said by Name Game :

ROTF..I like yours better :D I maybe gone a couple days with that link.

said by Jason Levine :

For some reason, that strip reminded me of this:

said by Jason Levine :

The last time I went to an IHOP (because I was craving pancakes), we were seated pretty promptly. However, I noticed that there was obviously old bacon on the floor under the table next to us. They took our order and then we were entertained by a couple trying to keep their 3 or 4 year old child in line.

"Don't stand up! Sit down! Sit down now! You'd better sit down! I'm counting to 3. 1.... 2..... You'd better sit down. You'd better not pick up that knife. Put that knife down. Don't wave that knife around. I'm counting to 3. 1.... 2.... You'd better sit down now." (repeat for quite awhile)

Our food came minus the whipped cream that usually is on their pancakes, so they took it back to put the whipped cream on. Then we finally got to eat. The pancakes were average quality if that. We paid and left.

A big letdown from the IHOP that I remember from when I lived on Long Island. That IHOP was clean, family friendly, and had courteous staff. I'll never go back to the one by me again. Next time I get a pancake craving, I'll just whip up a batch. I can do it much better than they can.

said by dave :

What kind of tastebud-challenged bastard thinks that 'sausage' and 'chocolate chips' belong together?

said by dave :

What kind of tastebud-challenged bastard thinks that 'sausage' and 'chocolate chips' belong together?

said by EGeezer :

Wow, what somebody could do with that picture and Photoshop... :D

said by La Luna :

MMMMMMM...e. Coli, my favorite taco topping!!! :D

said by GadgetsRme :

We're having way too much fun here doing a "gross out". Don't be throwing cold water like the immune system on us. :D :D :D

said by La Luna :

*ahem*

Betcha' you two thought I wouldn't catch you talking about me, huh??

said by GadgetsRme :

I figured it out. La Luna is holding out for Taco Bell.
»today.reuters.com/news/articlene···thNews-2

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Taco Bell said on Sunday it had temporarily closed one of its fast-food outlets and was working with New Jersey health authorities seeking the cause of an outbreak of e. Coli which has sickened nearly a dozen people....

edit to add text

said by AB :

...And let's not forget La Luna !
She'll be needing a certificate for that 'Guess Your Weight' special! :D

said by GadgetsRme :

Nah! Get her the "mary jane" pancakes and she won't care about guessing the weight. If they can give the cops in NM MJ burgers, "mary jane" pancakes should be right fine for La Luna !

said by AB :

She's probably 'weighing her options' before replying. ;)

said by GadgetsRme :

Nah! Get her the "mary jane" pancakes and she won't care about guessing the weight. If they can give the cops in NM MJ burgers, "mary jane" pancakes should be right fine for La Luna ! :D

said by dave :

Why do you people think we have an immune system anyway?

said by dave :

Why do you people think we have an immune system anyway?

said by Chris 313 :

Damnit, AB! Why'd you have to say that?! XD

That first one is why I only stay at hotels with a good rep...and clean sheets! :D

The second one is why I keep my brush in the kitchen.

I also remove my shoes without touching them, or not the bottom at least.

said by AB :

Q: Do you gamble?
A: Every time I dine out.

You probably don't want to know what's on those mattresses and bedspreads at hotels & motels, either.
Some things are better left unexamined.

And btw, if you keep your toothbrush within 6 or 8 feet of your toilet, you may as well be brushing your teeth after dipping it into the toilet.

How about when you grab your shoes by the bottom when removing them? What do you figure you've got on your hand now?

There are occasions when knowledge is NOT a good thing. ;)

said by AB :

Sounds like a great idea, Gadgets!

And let's not forget La Luna !
She'll be needing a certificate for that 'Guess Your Weight' special! :D

said by GadgetsRme :

GO WHOLE HOG!! Get him the "Scoots" special. That's a combo plate (Chef's surprise followed by Dine and Dash). If you prepay he won't have to stop for his license on the way...

said by AB :

Done! (It is Christmas time, after all.) :)

Will that be the 'dine & dash' certificate, the 'must present license along with' certificate,
or the 'chef's surprise' certificate, Sir? ;) :D

said by Cudni :

After all i stirred, but not shaken, for you all, a gift certificate is all you can come up with? ....oh well, please send to...

Cudni

said by AB :

What else we got? :D

said by n1zuk :

Yeah, we should send him something. Maybe a gift certificate to IHOP. :o

said by GadgetsRme :

Well, if you think about it we're all born with a sexually transmitted disease, a terminal one at that.

