Minor things that bother you

[Scott5114]

Here's a new one for me that I hope doesn't spread any further. I went to El Pollo Loco today (it's a West Coast chain that's basically KFC if it were Mexican). In the drive thru, instead of a menu board, there was just a sign with a QR code on it that allegedly went to the menu. (I don't know if this is standard for this chain, or just this location.) And of course, because nothing on mobile ever works right, it wouldn't load on my phone (and I tried two different browsers). So I had to basically hold up the line while the lady read off the menu to me until I found something that sounded like what I wanted.

I really don't understand why we have to make absolutely everything go through shitty-ass mobile phones when we had ways of doing things that worked perfectly fine for decades before that. Why would anyone want to look at the menu on the phone instead of just looking at a sign?

[kkt]

Here's a new one for me that I hope doesn't spread any further. I went to El Pollo Loco today (it's a West Coast chain that's basically KFC if it were Mexican). In the drive thru, instead of a menu board, there was just a sign with a QR code on it that allegedly went to the menu. (I don't know if this is standard for this chain, or just this location.) And of course, because nothing on mobile ever works right, it wouldn't load on my phone (and I tried two different browsers). So I had to basically hold up the line while the lady read off the menu to me until I found something that sounded like what I wanted.

I really don't understand why we have to make absolutely everything go through shitty-ass mobile phones when we had ways of doing things that worked perfectly fine for decades before that. Why would anyone want to look at the menu on the phone instead of just looking at a sign?

I agree.  I've been to a couple of walk-in restaurants that do that too.  For the restaurant, it's convenient because if they want to raise prices they don't have do an expensive print job.  (And who cares about what customers want.)

[Rothman]

Heh.  Seems I somehow always end up with a print menu at those silly QR menu places.  Their pretentiousness rarely is justified by their quality.

[Scott5114]

Here's a new one for me that I hope doesn't spread any further. I went to El Pollo Loco today (it's a West Coast chain that's basically KFC if it were Mexican). In the drive thru, instead of a menu board, there was just a sign with a QR code on it that allegedly went to the menu. (I don't know if this is standard for this chain, or just this location.) And of course, because nothing on mobile ever works right, it wouldn't load on my phone (and I tried two different browsers). So I had to basically hold up the line while the lady read off the menu to me until I found something that sounded like what I wanted.

I really don't understand why we have to make absolutely everything go through shitty-ass mobile phones when we had ways of doing things that worked perfectly fine for decades before that. Why would anyone want to look at the menu on the phone instead of just looking at a sign?

I agree.  I've been to a couple of walk-in restaurants that do that too.  For the restaurant, it's convenient because if they want to raise prices they don't have do an expensive print job.  (And who cares about what customers want.)

When I worked at Burger King, HQ shipped us little number stickers we'd put the prices on with. (They were called "price snipes" for some reason.) So if we needed to change the prices, we'd just peel off the old stickers and put new ones on. They can't have been very expensive, since they would send us three sheets of them a month. (I used to keep the unused ones and still have a few around the house.)

They could also do like Walmart does with those big Helvetica numbers and print them on reusable plastic.

[roadman65]

I remember after COVID some restaurants considered the paper menus unsanitary and a means of transferring the virus, so barcodes became a temporary menu then.

Of course my phone didn't play ball too at the time and had to have a server explain the menu to me. This was a sit down establishment as well. Not a walk up or drive through.

[LilianaUwU]

Speaking of restaurants, those fucking pretentious hipster restaurants. No, I don't wanna support gentrifying my neighborhood, thank you very much.

[Max Rockatansky]

Around here the more run down an area the better taco trucks tend to be.

[kphoger]

Here's a new one for me that I hope doesn't spread any further. I went to El Pollo Loco today (it's a West Coast chain that's basically KFC if it were Mexican). In the drive thru, instead of a menu board, there was just a sign with a QR code on it that allegedly went to the menu. (I don't know if this is standard for this chain, or just this location.) And of course, because nothing on mobile ever works right, it wouldn't load on my phone (and I tried two different browsers). So I had to basically hold up the line while the lady read off the menu to me until I found something that sounded like what I wanted.

I really don't understand why we have to make absolutely everything go through shitty-ass mobile phones when we had ways of doing things that worked perfectly fine for decades before that. Why would anyone want to look at the menu on the phone instead of just looking at a sign?

Now I want to go there, just because I don't have a smartphone and want to make a stink about it.

[Scott5114]

I remember after COVID some restaurants considered the paper menus unsanitary and a means of transferring the virus, so barcodes became a temporary menu then.

Of course my phone didn't play ball too at the time and had to have a server explain the menu to me. This was a sit down establishment as well. Not a walk up or drive through.

Which was stupid because the covid virus doesn't spread through surfaces, and this was well-known by scientists about a month after the lockdowns started.

Now I want to go there, just because I don't have a smartphone and want to make a stink about it.

Were it not for the QR code thing, I'd say you should, because I like it a lot; the food is pretty decent (I had two drumsticks, grilled with Mexican-style seasonings, the same sort of rice you normally get at Mexican places, and I asked for mac and cheese but this time they gave me mashed potatoes that I honestly think I liked better than the mac and cheese). The lady running the drive through seemed to be pretty understanding (I'm guessing she has to deal with people like me a lot, considering that my phone isn't that old, so in theory it should have worked).

