Dinners From Hell offers true stories about restaurant dining disasters written by diners, servers and chefs.

We've all had those dining experiences when things went dreadfully wrong. Perhaps it was a social blunder, an obnoxious customer, a waiter or waitress with an attitude, a temperamental chef, an embarrassing faux pas, or a food or beverage incident. Find out what others have had to endure by reading stories about dinners gone bad.

Personal Space Invader

December 5, 2010 Server Stories

Some time ago I went to a chain restaurant (think of a fruit and honey-making insect) with my mother and sister. The food was good, the service was good, we had a fun time. We’re amicable people, and enjoy small-talk with waiters… well, my mum and sister do, I’m hard of hearing so I’m generally […]

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Time Waits for No Teen

November 19, 2010 Server Stories

About a year ago, three friends and I were visiting a city a couple of hours from our home town. It was somewhat late at night but we decided we wanted to eat out. After looking up local reviews and searching for a place within walking distance, we finally chose a restaurant. We walked through […]

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Long Line Tests Employee’s Endurance

October 24, 2010 Fast Food Stories

We were a group of college kids taking a geology field trip. We left Wichita around noon, and headed west for Colorado. As a geological field trip, we stopped at every outcrop and formation of rocks along the way between here and there. By the time we made it to Colorado Springs, the instructor started […]

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No Laughs for Diners in Comedy Club

October 22, 2010 Server Stories

A few years ago my wife and I went to a comedy club in Toronto, ON for an evening that included a preshow dinner. We showed up a few minutes early and were promptly seated by the manager of the club. We knew quite early in the evening we were in for a crappy night. […]

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Senior Gets Confused Over Steak

October 15, 2010 Diner Stories

I’ve been working at this certain restaurant for quite some time. The past Sunday afternoon I was working a lunch shift that typically lasts from 11:30am to 1:30pm. Sunday is the day that the trashiest and worst tippers come out to eat, and leave you cards with pictures of Jesus rather than tips. It was slow […]

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Magic Al

September 26, 2010 Diner Stories

I was enjoying a fairly simple lunch at one of my favourite restaurants one afternoon when a man dressed in a cowboy suit entered the dining room. I didn’t know this at the time, but I eventually learned that this man was known in my hometown as Magic Al, and that he was an eccentric deaf man […]

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A Fungus Among Us

September 11, 2010 Sanitation Stories

My wife and I went to eat at a Spanish restaurant in the Tampa, Florida area. It was nicely appointed with Spanish paintings on the wall; subdued lighting, good service and tasty food made for a pleasant dining experience. While we were enjoying our meals I felt a drop of liquid that had fallen onto my […]

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Bothered By Slow Service & A Well-Done Burger

July 2, 2010 Server Stories

In the town I was in, there was a bar that just opened that was supposed to have great burgers. I went there, and this is where the fun got started. Once entering the bar, I was seated by a waitress that was obviously in a rush. I looked around and saw there was only […]

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Gun-Toting Thugs Rob Restaurant

June 11, 2010 Odds & Ends Stories

I was the opening manager for a restaurant in downtown Washington D.C. many years ago. The restaurant was one of a chain that was very popular in the Washington area at the time. We opened at 7:00 AM for breakfast, which meant I had to get there at about 5:15 AM to open the store […]

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Emergency Evacuation

May 28, 2010 Accident & Mishap Stories

It was a Saturday afternoon at the restaurant where I work. It was usually busy on Saturdays and today was no exception. It was also the middle of summer and on this particular Saturday we were very busy, not slammed, but still pretty hectic. It was quite hot in both the restaurant and the kitchen […]

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The Wicked Witch

May 22, 2010 Tipping & Etiquette Stories

Back in college, the large group of my girlfriends and I would get together once a week and go out to eat. We were usually broke, but we always enjoyed ourselves… best of times. That is until the brother of one of the girls started dating The Wicked Witch. The sister would invite the brother’s […]

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Waitress Can’t Be Bothered

May 22, 2010 Server Stories

I was once told by a friend who worked as a manager for a restaurant that she hired an extremely lazy waitress. Not only did she find any excuse in the book to try to avoid work as much as possible, she made a serious lack of judgement when dealing with a table. When a […]

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