. . . ends in death.....
. . . Everything is downhill from there. . .

said by GadgetsRme :

And yeah, This is all Cudni's fault!! :D :D

said by AB :

Freakin' Cudni! Always trying to stir something up! :D

said by AB :

What else we got? :D

said by Jason Levine :

Actually, Mythbusters tackled this one. No matter where they put the toothbrush (even outside the bathroom!) it still wound up with fecal bacteria on it. Of course, none of them were at a level to present any kind of a health threat, but it's still kind of gross. ;-)

said by AB :

And btw, if you keep your toothbrush within 6 or 8 feet of your toilet, you may as well be brushing your teeth after dipping it into the toilet.

said by AB :

...mattresses and bedspreads at hotels & motels...brushing your teeth after dipping it into the toilet...grab your shoes...

said by Chris 313 :

While I can see why the manager might think that. This is just disgusting and a health hazard.

Was it one of those long fingernails women wear?

said by bostechie :

Haven't eaten at IHOP since I found a fingernail floating in my glass of tomatoe juice and when I complained, the manager suggested I put it there. I vowed I'd NEVER eat at IHOP again. That was 25 years ago.

said by jimkyle :

In my days as a police reporter for a morning paper, working 4 p.m. to 1 a.m., I always stopped at a Toddle House diner on my way home from work, and became friends with the cook. I noticed that hardly an hour would pass without an officer dropping in for coffee, and one night asked her why the place was so popular. It turned out that the chain had a rule that required her to brew fresh coffee every 30 minutes and toss the old pot -- and late at night there wasn't enough normal trade to use up a full pot in half an hour. She passed the word that anytime an officer wanted a cup during her shift, it would be on the house. As a result she had the best security of any establishment in the city!

said by major marco :

Huh. The same schnooks would probably hand over their bank account numbers, mother's maiden name, and their SSN all for a free, cheap pen and/or tee shirt.

said by dave :

This is the IHOP Genuine Advantage program. IHOP has a right to protect their property in this manner.

said by hpguru :

I hear that the new version turns to maggots in your stomach if you dine and dash.

said by dave :

This is the IHOP Genuine Advantage program. IHOP has a right to protect their property in this manner.

said by Cudni :

from
»www.securityfocus.com/brief/372
"...
For years, privacy advocates have lamented the fact that consumers are willing to turn over their personal information for just about anything. Well, it seems that many Average Joes draw the line at pancakes.

An International House of Pancakes in Quincy, Mass., began requiring that customers hand over their driver's licenses before sitting down to eat--a policy instituted by local management to combat dine-and-dash customers, ABC's network affiliate WCVB-TV reported on Tuesday. The policy had customers up in arms over the potential privacy problems.
..."

Cudni

said by FutureMon :

Free coffee would work wonders in getting cops to voluntarily make pit-stops IMHO. . .

said by PolarBear :



You're right; this is a just-as-effective alternative that wouldn't warrant actually stationing an officer there. I also know that this is a good tactic (a cop randomly showing up for no apparent reason) because it worked great at the Tesoro I worked at.

Kudos, Luna ;)

said by La Luna :

. . Or....how about guard dogs that they could sic on unpaying customers as they flee to their cars? :)

said by La Luna :

Another possibility along that line is to have the cops routinely show up and walk into the IHOP on a regular basis....sometimes just their presence at random times can be a deterrent. I know they do that at our local convenience stores.

said by PolarBear :

If - IF - their dine and dash problem is that bad, why don't they ask the local PD to have a patrol officer hang out by the main entrance/exit to enforce the law? If the problem is really as bad as they make it to be, the local PD shouldn't object, as obviously they would probably be able to make an arrest or two.

And instead of their customers feeling invaded/exploited/etc., they would feel safer knowing a cop was on the premises.

Any thoughts?

said by dave :

What, you'd never had New York City Tequila before?

said by arglebargle :

(I was also once served a cocktail with a dead roach in it).

said by FutureMon :

One of my friends who worked at a Dave and Busters had to cover a bill of almost $100 when her customers dashed on her.

(She quit a few weeks later after another incident with the manager after he verbally abused her in front of customers).