I would call their manager to complain, but honestly, I'm too lazy. It's easier to just only eat there when I can fob off the work of ordering on my wife, who for some reason sees nothing wrong with this sort of thing. (Of course, I'm usually the one who wants to eat there, so this isn't really conducive to them getting my business very often.)

[kphoger]

Which was stupid because the covid virus doesn't spread through surfaces, and this was well-known by scientists about a month after the lockdowns started.

Customer perception matters, though.  If paperless menus get a few germophobes in the door to spend some money, then it's worth it.

Doesn't mean I don't want a paper menu, of course.  Actually, a laminated one.

[Max Rockatansky]

I haven't encountered it myself but I would imagine having to scan a QR Code would likely impact my continued patronage at a restaurant. 

[roadman65]

I remember after COVID some restaurants considered the paper menus unsanitary and a means of transferring the virus, so barcodes became a temporary menu then.

Of course my phone didn't play ball too at the time and had to have a server explain the menu to me. This was a sit down establishment as well. Not a walk up or drive through.

Which was stupid because the covid virus doesn't spread through surfaces, and this was well-known by scientists about a month after the lockdowns started.

Remember the whole lockdown thing was stupid.  We never done that during flu epidemics.

Of course politics didn't enter the norm before.  Just like for years things were named after Confederate Generals and now all of a sudden we have to rename as it's all of a sudden offensive to people.

Or what about the Cleveland Indians all of a sudden became offensive to Native Americans.  The FSU Seminoles almost had to change but the Seminole Tribe spoke up and said leave us alone.

[Scott5114]

Remember the whole lockdown thing was stupid.  We never done that during flu epidemics.

I remember the person I caught covid from dying of it. The whole lockdown thing didn't seem so stupid when I was lying in bed wondering if the same was going to happen to me.

[Max Rockatansky]

Time to unlock the COVID thread? 

[Rothman]

I remember after COVID some restaurants considered the paper menus unsanitary and a means of transferring the virus, so barcodes became a temporary menu then.

Of course my phone didn't play ball too at the time and had to have a server explain the menu to me. This was a sit down establishment as well. Not a walk up or drive through.

Which was stupid because the covid virus doesn't spread through surfaces, and this was well-known by scientists about a month after the lockdowns started.

Remember the whole lockdown thing was stupid.  We never done that during flu epidemics.

Dude...

[thenetwork]

Factory installed CD players of late have not been the best quality.

I once drove a company vehicle / Ford Transit 250.  About 2/3rds of the way into the CD, it would start to skip or freeze the track being played. 

Meanwhile, in our personal car / 2018 Ford Escape, if you used the CD Player, the unit would get very hot to the point you couldn't touch the CD player's air vent which was flush with the top of the dashboard.  Ford did not design that player too good in the proper ventilation department.

[kernals12]

Tongue in cheek: naming it the Great Dismal Swamp was bad advertising.

[roadman65]

Progress.


It's so ironic.  When I was younger I then looked forward to new technology. Now that I'm older I wish for the days of old and don't wish to progress forward.



How about Social Media Videos sometimes are reversed.  For example a Dallas clip had the Texas map on the wall in JR Ewing's office backwards.  Then some Bugs Bunny clips had its subtitles written backwards.

Don't know how that's happening, but is getting more common watching clips in a reverse screen where left is right and right is left

[1995hoo]

I haven't encountered it myself but I would imagine having to scan a QR Code would likely impact my continued patronage at a restaurant. 

I only encountered it one time where it was the only option. My wife was out of town and my mother and I went to a restaurant in Alexandria that my wife had no interest in trying (they specialize in mussels, which she doesn't like). The menu was QR code only and my mother had never scanned a QR code and didn't know what to do. So in that respect it was a learning experience for her to see how to use one.

I cannot fathom how it would make any sense to use a QR code at the drive-thru, though.

[kphoger]

I only encountered it one time where it was the only option.

What are customers supposed to do if they didn't bring a phone to the restaurant?

[hotdogPi]

I was at a restaurant that had QR codes, but they had physical menus as a backup.

[1995hoo]

I only encountered it one time where it was the only option.

What are customers supposed to do if they didn't bring a phone to the restaurant?

I don't know. Didn't ask.

[kphoger]

I only encountered it one time where it was the only option.

What are customers supposed to do if they didn't bring a phone to the restaurant?

I don't know. Didn't ask.

But you're sure it was the only option?  You asked for a hard copy menu, and they said they didn't have any?

[1995hoo]

I only encountered it one time where it was the only option.

What are customers supposed to do if they didn't bring a phone to the restaurant?

I don't know. Didn't ask.

But you're sure it was the only option?  You asked for a hard copy menu, and they said they didn't have any?

I didn't ask for one. The waitress said the menu was exclusively QR code and pointed to where it was on the table, so I accepted that. I didn't feel the need to interrogate her about it.

[JayhawkCO]

When my restaurant reopened right after the initial Covid lockdowns, we initially did QR code menus but our clientele skewed a little older and didn't like it. So we just moved to copy paper disposable menus.