Ok... I must start this rant by saying that Arby's is my favorite fast food restaurant. I might even go as far as saying its my favorite restaurant period. But that's a stretch. I have 3 categories when choosing my favorite restaurant. The first is fast food, in which Arby's wins. The second is the casual dining restaurant in which Chili's wins. And the third is Expensive luxury restaurant in which Bahama Breeze wins. (Yes... even though its still kinda casual, its expensive and good. lol.) The difference being... i would take a date to Bahama Breeze and i would take a friend to Chili's. Ok... I'm off topic.
As i said, i love Arby's. However, they really piss me off. Let me just start off by saying that when your posted hours of operation says you are going to be open until 10:00pm I expect you to stay open until 10:00pm and provide full service and food. Unfortunately, Arby's doesn't understand this. I can tell you that around 8:00pm Arby's usually pours out all of the tea. Around 9:00 they stop slicing turkey and put it all away. Around 9:30 they stop making food period. What happens if you go into Arby's at 9:45? You have the choice of a roast beef sandwich and a fountain drink. Now, if you like these things, then you'd be fine. But if you are like me, you will be pissed off.
What do i get when i go to Arby's? I get ONE thing. And only ONE thing. That is a roast chicken club, a giant sized order of curly fries and a large Ice Tea. :-) I can say that faster than you can say Arby's. That's the only thing i like there. That meal just hits the spot for me. That meal is associated with Cowboy Bebop and Star Gate. lol. Seriously... When i eat that meal, i want to watch Spike beat the shit out of someone and Tilk shoot a Gould with a staff weapon. Ok... that was geeky. But still... that's what i think of. Again, i seem to be getting off topic.
What i don't understand is why its so hard for Arby's to make the food they advertise until they close. How hard is it to make tea until 10:00pm? Why is it that you have to pour it out at 8? Why not pore it out at 10 when you close. Why stop and put up everything but roast beef at 9? Most restaurants i know require employees to stay after the closing time to clean up and put stuff away. You wouldn't see a restaurant like Teds (a Mexican restaurant) stop making tortilla's before they close? You wouldn't see McDonalds stop making hamburgers before they close. Why does Arby's think they can do this? I don't know.
The other thing that pisses me off is that they lock the doors and turn the lights off at 9:45. One time, several months ago, i drove up to Arby's on a Saturday night at 9:45. I drove up and sat there. I sat there at least 30 seconds before i see all the lights and signs go off. I'm sitting there thinking "Ok... did Edmond just loose power or did Arby's just close early?" Just to make sure i was correct about them closing at 9:45, i got out of my truck and walked to the door to see what the sticker said. Sure enough, it said they were open until 10:00pm. It was only 9:48 according to my GPS. So i drove up to the window and saw the lights in the restaurant open but no one visible. I sat there until about 9:50 or 51. At which point i see a head peak out from behind the cash register and then abruptly pull back. At this point, i was flaming mad. I turned my siren/Air-Horn/PA unit on and let it go. I sounded that Air-Horn for about 30 seconds. At this point, i see the head peak around again. To which i do the dreaded "come here" finger gesture. (with the index finger of course... i wasn't trying to be rude. ) A black gentleman comes to the window and asks what i need. I say then say that i would like a number 8, giant sized with curly fries and a large ice tea. He says "Oh... We are closed." I look at him with a blank stare and say "But your sign says you don't close until 10" He says "It is 10." To this i abruptly pull my GPS off of my dash and show him the face plate which says 9:59pm. I say "According to this clock its 9:59. This clock is linked to 25 satellites in space that are calibrated by NASA and set to the Atomic clock. This clock is not wrong. It is never wrong. If it is wrong, there are 25 satellites in space that are wrong." At this point he says "Well it says its 10:00pm now." To which i look at it and it says its 10:00pm. To which point i say "I drove up here at 9:48. I've wasted 12 minutes of my life waiting on you people. You will go back and make me my food now."
Btw... That is a little trick i learned from my Dad. It works about 75% of the time. When someone says they can't do something or they won't do something, simply make a factual statement and then say that they will do something. Like... "I'm sorry sir i can't let you into this restricted area." You say "I have clearance to get in. Now you will let me in." and they will let you in. Its kind of funny sometimes for the strangest reasons too. Like... if you are in a price war at a garage sale with the owner and he won't take 15 dollars for an item that he wants 20 for... just kind of laugh and then tell him "You'll take 15 dollars" and hand him the money and act like you are leaving. What's he gonna do? lololol. Ok... off topic again. ARG!
After i make my demand he looks at me funny and then says "We've already put up all the food, even if i wanted to make you the food, i couldn't. " To this i just stare at him and in a pissed off tone say "Alright. But you might mention to your manager that she'll be hearing from the district manager soon." I really hate using that threat though. Mainly because i know its over-used. It's like telling a cop that they are going to be fired or loose their job. 9 times out of 10 nothing happens. But i was pissed off and needed something to vent my anger with. I'm sure the lady was just trembling with fear after she heard the threat..... rofl. Ok, maybe not. But it was still fun.
So basically... even though Arby's is my favorite restaurant, they still suck at time management. If you want their food, make sure you get their at least 2 hours prior to their posted closing time or you will not be able to order the food you want.
-Matt Keller
