Ever found yourself at a drive-thru, meticulously counting out 36 cents so the cashier has exact change? You probably felt pretty good about it, right? It was like you were making their day just a little bit easier. Well, what if I told you that a well-intentioned gesture might actually be making their incredibly stressful job even harder?
It sounds wild, but it’s true. Fast food is a massive part of American life. This isn’t just a meal; it’s a high-pressure, high-speed system. And for the people working inside that system, the pressure is immense. The industry often runs on a model that one labor analyst calls “management by stress,” where the entire operation is designed to push employees to meet impossible targets.
For quick-service restaurants (QSRs), the annual employee turnover rate can soar above 130%. This constant churn means stores are often understaffed, putting even more strain on the workers who remain. So, this isn’t just a list of pet peeves. It’s a peek behind the curtain at what it’s really like to work in fast food.
Trying to Pay with “Helpful” Exact Change
You think you’re a hero for saving the cashier from doing math. But you’re actually the villain of the drive-thru line.
Here’s the thing: drive-thrus are timed. The average total time from pulling in to driving off is 5 minutes and 43 seconds. That clock often only stops when your car moves away, so fumbling for change keeps the pressure on the employee whose performance is being measured by a stopwatch.
What to do instead: Have your card or mobile payment app ready. It’s almost always the fastest option. If you must use cash, have it counted and ready before you get to the window.
Ordering a “Secret Menu” Item You Saw Online
That “Snickerdoodle Frappuccino” or “Quesarito” you saw on TikTok might look amazing, but don’t be surprised if you get a blank stare when you order it. Employees aren’t trained on these viral trends. They either have to guess the recipe—meaning you might not get what you wanted—or tell you they can’t make it, which is frustrating for everyone.
Social media has created a situation where “overworked and underpaid service industry employees” feel like they’re being treated as “personal chefs,” forced to make up meals on the fly. This completely disrupts the standardized workflow they’re trained to follow.
What to do instead: If you want a custom order, know the exact recipe. Order it by its components (e.g., “a Venti Frappuccino with two pumps of mocha and a scoop of java chips”), not by its trendy name.
Adding “Just One More Thing” at the Pickup Window
You’ve paid, you’re about to grab your food, and then it hits you: you forgot a drink. It seems simple, but it’s a huge pain. Once you’re at the final window, the order is often closed out in the system. Adding an item means the employee has to start a whole new transaction, which “is going to slow the whole drive-thru down,” as one worker explained.
Some stores even have a strict policy against it to keep the line moving. This small change can also wreck order accuracy. Last-second additions just make mistakes more likely.
What to do instead: Double-check your order on the screen or with the order-taker at the speaker. If you truly forgot something, the most courteous move is to park and go inside.
Asking “So, What’s Good Here?”
It feels like a friendly way to start a conversation, but it puts the employee in an awkward spot. They’re there to take your order quickly and accurately, not to be your personal food consultant.
This question forces them to perform extra “emotional labor“—managing your indecision on top of their actual tasks, all while the clock is ticking and a line is forming behind you.
What to do instead: Glance at the menu online before you go. If you’re still stuck, ask a specific question like, “What’s more popular, the chicken sandwich or the fish filet?”
Letting the Whole Car Order into the Speaker
You think you’re being inclusive by letting everyone in the car shout their own order. In reality, you’re creating chaos. It’s incredibly hard for the order-taker to hear and understand multiple voices, especially kids.
This “slows things down and increases the likelihood of a mistake,” according to drive-thru etiquette guides. The data backs this up: food order accuracy is a full 18% higher when the speaker’s communication is clear and easy to understand. A chorus of voices is the exact opposite of clear.
What to do instead: Designate one person as the speaker for the car. Get everyone’s order sorted out before you pull up to the menu board.