And I have been a pretty regular customer at Denny's for late night/early morning breakfast after partying. They too (at least in this location) told me that they had to cover the bill on dine-and-dash events)

- FM

said by Midak :

I almost took a job at a gas station 14 years ago (times were tough) and they actually trained me how to profile so that I decided who paid up front and who did not. It boiled down to clean cut white people, over the age of 30 got to pay post-pump. Everyone else, pre-payment required.

said by seankelly :

May not be legal, but it happens. There are also some restaurants that require servers to bring in their own change every day in specific denominations.

- FM
--
Undisputed BBR Karaoke Champion! Care to challenge me?]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17372752 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 16:40:16 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17372638 seankelly :

said by FutureMon
You know usually, the waiter/waitress ends up having to cough up the money for the stolen food out of their pay for the night.
- FM
[/BQUOTE :

Surely this can't be legal? In the UK we've had laws for many years preventing such losses from being levied on employees (known as "the truck acts").
]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17372638 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 16:24:41 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17372612 EGeezer :

said by DHRacer :

Well, there is this place called HomeTown Buffet. You pay when you walk in, and then eat all you want.

Sometimes I think they ought to weigh you on the way in, and then on the way out, and make you pay that way though. I've seen some disgustingly overwieght people in that place the one time I went in one.

Weigh-out minus weigh-in ... Hmmmm.

Under that rule, if you bring a brown bomber and a dose of salts with you to the buffet, you could end up with them paying you. :D
--
6EQUJ5]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17372612 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 16:19:49 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17372374 AB : No shirt, no shoes, no license, no service. :D

What if you don't drive?
And is it a license from just one person in the party, or must everybody surrender one?

As far as pre-pay-- ain't gonna happen.
Gas is one thing, food quite another.
There's been a time or two in my dining-out life when the food was so lousy, or the service so terrible, that I refused to pay (I was also once served a cocktail with a dead roach in it). Had I already pre-paid, there would have been more of a problem in refusing to pay, I'm sure.

Of course, the purpose behind their requiring a license is not to harvest personal information. The potential would exist, however, for an unscrupulous employee to use that as a means to initiate an identity theft.
But I can only reiterate-- as far as I'm concerned, handing over my driver's license to get a meal just ain't gonna happen.

*I'd like to be there when they weighed La Luna , though. :D :D]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17372374 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 15:40:24 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17372256 Cudni : inaccuracy, that is the problem with old style profiling, colour of the skin has no effect on it actually

Cudni]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17372256 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 15:17:57 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17372213 Midak : I almost took a job at a gas station 14 years ago (times were tough) and they actually trained me how to profile so that I decided who paid up front and who did not. It boiled down to clean cut white people, over the age of 30 got to pay post-pump. Everyone else, pre-payment required.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17372213 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 15:08:43 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371913 La Luna :

said by DHRacer :

Well, there is this place called HomeTown Buffet. You pay when you walk in, and then eat all you want.

Sometimes I think they ought to weigh you on the way in, and then on the way out, and make you pay that way though. I've seen some disgustingly overwieght people in that place the one time I went in one.

Maybe IHOP should start the system where you pay for 2 drinks and an entree and a side of something up front, per person, then get a credit/cash back for what they don't use of that on the way out?

Weigh me? In public? :o Over my dead body.....I'd rather surrender all my personal information! :D

Yeah, I was sort of thinking of a pre-pay idea something like that. You pay for the *main* part of your meal up front, and then you could always pay at the end for any extras you ordered after that. Kind of inconvenient though....
--
~~Well, I think you're crazy, I think you're crazy, I think you're crazy, just like me...~~

]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371913 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 14:11:51 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371912 MrBradTX :

said by DHRacer :

Sometimes I think they ought to weigh you on the way in, and then on the way out, and make you pay that way though.

And also weigh any waste you might excrete in the restrooms. ;)]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371912 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 14:11:47 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371875 DHRacer : Well, there is this place called HomeTown Buffet. You pay when you walk in, and then eat all you want.

Sometimes I think they ought to weigh you on the way in, and then on the way out, and make you pay that way though. I've seen some disgustingly overwieght people in that place the one time I went in one.

Maybe IHOP should start the system where you pay for 2 drinks and an entree and a side of something up front, per person, then get a credit/cash back for what they don't use of that on the way out?
--
"No one will believe you solved this problem in one day! We've been working on it for months. Now, go act busy for a few weeks and I'll let you know when it's time to tell them." (R&D Supervisor, Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing /3M Corp.)]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371875 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 14:05:58 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371841 richk_1957 :

said by Jason Levine :

said by eSteve :

The last (and only) time I went to the IHOP in my neighborhood, the service was so slow that order went like this:
order
wait wait wait
eat
wait wait wait
ask for check
wait wait wait
estimate the bill and leave money on table
dash

A big letdown from the IHOP that I remember from when I lived on Long Island. That IHOP was clean, family friendly, and had courteous staff.

