Signs, Signs, Everywhere Signs
Some of you may have noticed a small sign that sits at our register these days. It says: “To help us get your order correctly, Please finish phone calls before ordering.” The comments we have gotten on this sign have been surprising to me- people seem to love it.
The sign was created on a day where on three separate occasions we got drinks wrong because the person ordering them was on a cell phone. One woman said “ I’ d like a coffee. ” She was pretty engrossed in her conversation, so I held up two different cup sizes and she pointed to the smaller one . We got it for her and rung it up , but then she tasted it, put her phone down and said “ This isn’t a latte! ” I understand where the disconnect happened – I say to my roommate all the time “ I’m going to get a cup of coffee ” , but really mean a latte, mocha, or my favorite – a tiny breve. Now, if all you’re ordering is a small coffee, we can probably figure that out with hand gestures and miming – ( although I have seen staff get creative with the charades for “ room for cream? ” milking a cow, anyone?) but if it’s more complicated than that, we need a little bit of interaction to make sure you get the drink you want- what size, what milk preference, hot or cold, which kind of chai, and if you ’ d like whip cream to top it all off. If you’ve ever seen someone try to mouth the words “Large-decaf-soy-vanilla-latte-with-no-foam” you can begin to understand where this all falls apart . My lip reading skills are even worse than my mind reading skills.
But, I think people like the sign for a simpler reason. It reminds us all that, yes, you may just be running an errand or getting a cup of coffee, but more than that, we’re all people interacting. That taking a moment to stop and just do one thing might be a more relaxing way to enjoy your coffee. It’s too easy to get caught up and whisked away by the important things in our lives that grab at us , through our cell phones especially, and miss what’s happening right now, right in front of us.
Here at Pacific Bay, we really do want you to walk out the door with the exact delicious drink that you desired , but without your help, it might just end up being a small coffee. (which is pretty great too! But not if you were hoping for a latte.)