Current Events > I've worked in a diner for over 7 years AMA

(+) Yeah! (+)

Started as a dishwasher, ran an ice cream window, then became a prep and line cook.

Whats the most obnoxious dish to prepare?

What was your best day ever there?

Did you go to a culinary arts / cooking school?
Or did they train you at the restaurant?

favorite smell(s)?

AloneIBreak posted...

Whats the most obnoxious dish to prepare?

When I'm on the line, salads. Particularly when I'm busy. And extra particularly the 1/3 of the time I'm working with lettuce that's far too old and I have to pick out the good stuff while I'm trying to hurry. We have only 2 people in the kitchen so I can't afford to get bogged down or things really start to slow, but toss me a few salads while I have to fiddle around with shitty lettuce and watch things unravel. Had a party of 5 today where 4 of them wanted side salads in addition to their meals, and that kinda seemingly innocuous thing just destroys my pace.

havean776 posted...

What was your best day ever there?

Hmm. It's always kinda samey. I actually kinda like working in a kitchen (obviously, or I wouldn't have stayed there 7+ years), as awful as it can be sometimes. Might have to go back to years ago when I was running the ol' ice cream window. I got tips in addition to my regular wage, so it felt like I was making tons of money (probably only like $18-20/hour on busy days lol) relative to washing dishes. And it was super easy work, not as painful as washing dishes or as stressful as cooking. Didn't have many bad experiences with people.

Requiem posted...

Did you go to a culinary arts / cooking school?
Or did they train you at the restaurant?

Lol nah, no fancy educating for me. I was trained at the restaurant, and on my own time since I've had a passion for cooking and baking for years.

OriginalPlain2 posted...

favorite smell(s)?

Hmm, maybe the corned beef hash when it's being made. We fry the onions in a pool of bacon grease (healthy stuff), and that along with the fried potatoes and corned beef smells fantastic. It probably used to be bread, but I've made that 2-3x a week for years and at this point I don't even notice the smell anymore. It makes me a little sad whenever anybody else mentions it, because I usually have a really good sense of smell (all that practice sniffing stuff to see if it's still good), but however hard I try I cannot smell bread baking in that kitchen. Maybe it's like how they say you can't smell your own body odor? It's lost to me forever.

Sounds like you had a terrific luck with the restaurant you are employed at, and you worked your ass off to make the most of the opportunity.

How close is your job to the show the Bear

How much of the food that you serve is come in frozen? Do you like working with the ingredients that you're given or would you prefer something different?

A lot diners near me (central PA) have intriguing seafood dishes. Do you have seafood and is it any good?

prefered ketchup brand?

Why?

AloneIBreak posted...

A lot diners near me (central PA) have intriguing seafood dishes. Do you have seafood and is it any good?

ayyyyyy central PA squad

What do you think of the song Toms Diner?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-26hsZqwveA

What's the most ordered item on the menu? Burger or breakfast or?

do you have any retirement benefits paid for by them?

Anony1125 posted...

Started as a dishwasher, ran an ice cream window, then became a prep and line cook.

Is this a huge national chain, or like mom and pop?

Requiem posted...

Sounds like you had a terrific luck with the restaurant you are employed at, and you worked your ass off to make the most of the opportunity.

Luck, eh? Maybe so, in the sense that I generally enjoy what I do. I do feel privileged when I hear talk about how much other people hate their jobs, that just sounds so draining to me. I don't know if I could live that way. In the sense that I was lucky to latch onto this particular job, I'm uhhh ... not so sure. I don't know if you're thinking of much more upscale places with classically-trained chefs, but as far as line cooks at flyspeck diners go, they pretty much take anyone. Literally 3 convicted child molesters have passed through in my 7 years, along with dozens struggling with substance abuse. Most people with options realize the drawbacks of the line cook position and look elsewhere, basically every restaurant in the world could use a reliable line cook. For reference when I showed my boss a 'help wanted' ad for another local place, I got a raise from $18/hour to $22/hour on the spot. I need to shake 'em down again, they have literally zero leverage but I don't like confrontation.

