New Pet Peeve

[ardubz]

When I was in Cuba, I ordered "cervezas" for the first day or two then stopped when I realized that I sounded like a huge tool. I wasn't impressing anyone obviously.

Your story is similar, so your guy is a tool also.

[kkcountry]

my dad tries to get me to order in spanish every time we go to the local joint owned by first generation mexican americans. i feel the same way about it the op does, i'd never do it because i'd feel like a tool.

edit - i do pronounce spanish words on the menu "properly" (ie, pollo with a y sound) i don't feel like a tool doing that

[cpitt398]

i used to wonder if this was rude myself but I have come to the conclusion it is not.

I have a friend that took a very fast paced course in Spanish (in Mexico actually) and he would do this when we would go out to eat. To be fair, I believe he actually asked the person in English first if they would mind, but from what I remembered the worker usually reacted with encouragement.

This was also in KY where a white guy with blonde hair speaking Spanish is very uncommon.

[daryn]

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I've never seen what you describe, but on the other end of the spectrum: Same Hispanic guy behind the counter (can understand peoples orders, but is obviously not fluent in English), middle-aged to older white man or woman in front of me in a longish line:

"Is your grilled chicken sandwich 100% organic?"

or

"I see the value meal is $4.99, how much would it be for the meal without the chips?"

or

"Whatever happened to the other Quiznos over on South Main?"

or

"Can I get a small roast beef sandwich with swiss cheese on one half, cheddar on the other half, and mayo just on the half the swiss"

I made a rare trip to McDonalds for breakfast last Saturday, It was hugely busy, and at least 3 people in front of me in line asked ridiclous questions that cashier clearly wouldn't be able to understand/answer and persisted in repeating themselves multiple times, asking follow-up questions and finding other ways of holding up the line.

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If your major annoyance here ISN'T the fact that the guy behind the counter doesn't speak enough English to answer simple questions or write down a picky order, then there's something wrong with this post.

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yeah that's the first thing i thought of when i read this. "uh oh, the guy working the counter looks like he doesn't really understand english! i guess i'll just order as simply as possible and not get what i actually want!"

[otnemem]

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While in principle I agree that having non proficient enlgish speakers is annoying. But it's more annoying when I see people who don't realise that low level service employees are only capeable of (or interested in) performing the simplest of tasks, and that complaining to them is useless and you have to go to management if you have any expectation of getting an answer.

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exactly. and in many cases that non-fluent person is doing a job that some white kid didn't want, or doing it for less money.

anyway, it's not like you can't order your burger without pickles, you just can't ask them about whether the cow was given benzodiazapams to make it feel better before it got butchered. it's not like some dumb high school kid in the same spot is going to give you a great answer anyway, even if it's easier to understand.

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Tell me where this lands on the scale of important request/basic grasp of the English language:

A few years ago, I was having a lot of gastrointestinal problems, and my doctor thought I might be gluten-intolerant (can't even trace amounts of wheat, rye, barley or oats). I used to always go to Chipotle to get the crunchy tacos, and I'd always ask the guy preparing it to change his gloves (because they handle wheat tortillas). Chipotle (in a corporate sense) is very good about food intolerances and allergies, and the workers would always be happy to change the gloves (takes two seconds). I was in DC once, went to Chipotle and asked the woman behind the counter if she could change her gloves because of my "allergy" (easier to say that intolerance). She had no idea what I meant. I just kept mimicking taking off of gloves and asking her if she could change her gloves, because I can't eat wheat, etc. Another woman came over (presumably a manager of some kind), and neither of them had ANY idea of what I was trying to say. They just started laughing uncomfortably, and I got really [censored] annoyed. I ended up just leaving because I was steaming so badly at that point.

I feel like someone who's working in a consumer-oriented industry should understand "can you please change your gloves."

[gamblore99]

My pet peeve for restaurants

Me: Can I have a table?

Smiling waitress/waiter: No.

How does anyone think this is funny?

[otnemem]

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My pet peeve for restaurants

Me: Can I have a table?

Smiling waitress/waiter: No.

How does anyone think this is funny?

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This is truly irritating, unfunny, mind-boggling etc. I'm assuming this person has used this joke over and over and over and still thinks it's hilarious.

[Adebisi]

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yeah that's the first thing i thought of when i read this. "uh oh, the guy working the counter looks like he doesn't really understand english! i guess i'll just order as simply as possible and not get what i actually want!"


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I was thinking of situations when it is totally obvious that the guy behind the counter won't be able to answer your question or understand your request, yet you persist on asking anyways (repeatedly), often holding up the line for several minutes.

Like someone mentioned earlier, I'm not talking about ordering a burger with no pickles or extra cheese. I'm talking about making complex requests that fall well outside what's listed on the menu, or asking a stupid question like whether the Italian salad dressing is heavier on the oil or the vinegar and whether has a lot of celery in it.

[Misfire]

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An assignment in my high school spanish class was to do this very thing. We had to go to a restaurant and order in spanish. If I remember correctly I think the prof told us which restaurants to go to and told the stores first.

It was definitely much more embarrassing for me than for the guy taking my order.

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I was a victim of this in college too. I think Spanish profs do this for kicks.

[miss_set_flopper]

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op,
the point of your post is what?
that a normal american should not know how to speak spanish?
i agree but this may be the stupidest thread that i have ever seen, i really hope no one else responds to this.

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i don't see the what the big deal was? you hate mexicans or something? as a hispanic-american, i don't mind hearing spanish from caucasians, show they understand more about the world then most americans