Post date: Oct 27, 2017 2:41:42 AM
I work at a cafe in one of the student centers on campus. Actually I work in two cafes. I guess if I can't get a job in HR or Psychology I can at least make pizzas, stromboli(s) and deli sandwiches? (Get in touch with me if you happen to be hiring, I'll definitely add you to my circle of network he he he) So basically I work make and serve food to mostly hungry students who think they're the only ones who have 3 midterms, 5 papers in that week and was sandwiched in the school bus on an 8am class after pulling an all-nighter for 2 days. But I guess it's safe to say that my customer service skills are exceptional because I was never thrown a tomato or a bottle of chipotle mayo at.
What I really want to talk about in this post is the importance of sensitivity and acknowledgement about food preferences. Back in Malaysia where almost everything was Halal, I never bothered to check or be cautious on my meals because, well, I was part of the large population who was able to eat everything. I never even thought of whether they had separated knives for vegetarian meals when I know most Indians (about a third of the Malaysian population) were vegetarians. I never thought of making sure there is a serving of a vegetarian meal whenever I organize events that had free food for everyone. I mean, they're not just for Indians. Other people have preferences as well, and most of them not even because of their religions. I have a friend who doesn't eat meat because she didn't feel it was right. Yall, the old me would've been like, "Hish kan dalam Al-Qur'an Allah kata dia yang kasi, kita ambik la what's not right about it" or I would just sit there and feel bad because that person will never know how it feels like to love..........KFC Fried Chicken. My level of insensitivity was so bad I couldn't just not comprehend why people have preferences, I would judge and shove my unwanted opinions on why that person shouldn't think that way.
I know a lot of people are still like me but I can't really blame them. We were raised in a community that just tends to correct a person according to 'what's right'. Most of the time, there was always just 'the right thing to do' Malays are the 'whites' of Malaysia, and just because there were many of us we just felt that our opinions will always be supported. Especially in the boarding school where I spent most of my life in, the rights and wrongs were so clear and extreme. And I was never the curious type so to avoid unnecessary trouble I never bothered to question why things are done the way they are done. I was always trying to be the girl who follows the rules because it was just right.
That was how insensitive I was........and that was also proof of how I am and will never be a coherent writer.
WHAT WAS I PLANNING TO SAY? Right, food preferences. Sensitivity. Keep up guys. So because I can only eat halal meat and the place I work has no halal meat, I became a situational vegetarian. Hahah it sounds so cool I just made that up. But yes, you get my point. I, well, gotta eat what I can eat. Because of that, I am very cautious and sensitive about how we handle food. Before I wasn't a manager, I had no say in things. All I could do was cringe at how they didn't separate the knives when they knew they were supposed to (it's a policy). I just couldn't stand it when the 'supposedly' vegetarian spatula is used to grill meat like wyd??? I couldn't brain how insensitive and ignorant they were and sometimes I get really angry but I was powerless (and, well, some time ago I was like that). Most of the time, I took new utensils just to make my own food. But I knew there were vegetarians/ vegans out there who prefer their food to be as clean and at that time, the most I could do was sneakily change the utensils and save the vegetarian meals (usually sandwiches with only egg and cheese).
I got promoted as a manager and finally, I had a say in things. My training mostly consist of telling them to clean and goddammit do not let the vegetarian knives touch the meat. It's pretty simple, really. It's not that much extra work to be respectful of people's preferences. If you touch it, go change. If you don't know what it was used for, get a new one. If it's confusing, put them separately or take different types of knives. I think I did pretty good. Some of our full-time coworkers specifically want me to make my food because I'm clean. But, it feels wrong because shouldn't everyone be clean?
I guess I haven't succeeded in training. Maybe, "Go downstairs and get a new knife" wasn't enough.