Funny LaTice

Well hello fellow human beings………I have to share a HORRIBLE experience that happened to me on Sunday evening, not far from my home.

Let me preface this by saying, in 2010, I feel that I should not even be discussing this issue and it makes my blood boil EVERY time I think about it! If you’ve read my previous blogs, you know that I perform at the open mic parties at the South Jersey Comedy Club(SJCC) on Sunday evenings. The SJCC has been growing, it initially started at Forno Pizzeria & Grille in Maple Shade Nj, and has now expanded to two other locations, Bobby D’s in Pemberton, NJ and Ventura’s Restaurant in Voorhees, NJ. We’re having a fun time and local comedians are able to perform, and use this stage to polish up bits and work on new material as well. Sunday evening, April 25th, was the debut of the Voorhees location and due to my hectic schedule, I had decided I would go and support the show, I just wasn’t going to perform this particular evening. I arrived by 7pm and greeted a few people at the door, then found a nice table along the wall right across from the bar. I put my things down and was checking out the atmosphere, it was a nice sized room and very outdated. I felt like I stepped back in time, so much so, that I thought Frank Sinatra was going to come walking out and start singing on the stage. Anyway, as I sat looking around the room was buzzing, it was a great turnout and people were there for the comedy show, which was fantastic. By now it was probably close 7:15pm and I saw a couple of servers passing me by and going to other tables, one that was only 5ft away from where I was sitting. I still wasn’t thinking much of it, so I decided to check Facebook from my phone, wouldn’t you?? Now I’m catching up on posts by people on my page and reading notifications and threads. Still no one has come up to me, to even ask if I would like water or anything! Time flies though when I’m on Facebook, LOL! So I wasn’t thinking that I was being completed ignored at this point, although, when I waited tables at Harrah’s casino, I know for a fact that when customers come in, they should never wait more than five minutes for you, as a server, you go over and introduce yourself and tell them that you’ll be taking care of them this evening. Now remember it’s now twenty minutes into me being at Ventura’s now and the servers have gone by me probably over ten or fifteen times now. What?? Really?? Still I wasn’t getting irritated, I was enjoying my Facebook time and again got lost in my phone, LOL! I will say that if I was given service, I would not have been bored enough to want to look at my phone. Plus I was talking to the host of the evening Denise Lamberti, about how fun the night was going to be. Since I had hosted one of the previous shows at Forno, she was asking me the ins and outs of hosting. I took that as a nice compliment and I basically told her what I’ve been learning about hosting and important things more seasoned comedians were nice enough to tell me.
I should remind you at this point that time is ticking and still NO server! After Denise left my table, I finally looked at my phone for the time and it was 7:40pm…….WHAT THE F@#K??? Are you serious??? FORTY MINUTES AND NOT ONE SERVER HAS COME OVER TO SEE IF I NEED ANYTHING!! At this point, I walked over to Michelle Teel, who is the founder of the SJCC, she was at the door. I asked her, “so Michelle, how is the service supposed to work tonight? If I’m at one of those tables along the wall, are the servers waiting on them as well?” Michelle then said, yes there are two servers, why what’s up? That’s when I said, I’ve been here since 7pm and no one has come over to me. She was shocked and said do you want me to tell the manager? I was apprehensive at first, then I said, Michelle if you’re going to have shows here, people need to know that they will be treated fairly when the come in. So yes let the manager know. Then the strangest thing happened, some girl who frequents the shows was standing with us as we were talking and after I explained that no one came over to me, she said, ” well maybe they just didn’t come over because they figured you weren’t going to get much or spend much.” WTF???? This little stupid girl, just insulted me and doesn’t even know me! I then told her, you don’t go around judging people, you should NEVER ASSUME, I have money in my pocket and was planning on spending it. I then told her, I’m a grown woman, you don’t know what I’m going to spend! Mind you she said that while she was sipping on a drink she was able to receive from the white server. Now back to the manager, so apparently Michelle went to the manager because she came over to me and she first asked me if I was here the whole time? I said yes, these are my things, then she said, “do you need anything??” Huh?? Let’s go back for a minute…….you’re the manager of a restaurant, you’ve just been told that a CUSTOMER, has been sitting for OVER FORTY MINUTES and you say, “do you need anything??” My reply was simple, “NO, NOT NOW, I WAS PLANNING TO BUY SOMETHING, NOW I’M NOT SPENDING A DIME!” She then said, “well how about some water?” Fine, water! Now as a manager her first response should have been, ” I’m sorry you have been waiting so long, is there anything I can help you with?” THAT’S NOT WHAT HAPPENED! She then brings over the water, which I had no intention on drinking, and she didn’t say another word to me the entire night. Then all of a sudden the server who had disregarded me, comes strolling by as she’s taking food to the table RIGHT next to me, and says, “I wasn’t ignoring you!” REALLY???

