezifonly]

Depending on how well he blots and grovels I may give him the tip. If he does it right, I may give him the whole thing… 😽

Most managers at properties with actual servers are hyper-responsive with restitution and comps. Kendall’s makes a bloody fortune on audience members, but does work hard for satisfaction as competitors nearby have surfaced.

It’s an accident. And it’s soup, not battery acid.

[+ poolboy48220]

at our company's holiday party in the early 80's, a waiter spilled au jus on my suit jacket while I was away from the table.  He looked around to see if I was there then just moved on. One of the other people at the table told me about it. I didn't make a fuss and my company paid for the dry cleaning.

[Kevin Slater]

When it happened to me, I jumped up from the table.  Wasn't meaning to be dramatic, I was just startled.  They comped both my and my friend's dinners, which I thought was overly generous.

Kevin Slater

[Rudynate]

Once, my husband and I were having lunch with my mother at a pushy restaurant on Rodeo Drive.   She was wearing all white.  My husband was drinking espresso. He is very tall and sort of ungainly in tight quarters. He was returning to the table after going to the restroom and as he sat down, he jostled the table and splashed dark brown espresso all over my mother's white outfit.  She was very gracious, but he was mortified.   He wanted to fix it right away - so we got up and left and went to the first women's clothing store we came to on Rodeo Drive and went in.  I said,"You can't buy her a new outfit here, It'll cost you a week's paycheck."  He told me to be quiet and stay out of it, that he needed to do this for her.  The woman running the store was an elegant Italian woman who reminded me of Sophia Loren.  She saw what needed to be done, and showed my mother to a fitting room.  She waved us to a very comfortable seating area and had some drinks brought out.  Then she started taking clothes off of the rack to show my mother in the fitting room.  This whole process took about an hour and a half, but my mother walked out with a fresh outfit that was probably the most expensive clothing she had worn in her life and we have never said a word about it since. 

Edited December 2, 2021 by Rudynate
typo

[Guest]

8 hours ago, jeezifonly said:

Depending on how well he blots and grovels I may give him the tip. If he does it right, I may give him the whole thing… 😽

Most managers at properties with actual servers are hyper-responsive with restitution and comps. Kendall’s makes a bloody fortune on audience members, but does work hard for satisfaction as competitors nearby have surfaced.

It’s an accident. And it’s soup, not battery acid.

 

Actually, it was at Vespaio, not Kendall's, although we passed by Kendall's, and may go there the next time we go to the opera, perhaps Aida in the Spring, or one of the operas next year. Neither of us has been to the Disney Concert Hall. We may find something there to go to. He bristled at the thought of attending Handel's Messiah. His family, especially his mother, is hyper-religious which leads him to want to avoid almost anything with a hint of Christianity. The seats at Vespaio were certainly as close together as I've ever seen--matched only by some restaurants in Manhattan. 

[Guest]

10 hours ago, BnaC said:

I’ve had something spilled on me at least three times that I can recall.  Each time was an accident where the server was genuinely apologetic while I tried to downplay significance.  Twice, the manager offered to comp the meal and I refused to accept because I felt nothing more than inconvenienced.  I suppose that if it had been a nasty glass of red wine on an expensive blazer, I’d graciously accept dry cleaning cost reimbursement…but I’ve not faced that situation. 
 

so, Meg Ryan was the companion to “Karen” from the description you gave?

Actually, the Karen's companion looked more like the flying monkeys from the original Wizard of Oz (at least her lips/face). 3 times! That's pretty bad luck!

[cany10011]

Aren't soups virtually spill proof as they are now usually poured at the table from a saucier?

[samhexum]

12 hours ago, Unicorn said:

My beau and I were having a pre-opera dinner at a snazzy restaurant near the Dorothy Pavilion Center when our meal was interrupted with a blood-curdling scream

I would have thought it was one of the opera's divas just warming up for that night's performance.

And was that the Dorothy Chandler (Bing) Pavilion Center?  Or did Ms. Zbornak (or Gale) have a Pavilion named after her?

[KrisParr]

A former partner and I were dining at the Piazza Navona in Rome many years ago. The gorgeous server accidentally let some tomato sauce spill on my linen pants. The server started apologizing profusely when my guy says, “Ah, no worries, I’ll be licking in that area later this evening and you’re welcome to join me.” Laughter ensued and some white vinegar took care of it.  No, he declined. 

[samhexum]

12 hours ago, JoeMendoza said:

nope...but if these are my waiters...they can spill more than just soup on or inside me...

 

3 hours ago, cany10011 said:

Aren't soups virtually spill proof as they are now usually poured at the table from a saucier?

Waiter, there's a soup on my fly!

[Luv2play]

I can only recall two times in the last several years when I brushed my arm across the table in front of myself and spilled red wine on my lap. Each time was in a dimly lit restaurant where I was gesturing to making a point in the conversation with an escort, that I was pretty excited about since we were returning to my hotel after dinner.

In the first case, it was an upscale restaurant and a waiter immediately responded to my predicament. In the second it was a bistro and I had to clean up myself but fortunately I was wearing black trousers and the red stain didn't show too much.

In both cases my escort friend was very understanding, even though neither was drinking an alcoholic beverage themselves. Given those experiences, I would tend to be very tolerant of an accident made by a waiter if the circumstance arose.

