Heartwarming story alert! Rather than telling her waiter he had given her the incorrect order at her local seafood restaurant, local pacifist and general doormat Mariah Steinhart just took over the rest of his shift instead.
Aww, how thoughtful – we think!
When her waiter brought out a buttered shellfish dish rather than the penne alla vodka she had requested, Mariah decided turn her anger into guilt and took immediate action. She gave him a pat on the back, told him he was doing great work, offered him her seat, and completed the remaining 11 hours of his shift.
“I mean, I’ve worked in the service industry, so I know he was just trying his best,” Mariah said as she cleared the dishes from table 23. “How was he supposed to know I’m allergic to shellfish and also butter?”
Wow, so true!
Mariah’s friend, Lee, recalls the incident.
“I’ll be honest, when Mariah waived him over, I panicked. You just don’t interrupt a server like that!” she told reporters. “But once she pulled out her clip-on tie, pocket notepad, and pen, I knew things were going to be just fine.”
“It’s just not my place to tell him how to do his job, you know?” Mariah explained. “It’s my place to do his job.”
That’s exactly right, hon!
Mariah was a natural at the job, making casual yet respectful conversation with the line cooks, saying “let me get that started for you” after every order, kneeling down to eye level to speak with kids, even laughing when a dad pointed at his empty plate and said “I hated it!”
“When someone messes up your order like that, you’ve just got to have a conversation with them,” she said. “And finish the rest of their job, because clearly they’re overwhelmed.”
This isn’t the first time Mariah has done something like this. Reports confirm she took over a lifeguard shift when she noticed the assigned lifeguard sleeping on the job, and took over a shift at a movie theater when she accidentally said, “enjoy your movie!” to the clerk.
By the end of the night, Lee left with the waiter while Mariah and the rest of the kitchen staff huddled, preparing for the incoming challenge: A middle school cast party for Once on This Island.
What a sweetheart!