I live on LI and the 3 times I went I went to IHOP in the past couple years, I ran into the same situation that eSteve has described. Their parking lots are full & they appear to be busy all the time, but that's because their service is so sloooooow.

If I don't feels like making breakfast myself [pancakes, waffles, eggs or whatever], I go to a diner.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371841 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 13:58:58 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371809 La Luna :

said by MrBradTX :

The only issue with pre-pay is when it's not universally enforced. Otherwise you get into profiling issues. But making patrons pre-pay may be a violation of the IHOP owner's franchise agreement.

A Dallas suburb recently had a similar issue with drive-off fuel theft. Most stations simply imposed a 100 percent pre-pay only rule. But one very busy station owner, where 90 percent of drive-off thefts occurred, was prohibited from doing so by language in the franchise agreement. The city council finally had to pass an ordinance mandating pre-payment of fuel city-wide in order for the owner to implement pre-pay.

Well, I was sorting of kidding about that. It probably wouldn't be practical in an restaurant situation anyway. But there's got to be something better than would alleviate their problem while not making legitmate customers feel....icky?

I kind of like the show-a-receipt-at-the-door idea....however, depending on what neighborhood we're talking about, who's to say that a "guard" (some older, retired dude?) wouldn't be shot for trying to stop someone who didn't pay? :huh:
--
~~Well, I think you're crazy, I think you're crazy, I think you're crazy, just like me...~~

]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371809 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 13:54:25 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371733 beck : I've been to IHop's all over the country. I like them most of the time. But some are SLLLOOOOOWWWWWW. This is a management problem.

I love their Harvest multi-grain pancakes.

Anyway, asking for a deposit would be almost ok with me.

Asking for the DL is NOT ok.

They should get a security guard if they have a problem. The wait staff should NOT have to pay for orders not paid for. Hello? Are they trained professional thief stoppers? If you don't get to pick the customers you wait on, you cannot be responsible if they don't pay.
--
It doesn't interest me who you know, or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back.
- Oriah Mountain Dreamer]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371733 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 13:45:03 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371590 EGeezer : Used to be several IHOPs in Columbus OH, but they all seemed to have been placed in areas that subsequently declined into unsafe neighborhoods. Having a security guard and requiring surrender of a drivers license makes me wonder what kind of unsavory clientele frequent the Quincy establishment. The fact that the guard can't spot walkouts wouldn't make me feel very safe either. All they'd need to do is have the cashier print a time/dated receipt and have the customer show it to the guard on the way out(a la WalMart when the stupid RFID tags aren't deactivated.

Before CC readers on gas pumps, some stations used to ask for DLs as well as cash prior to pumping. They said it was because of no-pay driveoffs. When I asked for a receipt of the DL and cash, and an employee ID at the time I gave them the items and another receipt after the sale, they seemed offended. I explained that I needed to ensure that my payment and DL went to a real employee and would not be "lost" and I would not be later accused of a drive-off.

All but a couple begrudgingly complied. The ones who didn't, didn't sell me any fuel.

As for the Walmart FPs on improperly deactivated RFID tags, I tell them at checkout that if I'm stopped and checked due to an alarm, everything I bought is going back. Only once did I return a bag of stuff.
--
6EQUJ5]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371590 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 13:22:36 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371502 dave : This is the IHOP Genuine Advantage program. IHOP has a right to protect their property in this manner.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371502 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 13:08:47 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371497 MrBradTX : The only issue with pre-pay is when it's not universally enforced. Otherwise you get into profiling issues. But making patrons pre-pay may be a violation of the IHOP owner's franchise agreement.

A Dallas suburb recently had a similar issue with drive-off fuel theft. Most stations simply imposed a 100 percent pre-pay only rule. But one very busy station owner, where 90 percent of drive-off thefts occurred, was prohibited from doing so by language in the franchise agreement. The city council finally had to pass an ordinance mandating pre-payment of fuel city-wide in order for the owner to implement pre-pay.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371497 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 13:07:52 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371482 Jason Levine : Privacy issues aside, if a business has to treat each and every one of their customers like a thief, they have a big problem.