FLAMING_EVIL_HOMER posted...

How close is your job to the show the Bear

I'm sorry, I've never heard of this show. I usually don't like cooking shows, but this sounds interesting. I'll have to watch some and get back to you on that one.

NinjaWarrior455 posted...

How much of the food that you serve is come in frozen? Do you like working with the ingredients that you're given or would you prefer something different?

Less than when I started, we're making a concerted effort to go to fresher ingredients. Our ratings are improving as a result, but the reality is that the freezer is indispensable in a tiny 2-person kitchen where we're expected to be able to handle around 150-200 people on (summer) week days (7-3 shift, no dinner) and 200-275 people on weekends. And where basically all the prep work is done during business hours. We already have our hands about as full as they can be, I've long forgotten what a break at work feels like. For the most part I would say I like the ingredients, the only real exception is when the damn food distributor gives us a case of feral lettuce (iceberg and/or romaine) that isn't sealed, just floating around free in a cardboard box growing wild. Or other "replacements" that are clearly inferior to what we actually ordered. But I gather these past couple years have been a difficult time for them as well.

No offense but you absolutely need to bounce around if youre a dependable cook. And grow too. Into a legit chef.

You can play the money games too a little just with what youre doing nowbut that ceiling aint much.

You ever drag a ham?

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]

Well, first and foremost I shot myself in the foot by dropping out of high school because I couldn't be bothered to do it anymore. So I don't have a diploma or GED, and it seems like a drag getting it. The job is passably interesting to me, and I'm not sure what other options reasonably available to me would be better financially than my current $22/hour and overtime because I'm averaging like 46 hours a week.

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]

Yeah, I think most people would feel jobs like this really suck. I think it's because I'm an idiot, I can do the most mundane things in the world over and over again and keep myself more or less entertained. Line cooking is sorta like a puzzle, where all the orders are pieces. There's a near endless series of permutations, and my job is to put everything together in such a way as to maximize efficiency. Which sounds incredibly boring when I say it, but ehh ... it keeps me occupied. Always try to push it a little bit faster, to do it a little bit better.

AloneIBreak posted...

A lot diners near me (central PA) have intriguing seafood dishes. Do you have seafood and is it any good?

Not really, we closed for a year and a half during covid and after that we dropped our evening hours and many of our specials that were considered more dinner-oriented. We used to do a 'fish night' on Friday with all-you-can-eat fish and chips (haddock) and other such things. We had fish and chips, fishwich (half a haddock filet on a burger bun), fried scallops, fried strip clams, and fried shrimp on our menu, but dropped all of them except for the fishwich. It's no big loss imo, we got that stuff fresh but had to freeze it because we simply couldn't sell enough to get through it. The difference between fresh and frozen was extremely noticeable (especially with the scallops, strip clams, and shrimp), and I personally had a couple people complain when they got fresh stuff one time and then frozen another. The only real good fresh thing we have now is the occasional whole clam plate with french fries, but that's a fairly rare special because they only buy it when they can get it for a good price and the price fluctuates wildly. People love the whole clams, we get lots of raves about that and lots of people disappointed when we don't have it which is most of the time.

ironman2009 posted...

prefered ketchup brand?

idk I don't think I've ever had anything other than Heinz. I used to practically drink that stuff because growing up my dad's policy on ground beef was to cook it well done then cook it like 5-10 more minutes just to be safe. Those burgers were so dry I needed like 3 T of ketchup to choke them down. Nowadays I don't really use it much, just open the #10 cans because the waitresses are intimidated by the big-ass violent can opener and think (correctly) that I enjoy the chance to show off.

Priere posted...

What do you think of the song Toms Diner?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-26hsZqwveA

It's okay. A little repetitive, but it reminds me of when I was a kid. I have it in my liked songs on Spotify, though it's not something I would typically go out of my way to listen to.

MorbidFaithless posted...

What's the most ordered item on the menu? Burger or breakfast or?

