Some restaurant customers are a nightmare for everyone around them, be it the waitstaff, other people wanting to enjoy a meal in peace, or poor passersby who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. And no matter what aggravating behavior they engage in, arguably more times than not they don’t really care for the troubles they cause.
The internet is brimming with documentation of what such unforgettable customers leave behind, but you’ve likely seen them with your own eyes at least once. If you haven’t, scroll down to find some visual testimonies of their visits on the list below and see just how troublesome such customers can be.
#1 Customer Leaves Her Baby’s Dirty Diaper On Table
What confuses me is that I never saw her use the restroom the entire time she was dining. She likely kept it with her before but it confuses me even more that she never even thought once to toss it in a trash can outside before she arrived
Image credits: quarterslicecomics
#2 What Do You Guys Think About This?
Image credits: Unfinishedcom
#3 Someone Decided To Have A Gender Reveal At The Table
Image credits: fibbybob
As a former waitress myself, I can attest that one customer can be enough to ruin the staff’s day, and they have hundreds of ways to do it. Obnoxious and entitled ones make it their life’s mission to see how much waiters can take before blowing up—be it cursing, yelling, or crying— ignorant ones force the employees to stay late, whether because the customers themselves stay long after the closing hours or because of the mess they make that has to be taken care of, and rude ones make the employees lose faith in humanity one order at a time. Long story short, the possibilities are nearly endless.
Having to deal with aggravating people might be one of the reasons why bartenders and waiters reportedly have low satisfaction in regards to what they do. Data shows that in general, more than a third of employees in the US—35%, to be exact—are not satisfied with their jobs, and only 20% are passionate about theirs.
#4 Sorry I Politely Asked Your Crotch Goblin To Not Throw Sugar At Other Guests. Lmao
Image credits: Saelem
#5 Caught A Couple Of Kids Coloring On The Banister In Our Outside Seating Section. Parents Just Sat There Watching Them Do It. I Asked Them If The Walls In There House Looked Just As Ugly And They Asked To Speak To A Manager
Image credits: Koopstars
CareerExplorer delved deeper into how (un)satisfied servers are with their jobs, and, according to their survey, the situation is so bad, food servers fall into the bottom 3% of career choices in regards to happiness.
Using star ratings—with one being the worst and 5 the best—the waiters were asked to evaluate five different aspects of their jobs: whether or not they were happy with their salary, whether or not they found their job meaningful, how well they thought their personality fit the job, how much they enjoyed their work environment, and how well they could put their abilities to use at work.
#6 How People Left Their Table At A Wendy’s Near Me Smh
Image credits: bonefidescrewup
#7 Next Time Please Just Stiff Me
Image credits: jupiters_galaxy
#8 If You Go To A Restaurant And Your Kid Makes A Mess And You Leave It Like This, It Says More About You As Parent Than Your Kid
Image credits: Panfilofinomeno
In regards to the first of the five points—being happy with the salary—only 6% of food servers gave such a statement a 5-star rating, meaning that only a few believe they earn well in the position. (The overall score was 2.6 stars out of 5, with roughly a quarter of the surveyees choosing only 1 star, which means they’re not content with the remuneration, and equally as many choosing to rate their salary with 3 stars, meaning they’re neither content nor discontent.)
Even fewer servers—1.8/5—were reportedly happy with the meaningfulness of their profession. However, the majority of them believed their personalities fit well with what they did for a living.
#9 This Is Evil
Image credits: ReubenMered
#10 An Interesting Note A Customer Left On A Reservation Lol
Image credits: The_Nuckles
#11 Upvote Or Face 10 Shifts Bad Luck
Image credits: LukewarmLatte
The evaluations of the other two out of five aspects of being a food server—how much they enjoy their work environment and how well they can put their abilities to use there—revealed that three-out-of-five people do like the setting they earn their daily bread in; fewer—two-out-of-five—feel their skills are properly utilized there.
#12 Yuck
Image credits: sassylilpeach
#13 Lol, Never Seen This Kind Of Tip Before
Image credits: kaythethrowaway
#14 Is Calling Costumers "Hun" Weird?
Image credits: warlockofsortz
Data USA revealed that, back in 2021, there were roughly two million people working as servers in the country, earning an average of $18,961 a year (roughly $40,000 less than the average national salary of $59,596).