Shouting “Hello?!” the Moment You Arrive
Patience, my friend. The workers know you’re there. Their headsets make a beeping sound the second your car pulls up. Yelling “HELLO!?” over and over just annoys the server. More often than not, they’re busy taking payment from the car ahead of you or handling another task. They can’t do two things at once
This impatience shows a misunderstanding of the high-pressure, multitasking world they work in. Excelling in these jobs requires intense focus, and constant interruptions break that concentration, leading to more stress and potential errors.
What to do instead: Just wait. Give them about 30 seconds. If you still haven’t been greeted, then a polite, “Hi there, just wanted to make sure my car registered,” is perfectly fine.
Expecting Them to Remember Your “Usual”
You might be their most loyal customer, but don’t expect them to have your “extra pickles, no onion” order memorized. One worker described a regular who would just stand at the counter with a grin and wait to be served, only to get annoyed when asked for his order.
Remember that 130%+ turnover rate?. The person behind the counter today might be a new hire who wasn’t there last week. Expecting them to know you ignores the “fleeting workforce” reality of the industry.
What to do instead: Be a great regular by stating your full, clear order every single time.
Requesting “Fresh” Food During a Rush
In the drive-thru, speed is everything. Demanding “piping hot” fries or a “cook to order” burger right at noon is a “murderer” for the line’s momentum. A fresh batch of fries can take up to 5 minutes to cook.
In the fast-food universe, that’s an eternity. It creates a major bottleneck, holding up every single car behind you. This request directly clashes with the industry’s core principle of efficiency, where the system is designed to have food ready in anticipation of orders.
What to do instead: If you have a special request that will take extra time, do everyone a favor and go inside. Don’t hold up the “express lane” for your custom order.
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Paying for a Small Order with a Large Bill
That $2.69 coffee doesn’t need to be paid for with a $100 bill. It’s a massive headache for the cashier. First, they might not have enough small bills in the register to make change. Second, for large bills, they often have to call a manager over and use a counterfeit-detection pen, all of which grinds the operation to a halt.
This isn’t just about store policy, either; some banks are printing fewer small bills, making change a genuinely scarce resource for businesses.
What to do instead: Use a card or a smaller bill for a small purchase. If a large bill is truly all you have, be prepared to wait patiently and understand the delay it causes.
Multitasking on Your Phone While Ordering
Being on a phone call while trying to order is not only rude, it’s a recipe for disaster. Employees have countless stories of customers who are so deep in conversation that they have to repeat the order multiple times.
Or worse, the customer gets angry about a mistake because they “forgot to tell me that you wanted no pickles” while they were distracted. The psychology of good customer service relies on clear, two-way communication. When you’re not paying attention, you’re making that impossible.
What to do instead: Put your call on hold. The transaction will take less than a minute. Give the employee your full attention.
Crafting a Heavily Modified, “Perfect” Order
A simple “no tomato” is fine. But completely rewriting a menu item so it’s “unrecognizable” is a problem. These complex orders get confusing for both the person taking the order and the person making it. It slows down the entire assembly line and dramatically increases the chances of a mistake.
Research shows that restaurants with limited, standardized menus have higher efficiency and more consistent quality. Your super-custom order undermines that entire model.
What to do instead: Keep your modifications to one or two simple things. If your desired meal is different from what’s on the menu, it’s better to just order something else.
Not Using the Chain’s Official Lingo
Yes, they know what you mean when you say “small” at Starbucks. But using the official lingo—like “tall,” “grande,” or “venti”—shows you’re paying attention. It’s a small thing, but it’s about respecting the system you’re in. Even more confusing is using vague terms like “regular” when the employee asks if you want a “medium or large” meal.
It forces them to guess, which can lead to them getting the wrong thing. This is all about shared expectations. When you deviate from the established “script” of the menu, it creates a tiny bit of friction that, when repeated hundreds of times a day, adds to an employee’s stress.
What to do instead: Take a second to learn the lingo of the places you visit often. It’s a small sign of respect that makes the interaction smoother for everyone.