Now as a server, if the manager of the restaurant came up to you and told you that you’ve neglected to address a customer, you don’t walk by that customer and say what she said. Again you would approach the customer by apologizing and making sure that they were taken care of. AGAIN THIS DID NOT HAPPEN, so I know that the manager didn’t give a shit, just as the server didn’t! The server, who I later found out her name is Jackie, however for the purpose of my story, she’ll be known as “The Bitch”, continued to walk by me and not say a word! Now at this point I’ve already updated my status on Facebook, saying that it’s a shame that in 2010, I can’t get quality service because of the color of my skin. WOW! The comments starting flying and people on my page wanted to know where I was, and what happened! So I decided to blog about it, because Facebook wouldn’t be able to contain this one! LOL! Ok back to the scene of the crime, I also have to say that in any regular setting, I would’ve been out of there a long time ago! My husband, who’s white, and I have left a few establishments due to discrimination. The only reason I stayed was to support the show. Needless to say, I was heated! I made a point of pushing the glass of water to the other edge of the table and the two other times “The Bitch” ran by asking me if I wanted anything, my answer remained a NO. I should also tell you that I was starving, and thirsty, but out of principle I refused to have anything!

What happened next was very interesting too! I spoke with Michelle the next day and she said she was going over to Ventura’s to talk to them about how much money the SJCC brought in for them and to discuss my incident. Don’t you know the server and the manager of the previous night was there and their responses to Michelle were, “We couldn’t do anything to please that BITCH! She was on her phone and we were busy!” Quick question, since when does someone looking at their phone, stop a server from doing there job and walking over and saying, ” hi can I get you anything tonight?” Wow, that took two whole seconds to say! Now when Michelle told me that they were talking about me and called me out of my name the next day, that pissed me off even more! I also know for a fact that BITCH was NOT the word they used! You know I was “The NIGGER BITCH” who was causing a problem! REALLY?? I didn’t do anything, but walk into the restaurant being who I am, a black woman! Even with the snide comment from the server saying she wasn’t ignoring me, I didn’t act out. I could’ve have called them out that night, or even got on stage and blasted them! I chose not to because if I would’ve have carried on, they would’ve have been pointing their fingers saying, “see that’s what we mean, look at that NIGGER!” So I decided to do something MUCH better, let the whole world know what kind of place they’re running at Ventura’s. Let me also say that in speaking with more people about what happened, this was NOT an isolated incident! Ventura’s located in Voorhees, Nj on Rt.73 has been discriminating for years! The best thing was that after Michelle thought about it more, she decided to pull the SJCC from their restaurant. I told Michelle, that I love the SJCC, and that even with that love, I would never support another comedy show there! That I was going to tell as many people as I could about my experience and how as comedians we shouldn’t have a show there, boosting their business, when they don’t even know how to treat people! Places and people like that are not worth the time and effort!

I hope after reading this, you let as many people as you know about what happened to me, and tell them to tell as many people as possible! Restaurants like this should not be in business and to me if you’re going to be such assholes, just come right out and say it! STOP BEING COWARDS AND HIDING BEHIND YOUR JOB, IF YOU WANT TO BE A RACIST, JUST LET ME KNOW UP FRONT! I MIGHT RESPECT YOU A LITTLE MORE! I will say that in the grand scheme of things, you not bringing me a drink, (LMAOOOOO), is not the end of the world for me! I wonder if she went home that night and said, “man I feel so good, that I didn’t wait on that NIGGER tonight! That’s what she gets for being a BLACK BITCH!” REALLY??? Does that help you sleep at night??? Is not waiting on me, changing your life in any way?? I DON’T THINK SO! GROW UP AND STOP TRYING TO PUSH YOUR MISERABLE LIFE ON OTHER PEOPLE!

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