Well, taking a little peek at our POS system from January 1st through today our top sellers are:

#1: a breakfast combo of 2 eggs, home fries, choice of ham/bacon/sausage, 2 slices of toast, and coffee ($29,700.69)
#2: Coffee ($25,986.53)
#3: a breakfast combo the same as #1 except with additional choice of 2 pancakes or french toast ($18,201.80)
#4: a breakfast combo of 2 eggs, choice of ham/bacon/sausage, 2 slices of toast, and coffee ($17,233.02)
#5: a breakfast combo with 2 eggs and a side of hash ($14,552.11)

So it would seem breakfast is more popular than lunch. Tbf we have a bunch of different burgers, if you rolled them all into one category there's no doubt it would crack the list. Also a lot of people probably come just to drink coffee. As a non-drinker, before I started working here I don't think I quite realized how obsessed people are with that stuff. Yeesh.

Naysaspace posted...

do you have any retirement benefits paid for by them?

lol
that would be nice

UT1999 posted...

Is this a huge national chain, or like mom and pop?

mom and pop, or mom and son as it were

masticatingman posted...

No offense but you absolutely need to bounce around if youre a dependable cook. And grow too. Into a legit chef.

You can play the money games too a little just with what youre doing nowbut that ceiling aint much.

Yes. I know in my head this is true, and I have composed a couple different drafts of an email responding to another establishment looking for help but I've never sent it and I just can't pull the trigger. I've dedicated over 7 years to this establishment, only missed time on one occasion (when I had covid in 2022), have come in on off days every time I was asked, allow them to schedule me whenever is convenient for them even if that happens to be like 15-20 days straight, even painted the goddamn building. I cannot possibly owe them anything, and yet I still feel guilty at the thought of leaving because I know they'd be completely screwed without me. What can I say? I'm a sucker.

BuzzKilljoy posted...

You ever drag a ham?

I don't know if this is some kind of a reference or what, sorry.

Do you work at a chain restaurant or a family owned/private restaurant?

Would you date someone you aren't attracted to?

Favorite philosopher?

Anony1125 posted...

I know they'd be completely screwed without me

as someone who has worked in food service for 15+ years, this is NEVER the case even when we are convinced it is.

they will instantly find a replacement, and they will pay them less.

why don't you just get your ged, tc?

MedeaLysistrata posted...

Would you date someone you aren't attracted to?

Favorite philosopher?

I have, sort of. Casually, anyway. I don't mean to be too vulgar, but I had some difficulty performing intimate acts. Kinda seems like a waste of time, but I don't know, it is a little nice to be wanted even though it's also pretty depressing.

Myself.

Waxitron_Gazer posted...

as someone who has worked in food service for 15+ years, this is NEVER the case even when we are convinced it is.

they will instantly find a replacement, and they will pay them less.

We're closing a day a week now because the owner has just about given up on finding someone else though we've been actively looking for months and months. In order to replace me, they would have to be willing to work 46-50 hours a week on a rotating schedule with variable day/s off, handle the dessert baking (unless they move to frozen desserts, which would be a possibility though a shame since they're known for fresh homemade pies), the bread baking, be comfortable working alone in the kitchen at times, inevitably when it's (surprisingly! who could have thought?) busy, and dedicate probably a good 50-100 hours off the clock per summer to doing the countless things that need to be done that are simply impossible to do in the time allotted. Yes, in theory it's possible. I'm not some kinda magician, but it took me years of practice and a commitment to putting the diner's needs before my own to get there. I'd sure love to watch them try, I can say with the utmost sincerity and objectivity (whether you believe it or not) that none of the other line cooks I've seen there in my 7 years have been able/willing to do what I do. Now the wild card and more reasonable possibility would be if they can find 2 line cooks, which is what they damn well should have done in the first place rather than put more responsibility on me than anybody could reasonably be expected to fill. 2 line cooks with the proper set of skills could absolutely replace me. But considering the trouble we have finding 1, that would be a stroke of fortune. And if it's 2, I think they would have a real hard time doing it at lower cost.

UT1999 posted...

why don't you just get your ged, tc?

don't wanna

What item on the menu would you suggest not ordering?