Anyone who’s ever given the profession a go knows that a large part of a server’s income comes from tips (which might be the reason they are willing to put up with the annoying ways of some customers). But even despite their willingness to tip, quite a few customers don’t feel fond of the system where the livelihood of servers depends on the tips they leave.
#15 These Damn Atheists
Image credits: VashKetchum
#16 Someone Left Me A Tiny Shirt As A Tip
Image credits: b215049
#17 This Is Why I, As A Restaurant Host, Hate Kids And The Parents Who Enable Them. This Is Just The Floor, I Had Already Cleaned The Table, The Chairs, And The Shattered Plate
Image credits: _Monika-
According to Bankrate, two thirds of adults in the US have a negative view of tipping, the main reason for that being the belief that businesses should pay their employees better rather than have them rely on tips. Other things that annoy customers about tipping include pre-entered tip screens, tipping culture getting out of control, and the confusion about who and how much to tip.
Whether they do or don’t like the system, people seem to tip their wait staff nevertheless; but fewer of them every year do. In 2019, roughly 77% of Americans at restaurants would always tip their servers, compared to 75% in 2021, 73% in 2022, and 65% recently in 2023, Bankrate reports.
“Inflation and general economic unease seem to be making Americans stingier with their tipping habits, yet we’re confronted with more invitations to tip than ever,” Bankrate senior industry analyst Ted Rossman pointed out. “It’s a fascinating issue with few clear answers. There is one apparent certainty, though: Tipping doesn’t seem likely to leave American society anytime soon.”
#18 $10 Would Have Been Preferred
Image credits: Apart_Tradition8244
#19 The Restaurant I Work At Makes Us Pay A ‘Tip Refund’ To Cover Credit Card Charges
Image credits: AffectionateFix5067
#20 Gen Z?boomers
Image credits: Specific-Ad8491
Bankrate also revealed that people’s tipping habits were influenced by the pandemic; its 2023 survey found that roughly 14% of Americans started to tip more since then, while 9% did the opposite since the unsettling times.
Needless to say, for the wait staff themselves, the pandemic was far from the happiest moment in their professional lives. With the world coming to a halt and eateries all over the world shutting their doors—some temporarily, some, sadly, for good—they had to find a way to survive not only without tips, but without a job in general.
In the beginning of the lockdown, in 2020, over eight million restaurant employees were laid off or furloughed, Forbes reports. In 2021, hundreds of thousands people in the hospitality and the restaurant industries decided to put in their notices themselves, be it because of Covid-related concerns or other reasons.
#21 She Wouldn’t Eat Her Chicken Because It Is “Pretty Much Raw.”
Image credits: dizz12505
#22 Thanks?
Image credits: pinkfuzzypaws
#23 15 Minutes After Close
Image credits: reddit.com
Unfortunately, the worker shortage didn’t end in 2021; a year later, in 2022, more than 80% of restaurant operators were short in at least one position. To make matters worse, as much as one-third of restaurants lacked people in not only the server but the dishwasher positions, too.
#24 The Tip Line Said "Turn Over For Tip"
Image credits: nicholasgarski
#25 Someone Brought In Their Pet Monkey. How’s Everybody Else’s Saturday Night?
Image credits: tildepurr
#26 I Miss My Line Cooks. I Don’t Miss My Line Cooks
Image credits: likeguitarsolo
With restaurants up and running again, servers, too, are back at their jobs. And it’s no surprise that the level to which they—as well as representatives of other professions, for that matter—love or hate their places of employment often depends on the people they’re forced to deal with.
Unfortunately for the servers behind the pictures on this list, they had to bear with some quite troublesome individuals. However, coming back to my first thought, the same way an aggravating customer can ruin one’s day, a nice one has the power to fix it; so, in order to even out the scale, consider this a gentle reminder to be polite to your waiter next time you’re at a restaurant.
#27 Someone Left Their Table At An Airport McDonald's Like This
Image credits: ImmySnommis
#28 I Got Tipped A House Today
Image credits: stotaku420
#29 My Co-Worker Got A Novel On Her Check
Image credits: junkiejarrett
#30 Customer Came Into The Restaurant And Gave The Waiters This Allergy List
Image credits: Rachelle_Rosey
#31 It’s Always The Extra Nice Customer Who Asks For Extra Sides When You Check On Them
Image credits: chasekopsch
#32 Parents Who Let Their Child Make This Sort Of Mess In A Restaurant
Image credits: mrpetrolbomb
#33 My First Mean Note!
