Last week the boys decided they wanted Chinese Food for dinner. Whenever we order something from a restaurant, it is always the same restaurant, and we order the same items.
If we want something different we would not go to the Food Court, we would got to another Chinese take-out place down the road.
After our dinner decision was made, Hubby and I drove to the Mall and when I walked up to the Chinese Food counter I almost turned and ran. The overhead menu was completely different! They changed it, and I could not order. Everything looked exactly the same in the display case, all the items were in the same places they had always been, but the menu was different.
I always order the three entrée combo. It comes with rice, and a choice of three entrées. We order chicken lo mein, chicken terriaki, and sesame chicken as the entrée–never anything else. The problem was the menu no longer had the 1,2, or 3 entrée with rice combo choices. In its place were large displace signs depicting the dishes available.
Sign One said, Sesame Chicken and Rice, and showed a picture of the sesame chicken dish. That is not the one I can order, I need three entrée.
Sign Two said, Blackened Chicken, Rice, and your choice of one additional entrée. That could never work because not only did I need three entrées, none of the three I wanted to order was Blackened Chicken.
Sign Three (the last of the signs) said, Chicken and Broccoli with Rice, and your choice of two additional entrées. This is where the panic set in. This was the three entrée combo, but I did not want Chicken and Broccoli! There was no way for me to order my usual meal.
Hubby insisted that I would still be able to order what I wanted, that is was just the signs that changed. He insisted that the signs were only “examples” of what I “could” order together. I of course disagreed. THAT IS NOT WHAT THE SIGNS SAID!
The urge to run for the door was overwhelming. I turned to Hubby and said, “Forget it! I can’t order from here. Let’s just go get pizza!”
Hubby insisted that I needed to pretend the signs didn’t exist, and just order as I usually do. This was extremely difficult to do and I felt my face flushing red as the panic of the situation was setting in. To my surprise, I was able to order my regular meal, and Hubby was right the signs were just an “example” of what I “could” order together.
That drove me crazy, and is still bothering me today. Why would they do that to me? Why not keep the menu signs the same and stop making it confusing. Apparently, I was the only customer to have this issue with their signs! This is another example of concrete, inflexible, and routine thinking–when something, even small changes caused panic and urge to flee.
Now for the funny part: Hubby is constantly tells me how much I am like Sheldon on the Big Bang Theory. (We love the show, and Sheldon too)
A few days later an episode played while we were eating dinner in front of the TV in the living room. What do you think happened in the show? Sheldon and the gang were sitting in a Chinese Food Restaurant where the restaurant had changed their menu. Not only could Sheldon not order from the new “different” menu, or get over the typo present in the new menu, but he actually left the restaurant to go get pizza instead (just like I suggested we do a few days earlier).
After the scene, Hubby eyed me with that raised-eyebrow, you see I told you so, look. At least we all had a good laugh. I guess sometimes Hubby is right after all!
Enjoy this clip from that episode of the Big Bang Theory!
An unannounced change in lunch menu last spring caused the biggest heart attack for this momma. My aspie rarely eats at school but it was something he liked so we agreed. Of course the truck didn’t come in. Before it was all said and done he shoved a child, ran a lap around the school and across two streets before he finally hit a wall. And he wanted to know why I was crying and upset lol
I know what you mean! Today, I went to pick my 9 yr old up from school because he had a doctor’s appointment. He asked me to get him before lunch because they were not scheduled to have anything he liked, so me and Hubby show up to take him out to lunch before his appointment. Well, he came out of school in tears because they were having the baked chicken that he liked instead of the chicken sandwiches that he doesn’t. It took quite some doing to calm him down and stop the tears to get him to see that he likes Mexican food from his favorite restaurant better than the school baked chicken. AND no one at the school seems to understand that these unexpected changes can cause these kinds of reactions!
I like consistency when I visit a favorite restaurant, too. I tend to order the same things when patronizing certain restaurants. I hate it when menus change, too. It confuses me, especially if they remove what I always tend to order. Talk about frustrating.
LOL I have actually left restaurants when I discovered that what I always order has been removed from the menu! If I wanted something else I would have gone somewhere else!
This is so me! I especially hate it when restaurants change their menus and the 1 or 2 items I eat are gone. I remember going out to a favorite place to celebrate my son’s graduation, and they had an all new menu. We had just been there the week before, but now everything familiar was either gone or different. It took me forever to find something to eat.
I also hate going to places with 100 items on their menu. Too many choices, even if only 1 or 2 will work for me.
I would love the menu to say, “Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner!” That would work for me!
I can soooo relate to this. I have stopped going to restaurants in the past if the menu changes or the way they make my favorite item changes. No more Gorgonzola potatoes? Not going there anymore. 😀 I’m glad you at least got to order the right food, in spite of their hideous sign fail.
I actually thought of you when I saw that sign! I knew I wouldn’t be the only one.
Ha! That’s so funny. Well, at least we’re in good company. 🙂
Pingback: They Changed the Menu and I wanted to run! | Appalachian aspie.
i so agree with your take & it has happened countless times in restaurants.
i can read perfectly fine but menus are foreign to me. i order the first item i see that is vegie & i miss much.
my wife sounds a lot like your husband & has become very helpful especially when i become panicky & want to run. jerry bourne pdd-nos, adhd & anxiety dx