Homefries or hashbrowns?

VideoboysaysCube posted...

What item on the menu would you suggest not ordering?

Well this is kind of subjective I guess, but nachos, veggie burgers, or the weekend special chipped beef gravy. The nachos are boring. Tortilla chips, black olives, jalapenos, homemade chili, and nacho cheese. It's just missing something. They don't pop, you know? The veggie burgers are just a bunch of minced vegetables smashed together with barely anything in the way of seasoning. I've had a couple great veggie burgers in my day, and there needs to be more flavor. This recipe was designed by someone who doesn't eat veggie burgers, and they thought that just smashing a ton of veggies together would be enough to give it great flavor, but in reality they all just kind of wash each other out. I wanted to at least make some kind of sauce for it to give it some flavor, but was overruled by the owner who has literally never had a veggie burger in his life because they're not his thing. Whatever. Chipped beef gravy I've never had anywhere else, I don't know if this is a me thing. It has literally no beef flavor, or flavor in general. The red chunks may as well be cardboard, it's just thick milk. It's like sausage gravy if sausage gravy had no sausage in it and tasted like nothing. But old people flock to the place on the weekends to get their chipped beef gravy. It is beyond my comprehension.

Oh, and also pancakes after like 1 o'clock on super busy days. When it's busy, the grill gets stickier and stickier as the day goes along (the burgers really don't help there), and if you order pancakes at the end they're liable to come out a little weird. Don't mind the black specks on them!

brestugo posted...

Homefries or hashbrowns?

Home fries. Swimming in bacon grease. They're good, but they take like 10-15 minutes on the grill to cook properly, so if you want to get them out quick you have to anticipate and have them on before the order comes in. And when it's super busy the mass of home fries kills that side of the grill and they start sticking and all the colors of the world get just a little bit duller.

Anony1125 posted...

Home fries. Swimming in bacon grease. They're good, but they take like 10-15 minutes on the grill to cook properly, so if you want to get them out quick you have to anticipate and have them on before the order comes in. And when it's super busy the mass of home fries kills that side of the grill and they start sticking and all the colors of the world get just a little bit duller.

I think everything's going to be alright for you.

Is the pop-cultural trope of nonsensical diner-speak (like between Kronk and the diner waitress in The Emperor's New Groove) a real thing, and if so, can you translate it for us without breaking an NDA or something?

If first time at a non-chain/franchise diner/restaurant, what would be the entree to order to see how good the place?

homemade chili on your diner's nachos? nice!

Did you work Labor Day?

I did and it was an Ass Kicking.
Apparently, it was one of the few places of its kind that was open.
And Spac and The Track people were still here.

Also, Damn anyone for being too picky on a day like that.
If you have to go in, on a day like that, just make the simplest order.

At least I didn't have to hear, 'It sucks you have to work today'
That always pisses me off.

Also, throw a tip FFS.
Even for pick-up, way more goes into that than 'Just handing over food'

SpawnShadow posted...

Is the pop-cultural trope of nonsensical diner-speak (like between Kronk and the diner waitress in The Emperor's New Groove) a real thing, and if so, can you translate it for us without breaking an NDA or something?

the old school diner lingo? I think that was a thing for our grandparents maybe, but I doubt anybody I've worked with would have a clue what I was talking about if I told them to drown the kids.

Requiem posted...

If first time at a non-chain/franchise diner/restaurant, what would be the entree to order to see how good the place?

I've been thinking about this question for a while now. I'd want them to order something they would enjoy the most, unhappy customers make me feel like shit. Even when they're annoying. But that's a boring answer. As a line cook what would I want to be judged on? For me, it would be something time-consuming. Because it's easier to just phone something in when you have a lot going on. Like the salads I mentioned hating earlier. I roll my eyes whenever I see a salad on a ticket, but I've received a fair amount of compliments over the years on them because I want everything to be just right. Even if that disrupts my timing and makes the people after them wait an extra 30 seconds or a minute. For the other cook there, it would probably be his steak and eggs. He's a big steak guy who always orders it everywhere else and when he prepares it everything has to be done just so. But how do you as a customer find out what that thing is that the cook(s) take(s) seriously? I'm not sure. Best bet would probably be to ask the servers, they damn well ought to know if they're worth anything.

candyapplered posted...

homemade chili on your diner's nachos? nice!

