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Getting the job done often involves making a few mistakes along the way. But when you accept your hiccups and make amends with your inadequacies, they stop haunting you and evolve into funny stories you can use to make people smile.

When Twitter user @lilyannatrnr heard her boyfriend tell her about the time he was working as a server at a "posh hotel" and completely misunderstood a client, she thought the anecdote was so funny, it definitely belonged on Twitter. And she wasn't the only one.

The tweet detailing the fail has already received over 243K likes and inspired other food industry workers to share their fails as well. I don't know if this thread proves that we will soon be replaced by AI or shows that humans can't leave a brother to suffer on his own, but it sure makes restaurants, bars, and coffee shops look like fun places to work at. Sometimes.

#1

Funny-Food-Service-Fails

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Marcellus the Third
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Flemish proverb is "Fish has to swim thrice: Once in water, once in butter, and once in wine". (Come to think of it, much more useful than most other proverbs; like those about early birds and worms -- I don't micro-manage my garden's worm population.)

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Twitter user @fleursaugefille was one of the people who joined the fun. When they worked at a college cafeteria, they didn't know what kosher was. When the time came to serve a Jewish convention and someone asked @fleursaugefille if the bacon bits were kosher, they thought the question was "Are these for sure?" as in "Can we eat them?" so they replied "Sure, go ahead." 

"I worked at the cafeteria for three years but I was only 14 when I started," @fleursaugefille told Bored Panda. "I agree that [such mistakes don't necessarily make someone a bad employee] but it also shows that my employer should've educated us on what kosher was."

"I'm not sure if there's any real resolution to the story because they ate the bacon bits and I never heard about it again!"

Debby Carreau, who has been recognized as one of Canada's Top 25 HR Professionals, says it's completely normal to feel embarrassed, ashamed, disappointed or worried that you might get fired after making a mistake at work. "Accept what happened and allow yourself to take in those emotions — but not for too long. Then, take a few deep breaths and tell yourself, It’s not the end of the world," Carreau wrote.

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Realizing that will allow you to really analyze the situation. "Pretend it was someone else that made the mistake and evaluate what happened with a calm, objective eye."

Next, determine if there's a way to fix your mistake. Should you have that opportunity, do it immediately. "Then, let your boss know what happened and apologize. Depending on how big or small the mistake was, you can do it via email or in person," Carreau explained. Keep it short and get to the point: 'Hi [X], I sent you the wrong sales report this morning. I'm so sorry about that. I just emailed you the correct one, but please let me know if there's anything else I can do. If any of your colleagues were affected by the mistake, reach out and apologize to them as well."

Consider having a private meeting with your boss. "This isn't always necessary, but if your mistake led to some serious consequences, ask your boss if you can have a private meeting. When you have your sit-down, be factual, clear and take responsibility: 'I wanted to apologize again for [X] and explain to you what happened.'" A good boss expects you to make mistakes, so don't whine or try to come up with excuses.

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After you've explained what happened, offer a solution. "You might say: 'I know I already missed the deadline, but I can stay late today to finish things up.' If you truly can't think of a solution, just be honest: 'I want to rectify the situation, but I'm not sure how. What can I do to make things better?'"

Don't forget to adjust your work style until you find a routine that works best for you. With the right mindset, making mistakes can lead to personal growth, so be kind to yourself, eliminate any negative self-talk, and then let it go.

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#10

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Dónal Ó Murchadha
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Just to explain. When somebody says and take one for yourself. It doesnt literally have one with us. It means take the price of a drink from the change as a tip.

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#12

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Kenny Kulbiski
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Guess I've led a sheltered life, I've never heard of plaice either.

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Kristina
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Some of these just boil down to bad training. As a former chef and restaurant manager, you should always make sure your staff is knowledgeable about the items that you serve.

dariab_1 avatar
Daria B
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In my country, you actually go to school for this. So the places mostly assume you'd learn it there, if that's where you graduated from.

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Bob Belcher
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

How old are you allowed to start working in other countries???

lactoseintolerant avatar
Vee Lyons
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Good job she didn't as for rock and chips, :) Rock is short for rock salmon for those who aren't from the UK.

rl_2 avatar
R L
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I recall a book by Gerald Durrell titled Fillets of Plaice- that's when I found out it was a type of fish.

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Scagsy
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I can understand mishearing that as plate of chips, so not totally daft

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Pixie T
Community Member
11 months ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

On maybe the 4th date with my girlfriend we had a chippy dinner. She asked for roe and chips. She is foreign and has a strong accent . I misheard and got her a roll, thought she wanted a chip butty. Felt so guilty that all she ate was chips for dinner.

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Britt Nordberg
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Think it was Fawlty Towers that had a joke about a plaice/place, otherwise I would not have known it either. (English is not my first language, mind you.)

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#13

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H Edwards
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Imagine going to Olive Garden and getting snooty about the mussels lol (I'm not from the USA and I've never been to Olive Garden, but I gather it's not exactly fine dining)

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#14

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#16

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Riani Kivela
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

They might have been asking for pastured chicken, and just got the wording wrong.

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#17

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H Edwards
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

It is kind of stupid that vodka and orange has its own name. It doesn't seem necessary to name drinks that only have two ingredients.

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#21

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Panda Kicki
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

A Jewish convention and noone could have given the staff some basic info on what to serve and not? This is really bad.

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#22

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Anna Te
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

You should feel bad about calling him/her a"dwarf". Or is this an appropriate way to say this in english? I am not a native speaker, in my country this is very rude.

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#25

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Pauline Bennett
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I hope you think of it once a day because its funny. Not because you made a mistake.

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#30

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Becklass
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3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I went on a posh gin tasting Experience with my sister. When asked how it tasted, all she could think of was saying was ‘ginny’. I love my sister!

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Note: this post originally had 48 images. It’s been shortened to the top 30 images based on user votes.

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