Had a very nice couple come in to celebrate their 54th wedding anniversary. When I went over and told them that we were buying their meal they were totally blown away. They said no one has ever treated them the way this restaurant has treated them! They are also excited to pay it forward.
Oldie But a Goodie
Last week, a mom, Amanda, came in with 3 kids to get some take out. She seemed almost at the end of her rope as the kids were being a handful. When she came to pay for lunch, she took out one of those old gift cards we sold back in the early 2000s and asked if there was a way we could see if there was any value. I haven’t seen one for quite some time and told her this was an old card, and to give me a minute to look it up. There was $1.63 left on the card. I made up a new $25 certificate on the side and gave it to her, asking that it not be so long for her to come back and use it. The kids got real quiet when I did this, and then got all excited when I gave them the Pay it Forward certificate. She thanked me over and over, saying they love it here and don’t get to visit as often and couldn’t believe what we had done.
Amongst Friends
The other day, I noticed a man sitting by himself at one of our larger tables. I came to find out that Bill was a regular who used to come in all the time with his wife, except now his wife has passed away as of February. Sensing that he had come to share some memories and be surrounded by friendly people, I picked up his dinner for my Random Act. We chatted for a while, and he told me a couple of great stories, and that one of the reasons he and his wife loved it so much here was because of how we always made them feel comfortable. It was awesome.
Taking Care Of Our Guests
I had a couple come in who was staying at a hotel because their house burned to the ground. They came in for dinner so we bought their dinner for them. They were so grateful that they hugged me and their server. They were more than happy to pay it forward. They thought that our program was so thoughtful and kind.
Vasily & Friends
We had a young boy here celebrating his birthday and he told his server that she was doing a great job but he wanted to give a special thanks to the chefs in the kitchen as he felt they don’t get the same recognition. We had one of our kitchen managers, Casey, come out so they could meet him, the boys were thrilled to meet the chef! I picked up their tab and their mom is going to help them find a good person who deserves to get the Pay it Forward certificate! As Vasily said “BEST BIRTHDAY EVER!”
Do a Good Deed Daily
Tonight a gentleman came in who I know is very active in Scouting. He does a lot of volunteer work and has helped many Scouts attain their Eagle rank, which is not an easy thing. I decided to take care of his dinner tonight. When I told him of the RAK and the Pay It Forward part of the act, he was very excited for the opportunity to give the certificate away.
Rewarding a RAK with a RAK
For lunch on Sunday, two gentlemen randomly took care of the tab belonging to the table next to them. I felt that this good deed should be rewarded, so I hooked them up with a RAK certificate!
Practice makes perfect
Today there was a young couple, Craig and Kristen, who came in with their infant son Braden, and I could tell from the start that they were having a hard time juggling everything from the amount of stuff, infant included, that came in with them. After they set up and got their son to wake up from his drowse, they were finally able to get their order in, and then it was time to feed the baby. It took a while before they were able to settle down and eat for themselves. New parents need practice when taking out their babies, so I hooked them up with a certificate to come back and do it again. And Braden was an absolute cutie.
Newly Engaged
Today a party of 6 women came in to celebrate the engagement of their best friend. They were so sweet and dressed her with a sash and a tiara along with gifts they all gave her. I decided to give the bride-to-be a gift card for her and her future husband to come in and eat together. She was thrilled and knew he would love it.
Proud Momma
During the “snow event” I was manning the host stand, and a woman came in to pick up a takeout. After having my head buried in excel for the most of the morning, I mistakenly read her total as “forty two point two zero”. I corrected myself and said $42.20, and she laughed having mentioned she was just in her car talking to her son about math, and that he just got perfect scores on his report card. I congratulated her, and told her to celebrate we would love to buy her and her son lunch. She was so excited she went out to her car to bring in her clearly embarrassed 9th grader. I simply told him great job, and his hard work got him some lunch on the house today. I explained about RAK’s and he started to smile saying he knows who to give it to, but wouldn’t say. Jason and I made a deal, that if he gets another score like that on his final report card, dinner would once again be on me. I’m looking forward to seeing him this June.