Yes. I like our chili quite a bit, but the nachos still just feel like they're missing something. But then again, I hate cheese and I've never tasted nacho cheese in my life, so I'm biased here.

SiO4 posted...

Did you work Labor Day?

I did and it was an Ass Kicking.
Apparently, it was one of the few places of its kind that was open.
And Spac and The Track people were still here.

Also, Damn anyone for being too picky on a day like that.
If you have to go in, on a day like that, just make the simplest order.

At least I didn't have to hear, 'It sucks you have to work today'
That always pisses me off.

Also, throw a tip FFS.
Even for pick-up, way more goes into that than 'Just handing over food'

I did indeed. It actually wasn't that bad this year, the past two we've gotten slammed for lunch. 2021 was especially disastrous, we have (rarely used) outdoor seating so we were full beyond our normal capacity and beyond what we're really capable of in our little kitchen. Having 12+ tickets for like 3 straight hours is just exhausting. I actually thought we were going to have a fairly uneventful day, but we did get quite a rush from like 1:30-2:30, which is always kinda annoying since we close at 3. But it is what it is, we'll probably slow down for a few weeks before foliage season kicks in and we're suddenly back to summer numbers.

Have you ever asked another member of the kitchen or waitstaff to kiss your grits?

Ever think of setting up your own place?

Think about it. Maybe start with a foodtruck.

Are you servsafe certified? Any management?

Anony1125 posted...

Yes. I like our chili quite a bit, but the nachos still just feel like they're missing something. But then again, I hate cheese and I've never tasted nacho cheese in my life, so I'm biased here.

I alway found adding a can of sliced rotel tomatoes to did the trick when making nachos

Was there any particular client that went to the diner during those 7 years you worked there? I mean if the person went there at least once every 3 months, but kept coming during all those years

Anony1125 posted...

the old school diner lingo? I think that was a thing for our grandparents maybe, but I doubt anybody I've worked with would have a clue what I was talking about if I told them to drown the kids.

I've been thinking about this question for a while now. I'd want them to order something they would enjoy the most, unhappy customers make me feel like shit. Even when they're annoying. But that's a boring answer. As a line cook what would I want to be judged on? For me, it would be something time-consuming. Because it's easier to just phone something in when you have a lot going on. Like the salads I mentioned hating earlier. I roll my eyes whenever I see a salad on a ticket, but I've received a fair amount of compliments over the years on them because I want everything to be just right. Even if that disrupts my timing and makes the people after them wait an extra 30 seconds or a minute. For the other cook there, it would probably be his steak and eggs. He's a big steak guy who always orders it everywhere else and when he prepares it everything has to be done just so. But how do you as a customer find out what that thing is that the cook(s) take(s) seriously? I'm not sure. Best bet would probably be to ask the servers, they damn well ought to know if they're worth anything.

Yes. I like our chili quite a bit, but the nachos still just feel like they're missing something. But then again, I hate cheese and I've never tasted nacho cheese in my life, so I'm biased here.

I did indeed. It actually wasn't that bad this year, the past two we've gotten slammed for lunch. 2021 was especially disastrous, we have (rarely used) outdoor seating so we were full beyond our normal capacity and beyond what we're really capable of in our little kitchen. Having 12+ tickets for like 3 straight hours is just exhausting. I actually thought we were going to have a fairly uneventful day, but we did get quite a rush from like 1:30-2:30, which is always kinda annoying since we close at 3. But it is what it is, we'll probably slow down for a few weeks before foliage season kicks in and we're suddenly back to summer numbers.

Ya, open back-up years were crazy..kind a still feeling.
As with the Covid years that was nuts too because I worked a places that sold alcohol.

And 12+ is not fun, especially when people are modifying their orders like crazy.
On those you just order something like an open face turkey sandwich.