And, of course, if any restaurant asked to hold onto my driver's license while I ate, I would refuse to give it up. If they refused to serve me without giving up a driver's license, their loss.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371482 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 13:06:23 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371467 Jason Levine :

said by eSteve :

The last (and only) time I went to the IHOP in my neighborhood, the service was so slow that order went like this:
order
wait wait wait
eat
wait wait wait
ask for check
wait wait wait
estimate the bill and leave money on table
dash

The last time I went to an IHOP (because I was craving pancakes), we were seated pretty promptly. However, I noticed that there was obviously old bacon on the floor under the table next to us. They took our order and then we were entertained by a couple trying to keep their 3 or 4 year old child in line.

"Don't stand up! Sit down! Sit down now! You'd better sit down! I'm counting to 3. 1.... 2..... You'd better sit down. You'd better not pick up that knife. Put that knife down. Don't wave that knife around. I'm counting to 3. 1.... 2.... You'd better sit down now." (repeat for quite awhile)

Our food came minus the whipped cream that usually is on their pancakes, so they took it back to put the whipped cream on. Then we finally got to eat. The pancakes were average quality if that. We paid and left.

A big letdown from the IHOP that I remember from when I lived on Long Island. That IHOP was clean, family friendly, and had courteous staff. I'll never go back to the one by me again. Next time I get a pancake craving, I'll just whip up a batch. I can do it much better than they can.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371467 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 13:04:03 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371381 jaykaykay : I Hop, here I come! Seriously, that company has a bigger problem than meets the eye if they've had to choose this manner in which to try to eliminate that specific problem. Their problem is obviously one of training and management, IMHO. I certainly would not eat at that spot were that the case and wouldn't anywhere else that required such a thing. I wonder what the legal liabilities are that they set themselves up for in doing this.
--
JKK:-)

Age is a very high price to pay for my maturity. If I can't stay young, I can at least stay immature!

»www.pbase.com/jaykaykay

]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371381 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 12:52:15 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371351 eSteve :

said by »www.securityfocus.com/brief/372 :

Late Tuesday, IHOP's corporate offices declared that the single store which implemented the policy would be reversing the decision and underscored that the manager had instituted the measure without notifying the head office.

The last (and only) time I went to the IHOP in my neighborhood, the service was so slow that order went like this:
order
wait wait wait
eat
wait wait wait
ask for check
wait wait wait
estimate the bill and leave money on table
dash
--
eSteve

"Think left and think right and think low and think high." - Dr. Suess
]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371351 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 12:48:29 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371329 FutureMon : Dine 'n dash
Mow 'n Go
Eat 'n Retreat
Chomp 'n Stomp
Plow 'n Bow

A Very popular college kid stunt - especially late night at Denny's.

I read about this in yesterday's msn.com news. You know usually, the waiter/waitress ends up having to cough up the money for the stolen food out of their pay for the night.

It was an employee who suggested taking the ID's - not management, but the manager should have had a little more common sense that an act such as that would be over "the line" in terms of how far they should go to try to curb the thefts.

- FM
--
Undisputed BBR Karaoke Champion! Care to challenge me?]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371329 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 12:44:35 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371210 La Luna : "Privacy" issue or not, that's just plain dumb. They must have a serious dine-and-dash problem that needs to be addressed in a more logical way.

How about requiring people to pay for their food before it's served, like some self-serve gas stations do here in NY?

Pay before you eat. :)
--
~~Well, I think you're crazy, I think you're crazy, I think you're crazy, just like me...~~

]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371210 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 12:29:45 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371120 GadgetsRme : That'd be one place I wouldn't eat, even if it meant missing a meal.
--
Gadgets]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371120 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 12:14:46 EDT http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371026 Cudni : from
»www.securityfocus.com/brief/372
"...
For years, privacy advocates have lamented the fact that consumers are willing to turn over their personal information for just about anything. Well, it seems that many Average Joes draw the line at pancakes.

An International House of Pancakes in Quincy, Mass., began requiring that customers hand over their driver's licenses before sitting down to eat--a policy instituted by local management to combat dine-and-dash customers, ABC's network affiliate WCVB-TV reported on Tuesday. The policy had customers up in arms over the potential privacy problems.
..."

Cudni
--
Some are born to failure, others achieve it, all deserve it.
Help yourself so God can help you.
MVP, Microsoft Windows Security 2006]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,17371026 Thu, 30 Nov 2006 12:00:51 EDT