Dominion @ QV Lake

What is with the sullen and unhelpful staff at the Dominion on Quidi Vidi Lake? They can't be overworked because the place always seems empty. Are they just bored? Recently, Downrightcranky had to wait to get served at the bakery section for 15 minutes for someone to come back from their break. DRC will not even discuss the anger management issues over at the deli section. And does anyone actually work downstairs in the flower section? Try asking a random staffer where the horseradish is and you get an agitated glare and this response: "if it is not over on that aisle, I guess we don't carry it." Not only did City Council do us all a disservice by greenlighting a supermarket in the former Memorial Stadium but now we have to deal with a bunch of bitchy workers in one of the most tranquil and prettiest areas in town. Let's just say, DRC will no longer be picking up a sandwich after a pleasant walk around the lake.
In contrast, shopping at Sobeys @ Merrymeeting Road is a ray of sunshine. Staff always ask at the check -out if you found everything you were looking for. And if you point out that they don't sell a particular product, they will order it in within a week or two.

Subway Restaurant@Stavanger Drive: a frightening experience

Downrightcranky has long been a fan of the Subway Restaurant chain. The sandwich purveyor provides a healthy alternative to McyD’s not to mention Jared’s fat pants are a great weight loss motivator.

So it is with great dismay that DRC is forced to report that grabbing a sandwich to go has become a less than pleasant experience – scary, almost - at the busy Stavanger Drive location in St. John’s, NL. Over the past two weeks, DRC has dropped by several times to pick up lunch. It is beyond obvious that the staff dislike each other and operate under a cloud of seething resentment. Service is slow and generally unfriendly. Now, DRC understands that working in the service industry is difficult and mostly unrewarding. Furthermore, making sandwiches for eight hours a day can’t be fun. But c’mon people. Bitching in front of customers is a little much. In the last three visits, DRC witnessed:

• Staff on the sandwich line not speaking to each other, except to bark out orders and to slam utensils on countertops.

• Staff yelling at each other in front of about 10 customers

• One staffer in charge of ‘veggies and sauces’ go into the backroom to get a mayo refill and reappear 10 minutes later. This happened during the lunch hour rush and the other staffers just stood by while customers got visibly agitated.
  

• A staffer rolling her eyes when someone requested extra veggies.

• A male staffer throwing his cap across the room in anger.

• Lots of confusion about orders, particularly about toasted vs. untoasted bread orders.

• One staffer valiantly working hard to make sandwiches alone (and not cry) while two other staffers had it out around the corner. "Can someone please, please help me,” she finally yelled.

• When the ‘veggies’ person disappeared yet again, another staffer jumped in only to be told curtly by some sort of supervisor/manager “you are on meats so move it.” When the staffer explained there was a backlog of sandwiches waiting for veggies, the supervisor snapped: "didn’t you hear me!"

• Customers commiserating and ultimately laughing in disbelief about the general lack of decorum and civility in the joint.