[+ WilliamM]

22 hours ago, Unicorn said:

Actually, it was at Vespaio, not Kendall's, although we passed by Kendall's, and may go there the next time we go to the opera, perhaps Aida in the Spring, or one of the operas next year. Neither of us has been to the Disney Concert Hall. We may find something there to go to. He bristled at the thought of attending Handel's Messiah. His family, especially his mother, is hyper-religious which leads him to want to avoid almost anything with a hint of Christianity. The seats at Vespaio were certainly as close together as I've ever seen--matched only by some restaurants in Manhattan. 

The last time I visited California (over a decade ago), I went to a performance at Disney Concert Hall

[Guest]

20 hours ago, samhexum said:

 

Waiter, there's a soup on my fly!

[+ Coolwave35]

No 

[Guest]

2 hours ago, Coolwave35 said:

No 

I love that concrete answer to the question... 😏

[keefer]

A few years ago my husband and I were treated to dinner tasting menu at the Fat Duck (Heston's Michelin starred restaurant in Bray near Heathrow)...  Between pre-dinner drinks at a nearby pub and a glass of wine with the first few courses, we were feeling no pain when the waiter arrived to refill our wine glasses.  While filling my glass she lost her grip on the bottle, it crashed down on my plate and glass - broken plates, wine everywhere - (shocked me from drunk to sober in an instant).  Before I could react or even speak all waiters on the floor descended on our table to check we were fine, quickly followed by the manager.  He apologized, and asked if we'd like to step away from the table and see the kitchen so the waiters could clear the mess. 

Given how famous Heston was at the time all of us jumped at the chance; we were away from the table less than five minutes, and returned to a pristine table - fresh linen, cutlery, plates, glasses for everyone - table looked the same as when we sat down at start of the meal.  The manager and our waiter again apologized for the mistake - we brushed it aside and said it was simple mistake, absolutely no issues.  really good will, extremely gracious.

And then I made the fatal mistake:   having a very surreal New York sense of humor, I quipped my only injury was losing quite a pleasant wine buzz.  The manager smiled and said "... we can fix that...";  they restarted the dinner with fresh course that had been interrupted, replaced the bottle with a new one well out of my price range, a second when that finished, and then the most amazing dessert wine I've ever had.   

The bill eventually arrived, and we were surprised half the meals and all the alcohol had been comped.  The manager refused to let us add a tip, and followed up by given each of the couples (my husband and I, and two others) a special black business card with his number allowing us to queue jump the notorious reservation system...    We called the number a few months later for an anniversary dinner, and then periodically through the years whenever there was a special event.   The manager and staff always remembered, and welcomed us back as royalty for years.   

 

[+ nycman]

On 12/2/2021 at 10:01 AM, Rudynate said:

Once, my husband and I were having lunch with my mother……..we have never said a word about it since. 

 

15 hours ago, keefer said:

A few years ago my husband and I were treated to dinner tasting menu at the Fat Duck…and welcomed us back as royalty for years. 

Two examples of class, children. 

Learn from these.  

[keefer]

@nycman - I quoted you to my husband who instantly replied (as only a Brit could) - "... class? nah mate, you're common as muck..." 

On the other hand @Rudynate's husband has class.   His reaction was rare and much to be admired - quite chivalrous.

[+ Tygerscent]

On 12/2/2021 at 2:07 AM, Unicorn said:

My beau and I were having a pre-opera dinner at a snazzy restaurant near the Dorothy Pavilion Center when our meal was interrupted with a blood-curdling scream from 2 tables away, a scream which attracted the entire restaurant's attention. We didn't see what happened, but it appeared the waiter spilled some of a customer's soup on her shirt. It was wiped off the shirt, and the whole restaurant staff seem to be attending to the customer. After it was cleaned up, the blouse seemed fine. The customer demanded to speak with the manager. "Chris" commented that the customer was a typical "Karen," and even had "one of those Karen" haircuts. The woman who accompanied her looked like she had failed cosmetic work on her lips, and had the appearance of a chimpanzee. I guess there are a lot more victims of bad cosmetic work here in LA than I'm used to seeing when I was in the SF area. 

So have any of you had a waiter spill some soup on you? What was your reaction? Did you end up speaking with the manager? Was your meal comped? 

Yes… the waiter spilled soup in my lap~ He began to wipe the soup away with a napkin and then, licked the stain clean~ I tipped him~ 

[+ Tygerscent]

On 12/2/2021 at 2:07 AM, Unicorn said:

My beau and I were having a pre-opera dinner at a snazzy restaurant near the Dorothy Pavilion Center when our meal was interrupted with a blood-curdling scream from 2 tables away, a scream which attracted the entire restaurant's attention. We didn't see what happened, but it appeared the waiter spilled some of a customer's soup on her shirt. It was wiped off the shirt, and the whole restaurant staff seem to be attending to the customer. After it was cleaned up, the blouse seemed fine. The customer demanded to speak with the manager. "Chris" commented that the customer was a typical "Karen," and even had "one of those Karen" haircuts. The woman who accompanied her looked like she had failed cosmetic work on her lips, and had the appearance of a chimpanzee. I guess there are a lot more victims of bad cosmetic work here in LA than I'm used to seeing when I was in the SF area. 

So have any of you had a waiter spill some soup on you? What was your reaction? Did you end up speaking with the manager? Was your meal comped? 

That’s not bad cosmetic surgery… that’s cock sucking lips… She’s been at the tubs the entire weekend 

E7B1A998-06D8-4D13-AA25-1B7FE24BEF94.webp

Edited December 5, 2021 by Tygerscent