A little bit of respect shown toward service industry workers will go a long way. It’s only common sense to treat others like you’d like to be treated, too. Sometimes, however, hunger can make you forget all about that. One contentious issue among people is the question about how close to a restaurant’s closing time is it no longer polite to barge in and order food. Some folks think that as long that the doors are open, it’s fine; others, however, avoid doing so near closing time.

That’s exactly the conundrum that redditor u/AppleBottmBeans and his wife faced recently, with 9 minutes left before a local place’s closing time. The internet user turned to the r/mildlyinfuriating online community to share what happened. Check out the full story below and the advice that the readers shared.

Restaurant staff still need to clean the place before leaving, so ordering food right before closing time may not be the best idea

Image credits: Alan Light (not the actual photo)

One man shared how he and his wife disagreed about this issue during a recent night out

Image credits: Katerina Holmes (not the actual photo)

Image credits: u/AppleBottmBeans

Good communication is paramount. The staff also need to let the customers know that they came in too late

Image credits: Andrea Piacquadio (not the actual photo)

The OP’s story made huge waves on Reddit. At the time of writing, u/AppleBottmBeans’s post had already gotten 66.3k upvotes. Meanwhile, a few users had given the author awards for the story as well.

The author explained that he thought it was rude to the restaurant staff to come in and order food barely 9 minutes until closing time. “I’ve never been a server but I could tell from their faces that they were really [effing] annoyed,” he wrote.

“I explained to her how I was uncomfortable going into a sit-down restaurant when it’s this close to closing time,” the OP shared on Reddit how his wife became upset when he voiced his concerns. “I tried to explain that the staff probably wants to clean up and go home, and it’s just common courtesy not to barge in right at the last minute.”

Broadly speaking, the redditor is right: it’s quite impolite to demand food when the place is right about to close. The staff will have either already cleaned the premises and kitchen or were about to get started.

And if they’ve got fresh customers to serve, that means they’ll finish work later and arrive home closer to midnight than they’d like. So a little bit of extra empathy would work well here.

On the flip side, the restaurant could also communicate better on this issue, instead of expecting every single customer to read their minds and be thoroughly understanding. The staff could have ever-so-politely informed the couple that, unfortunately, the kitchen is already closed for the evening, but they’d be happy to reserve a table for tomorrow night.

A lot depends on the type of place you’re eating at. Fast food places aren’t much similar to fancy restaurants, for instance

Image credits: Pixabay (not the actual photo)

However, if the staff feels uncomfortable turning away customers, the restaurant could always put up a small note near its opening times, clearly explaining when their kitchen closes. That specific time will depend entirely on the business owner’s and manager’s policy.

Of course, a lot will depend on whether you’re going to a sit-down restaurant, a local cafe, or a fast food place. You have a ton more flexibility with the latter (and the employees are likely to tell you straight up if you’re there too late).

Suppose it’s a local cafe run by the people from your neighborhood. In that case, they might be more flexible with their closing times because social connections and return customers are incredibly important for business.

But if it’s a (semi-fancy) sit-down restaurant, a good rule of thumb to keep in mind is to order your food at least half an hour before the official closing time (though some say that 15 minutes works fine, too). That should give the staff enough time to cook your food, serve you without rushing, and then get on with their cleaning and closing after you pay your bill (don’t forget the tip!).

Meanwhile, if you’re unsure about the specific restaurant’s policy, you can always ask the staff or call ahead. Good communication is the strongest tool in your arsenal right here.

Here’s what some internet users had to say about the situation

[stories from people who’ve worked in customer service]

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