Image credits: adrienne7-
#34 That One Table That Stays Past Closed, And You Can't Leave Until They Do
Image credits: Scammony
#35 I Was In The Weeds And Very Focused I Guess…
Image credits: StuckInSalem
#36 Lady Hit On Me All Night, Wrote Down Her Work Address, And Told Me To Come See Her Sometime. Then I Saw The Tip. Definitely A First For Me Lmao
Image credits: reddit.com
#37 First Time This Happened To Me
Image credits: SexyJesus21
#38 Forgot About This One ?
Image credits: _wallace
#39 Joys Of Being A Server
Image credits: SomeBet4897
#40 Some People Should Just Stay Home…
Image credits: reataurant-lifer1745
#41 Whole Table Of Boomers Just Sitting An Hour After Close
Image credits: hamsterberry
#42 Customer Was Raised In A Barn Apparently. Trash Can Is Right Behind Where They Were Sitting
Image credits: Kahlinnnnnnnnn
#43 "Oh, I'm Gonna Need More Than That! A Lot More! Can You Just Bring Me A Bowl?!"
Image credits: bobobradget
#44 Earlier This Year. The Audacity Of This One Was Insane
Image credits: blax_prismic
#45 The Note A Customer Left On My Table…
Image credits: bellathetoad
#46 My Coworker Had The Honor Of Waiting On A “Yelp User”
Image credits: Push_
#47 My Tip Last Night
Image credits: reddit.com
#48 Sorry It Took 10 Minutes For Your French Toast
Image credits: CW1293
#49 The Bill I Received Today As A Tip:
Image credits: MaroonSpots
#50 Pretty Brave For An 8% Tip
Image credits: Good_Fan_738
#51 Actually, How About You Don’t (Read The Note First)
This couple came in tonight, chatted it up with my bartender for over an hour. She even took pictures of them and gave them great recommendations. Then left this beauty. Lol actually how about you don’t come back?
Image credits: pizzaninjaturtleseat
#52 32 Separate Checks
Image credits: Beanergriffin
#53 Nahhhh What Did I Do
Image credits: wabangas
#54 From A Party Of 7 People And They Were There For About 2.5 Hours
Image credits: imnotready4anything
#55 This Tip I Got The Other Day
Image credits: Setrix-
#56 “Tip” From A Customer At A Restaurant Who Was A Tourist, Demanding, And Ordered Alcohol With Their Meal
Image credits: Lockraemono
#57 “Serving Teenagers Isn’t That Bad”
Image credits: Green_Aspect_1065
#58 My First Nasty Note
Image credits: katzandwine629
#59 You’re Here Alone, Wyd
Image credits: sanfollowill
#60 Was Asked For An Application While Waiting On A Woman Today And Was Given This As She Left…
Image credits: Outrageous_Finance_5
#61 Pain
Image credits: mullethaver
#62 Ridiculous How People Think This Is Even Remotely Acceptable. Service Was Great Too And Ran Me Around For Over An Hour. Help Me Feel Better, What’s Your Worst Tip?
Image credits: nineties_nostalgia
#63 Oh, Just Some Notes For The Customer
Image credits: zilruzal
#64 ? I’m Going To Fucking Snap ???
Image credits: Floppy_Jalopy3
#65 I Work At A Restaurant In Indiana And Got This Little Note And $10 From A Guy Who Dined And Dashed
Image credits: ftse
#66 Best Non-Money Tip You’ve Received?
Image credits: jeckles
#67 Throwback To A Guest Just Guestin’
Image credits: Kooky_Bicycle8475
#68
Image credits: sereyaaa
#69 Regular Who Has A Different Date Every Week
Image credits: mommyblogger420
#70 Came In 15 Mins Before Close And Left This
Image credits: ghosteagle
#71 All I Can Say Is Please Don't!
Image credits: my-not-sexy-account
#72 $39 Tip In Coins
Image credits: Prize_Detective_820
#73 “We Want A Bunch Of Ranch”
Image credits: fairygorl1111111
#74 Discovered This In Boh. Still Trying To Figure Out What Went Down Here
Image credits: Throwaway-Fart-12345
#75 I Give You, The Eggless Omelette
Image credits: TherapistOfOP
#76 Someone Left Me A $1 Canadian Bill As A Tip Today
Image credits: alexadams181
#77 "You Ruined My Mother's Birthday"
Image credits: SteveEcks
#78 Please Tell Me You're Kidding Me
Image credits: Tophakiin
