Celery Garnish Gone Bad

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You know it's been a long weekend when I ask for the manager over a stalk of celery. The photo doesn't show you just how slimy the leaves of the celery were, but that's not what first caught my eye while dining at the airport in Nashville. Who can't miss the fact that the stalk is twice as big as the glass itself, threatening to topple it? Normally you just grab the celery and heave it sideways, but the slime leaves stopped me cold. When we pulled the celery out of the glass, it was spoiled on the bottom, too. Slimy on the top, spoiled on the bottom. This garnish should never have been presented to a customer.

All right all right, so I've had a little too much training now in prevention of food spoilage as part of my "controlling foodservice costs" class. But seriously, you can't let a little thing like rubbish slip by. I asked for the manager and was told "the manager is managing other restaurants right now." Oh really. Then whom can I speak with?

The staff sent over the bartender, poor guy. Turns out he was only a server, filling in for the bartender, who had broken her leg. OK OK, that backed me down a bit, so I merely suggested  a) leave the stalk out if it's spoiled or b) at least trim it down to size and of any slimy leaves/stem. I was nice about it. I simply asked him to remove it from my presence. He was not publicly redressed and no one got hurt. Flights took off on schedule.

I realize airport restaurants have weary travelers at their mercy. What's the chance they'll see you again due to a good or bad experience? They deal in volume, and they'll always have it. Still, I hope the server thinks twice over my small complaint. I hope the other server who brought the drink will watch the garnish next time. When you're paying $8 for a simple Bloody Mary, the least you can hope for is a fine green stalk and 3 olives.