Forcing Your Shy Child to Order for the Family
You see it as a cute, teachable moment. The employee and the 15 cars behind you see it as a drive-thru nightmare. A parent forcing their quiet, young child to place a complicated family order could take 10 minutes and hold up a massive line, only for the mom to chime in at the end with the actual order anyway.
This is a classic case of being unaware of the high-pressure environment. What feels like a personal family moment is a major operational delay for the restaurant.
What to do instead: If you want your child to practice ordering, take them inside during a slow period. The drive-thru is not a training ground.
Checking Your Entire Bag at the Window
You want to make sure you got all your sauces, and that’s fair. But doing a full forensic audit of your bag at the pickup window is a major no-no. Remember that timer? It’s still running. As one video explained, your server “might be penalized because you waited in line too long,” even if they got you the food quickly.
Given that drive-through food order accuracy averages just 86%, the urge to check is understandable. But the system is built for speed, creating a direct conflict between your need for accuracy and the store’s need for efficiency.
What to do instead: Pull into a parking spot to check your bag. If anything is missing, it’s much more courteous (and often faster) to walk inside and ask for it.
Arriving Minutes Before the Restaurant Closes
You’re not “just sneaking in” before they lock the doors. You’re extending their workday. A “simple” late-night order can add 20 minutes of re-cleaning and extra work to the closing crew’s night.
For the last hour, employees have been focused on their closing duties—cleaning grills, mopping floors, taking out trash—so they can go home on time. Your last-minute order forces them to stop all of that and fire everything back up. This is especially tough on night crews, who are often understaffed and already dealing with the mess left over from the dinner rush.
What to do instead: As a rule of thumb, try to place your order at least 30-60 minutes before closing. If you absolutely must go later, keep the order extremely simple and be extra appreciative.
Using Vague Language like “The Regular Size”
When the employee asks, “Would you like that medium or large?” and you respond with “the regular size,” you haven’t actually answered the question. This forces them to either ask you again—slowing things down—or just guess.
If they guess wrong, you might complain later that you didn’t get the size you wanted, creating a second problem out of thin air. In such a fast-paced job, clear and direct communication is everything. Vague language forces the employee to become a mind reader instead of an order-taker.
What to do instead: Listen to the specific options you’re given and answer the question directly. Just say “medium” or “large.” It’s that simple.
Asking for “No Ice” to Get More Soda
This is an old trick, and here’s the real secret: the workers don’t care. The annoyance doesn’t come from the request itself. It comes from the customers who act like they’ve discovered a clever “hack” and are somehow cheating the system.
The problem is the adversarial mindset. The employee is not your opponent. In an industry where a study found 34% of workers have experienced depression linked to occupational stress, creating even minor social friction is the opposite of polite.
What to do instead: If you don’t want ice, just say “no ice, please.” No wink, no nudge, no “you know what I mean.” Just order your drink.
Key Takeaway
At the end of the day, being a good customer isn’t about following a rigid set of rules. It’s about empathy and situational awareness. It’s about recognizing that you’re interacting with a real person who is working in a system designed for maximum speed and pressure. Small, thoughtless actions can add up to create a much harder day for them.
By making a few simple adjustments, you’re not just being polite. You’re helping the entire system run more smoothly, which means faster service, more accurate orders, and a better experience for you, the workers, and every other customer in line.
As the great industrialist Henry Ford once said, “If there is any one secret of success, it lies in the ability to get the other person’s point of view and see things from his angle as well as your own”.
Disclaimer – This list is solely the author’s opinion based on research and publicly available information. It is not intended to be professional advice.
15 Foods From the ’60s Most Boomers Loved With a Passion
15 Foods From the ’60s Most Boomers Loved With a Passion
The 1960s were a period of profound social and cultural transformation in America. As the baby boomer generation came of age, they embraced new ideas, fashion trends, and music styles. And when it came to food, some beloved dishes defined this era.
