Diners step in to help as chef works alone at busy restaurant
A number of customers waiting for their meals at a Thai restaurant in New Zealand have stepped in to help on a busy, understaffed night.
Emily Phui, from Huntly in Waikato on the North Island, wrote on Facebook she popped into The Thai Food Huntly last Friday.
As soon as she entered she noticed the restaurant was packed.
“The tables were filled, people lined up waiting to pay, to order or to pick up,” she wrote.
The restaurant apologised for the inconvenience on Facebook, explaining the chef was the only staff member available to work as everyone else was busy dealing with a family emergency.
Ms Puhi said the chef was too busy to wait tables and take orders by himself, which customers soon noticed.
“So when the customers found out about it, the lady waiting to pay started waiting tables for him, and the other lady that works at the real estate shop beside the Thai place, worked the register with his permission and also waited tables,” she wrote.
“We could easily feel the sense of community all around the place. Frowns turned to smiles and grumpy waiting turned to patiently waiting. It was beautiful to witness.
“What an awesome place to live in.”
A woman who waited on tables wrote she “felt bad” for the chef.
On Facebook, people praised the hungry diners who lent a hand.
“That’s putting the unity into community,” one woman wrote.
Another woman added it made her “proud to be a Kiwi”.
“That's so awesome to see a community help out small business owners, especially when times are hard and your back’s up against the wall,” another woman wrote.
“This night may have been a make or break for him (you never know).”
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