Tonight we had a get-together at our place, and the food of choice was Chinese. All of the Chinese food places in our town are mediocre at best, so we usually drive 10-15 minutes to a place called Lee Chen. We placed the order about 45 minutes ahead of time since it was a rather large order (80 bucks worth of takeout!) and they said "Thanks, that'll be ready in about ten minutes". Wow. A half-hour later, I headed out the door to pick up the food. Pulled up to the restaurant, walked in, reached into my back pocket...and came up empty.
d'oh d'oh d'oh d'oh d'oh d'oh d'oh
"Hello! Can I help you?"
"Um...yeah. I'm here to pick up an order, but I just realized I forgot my wallet."
"Oh. Do you at least have your driver's license or some kind of identification?"
"No, my whole wallet is at home."
"Hm. Let me check with the manager."
(she leaves and comes back with the manager)
"We can write down your license plate number for insurance."
"Well, actually, I can give you my credit card number if you want."
"All sixteen digits?"
"I shop online a LOT."
"Ok, write down your name and license plate number, and we'll take your credit card number."
"Okay. The number is XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX."
"Expiration?"
"XX/XX."
"Home phone number, so we can prove you're you?"
"XXX-XXX-XXXX."
"And your wife's name?"
"Mrs. Dave." (name changed to protect the innocent."
(she dials)
"Hello, Mrs. Dave? Oh, good. We just wanted to remind you that your order is ready; nobody's come to pick it up yet. Oh wait, I think I just saw a car pull up. Thank you!"
So not only did they run my number and approve it for me without ID, but they called Mrs. Dave with a cover story so she wouldn't even know I'd forgotten my wallet. Of course, she was wondering how they knew her name, or that I even had a wife... But that's customer service for you. So if you're ever in the Lawrence, Mass area and want some good Chinese food, here's our plug for Lee Chen. Thirteen satisfied customers, one of whom is properly chagrined into not forgetting his wallet again...
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