I am relatively new at my place, I work up front, and I an another guy were diving over each other and all around for the entire shift. And ya, I got hired right in the middle of Tourist season which effectively doubles the population of the time. ((But I made it!!))

It will be interesting to see what the foliage will be like this year due to the apocalyptic amount of rain we got this year. I bet the waterfalls were fantastic this year.
Whereabouts are you in The Green State?

divot1338 posted...

Have you ever asked another member of the kitchen or waitstaff to kiss your grits?

No, I can't say I have.

brestugo posted...

Ever think of setting up your own place?

Think about it. Maybe start with a foodtruck.

Not really. So many restaurants fail, in fact around here established ones are going down left and right. The majority never get off the ground and result in a large capital loss. Restaurant owners have a reputation (and my tiny sample size does nothing to disprove it) of being miserable, miserly, and stressed. For me it's just not worth the stress. As they say, the best way to make a small fortune in the restaurant industry is to start with a large fortune. Rather just invest all the money I can and hope someday to get out, even if I don't mind it for now. Admittedly at $45-50k a year that ... may take a while.

DarkChozoGhost posted...

Are you servsafe certified? Any management?

Yeah, we were required to do the servsafe certification in 2020 even though the diner closed down for over a year between March 2020 and July 2021.

SlamVook posted...

Was there any particular client that went to the diner during those 7 years you worked there? I mean if the person went there at least once every 3 months, but kept coming during all those years

Tons. That's life in a town with a population under 2000. Regulars are the ones who keep us afloat, and our main clientele tend to be fairly old. Unfortunately we have had a number of the older folks pass or have to go into homes in those 7 years, and that's pretty sad. We had a really nice older couple who came in a few times a week when I started, and the wife made all employees a little throw blanket using their favorite color. I still have my cute little green throw blanket, though she and her husband passed on over 5 years ago now.

SiO4 posted...

Ya, open back-up years were crazy..kind a still feeling.
As with the Covid years that was nuts too because I worked a places that sold alcohol.

And 12+ is not fun, especially when people are modifying their orders like crazy.
On those you just order something like an open face turkey sandwich.

I am relatively new at my place, I work up front, and I an another guy were diving over each other and all around for the entire shift. And ya, I got hired right in the middle of Tourist season which effectively doubles the population of the time. ((But I made it!!))

It will be interesting to see what the foliage will be like this year due to the apocalyptic amount of rain we got this year. I bet the waterfalls were fantastic this year.
Whereabouts are you in The Green State?

A little town in the middle pretty close to Woodstock. We got a vacation during covid (I say, as if it's not still ongoing), though my employer helped me out by sending me checks from the PPP loans. But since reopening in 2021, we've been far busier than we've ever been in the past. Some of our competitors didn't make it through, and we're losing others faster than new ones can pop up, so we just keep scaling upward. Except in staffing, which is lagging behind to the detriment of our free time and possibly sanity.

Anony1125 posted...

A little town in the middle pretty close to Woodstock. We got a vacation during covid (I say, as if it's not still ongoing), though my employer helped me out by sending me checks from the PPP loans. But since reopening in 2021, we've been far busier than we've ever been in the past. Some of our competitors didn't make it through, and we're losing others faster than new ones can pop up, so we just keep scaling upward. Except in staffing, which is lagging behind to the detriment of our free time and possibly sanity.

Oh, so you are in and around Route 4.
That's a cool road. It has its own weather.
I'm not skiier but I know the area well enough.

I did have to check if it was Texas Falls or Quechee Gorge that I was thinking of though.
Those West to East Roads are a whole other thing.
I do like that little old-school resort area that you drive past once you are up there.
Last I knew the buildings were a sort of Mustard Yellow.

((A little before it, But I once the game shop in Diamond Run Mall))

Kinda cool that they retained you.
Were you born in that general area?

A lot of the problem with hiring is age for that sort of thing.
Too bad you can't pull in any sky-bum types in the off-season.

Very cool though.
If you don't mind me saying.