Customer denied a bagel by barista finds clever loophole to get around silly café rule

Restaurants and cafeterias are often accused of enforcing unreasonable rules, especially by customers who leave the establishments with less-than-pleasant experiences. However, sometimes diners go the extra mile to get what they want, pulling clever tricks from Pandora's box. This was the case for u/Shaxai, whose request for a bagel was denied. The café-goer shared their encounter with a rather uncooperative barista. While the server initially stood firm in refusing to accept a bagel order, she eventually had to relent after an unexpected twist in the story.

The post began with the diner recalling their bittersweet experience at a coffee shop about a year ago. They were with a friend, as they weren’t particularly hungry and didn’t want a heavy meal. “I wasn’t too hungry but wanted a quick bite,” they wrote, noting it was early in the morning and they didn’t intend to overburden their stomachs. When they approached the counter, they ordered a cup of coffee along with a delicious cream cheese bagel. However, they were caught off guard when the barista refused their request. “The barista told me the bagel was on the kid’s menu, and therefore I couldn’t order it,” the diner explained, asking for clarification to ensure they had heard correctly.

“I confirmed it was a regular-sized bagel and asked her for more clarity: ‘So, you’d rather I not order anything (the other options on the menu were full breakfast meals, skillets, etc.) than give you business because of a silly rule?’” they wrote. The barista remained unmoved, responding with a snide “Yep.” This prompted the diner to laugh. They simply nodded to her out of courtesy and said, “Ok,” before returning to their seat. “Don’t want to sell me a bagel? I bet,” said the upset diner, deciding to turn the tables. They tried explaining the situation to their friend, who seemed uninterested in escalating things. However, the friend had something else in mind to exact a bit of revenge on the rude barista. “Nah, I have an idea,” replied the friend, and proceeded to place an order for one bagel on DoorDash, the popular food delivery app.

“We keep an eye on the counter, and sure enough, I see the bagel ready to be picked up. I approach the counter and ever-so-kindly ask for my DoorDash order for (Name),” the post continued. The same barista “tossed the bagged bagel” at them without a word and walked away. “Very weird hill for them to die on, especially because bagels are such a common breakfast item. It was odd to limit it to children. I can understand wanting to sell the more expensive breakfast meals instead, but seriously?” the customer concluded, sparking a variety of reactions from the online community. “DoorDash takes a big chunk of the profit from that bagel, so the restaurant lost profit. That’s somewhat satisfying,” u/insomniaddict91 jokingly remarked. “With that kind of reply from the barista, I would have said, ‘Okay, forget my coffee. I won’t be having anything,’” u/MarkVII88 agreed.