General Discussion

Last edited Sun Jul 27, 2025, 03:49 AM - Edit history (1)

I think he had just run to the restroom, but people were lining up to place their orders (they stayed pretty busy) and the only employee around didn't speak English and was looking a little flustered standing at the register and telling one person after another "No English". Of course they had a printed paper menu, so after waiting a few minutes, I picked one up, pointed to the item I wanted while holding up one finger, and pronounced the name as well as I could (I tended to order the same few items over and over, so I had heard the cashier relay the order by voice many times). "One {I figured he probably knew what that meant} -- kung pao chi, cha la, bai fan" (phonetically rendered by me, I have no idea of the 'official' transliteration). The fill-in cashier relayed the order to the cook and rang it up (most dishes were the same price) and I put down a $5 (or maybe it was $6) and he pulled out a handful of change and spread it on the counter. I picked out what change I needed and (IIRC) held up a coin -- probably a quarter -- and said "one more", which he put on the counter. I put my change in my pocket, he returned the rest to the drawer, and we were done. No sweat. Needless to say I was left feeling very smug and cosmopolitan, and I hoped the cook-cum-cashier maybe got a little boost of encouragement. Before the next customer in line could try the same trick, the manager showe up and took back the register, and all was well, with the line shorter by one and one more purchase on the register tape despite his absence.