I know the practice would usually be frowned upon, but in this case, is it fair to Hot Dog Island to keep the topic subject as is? Could a Moderator remove the first three words?

nr706 wrote:I know the practice would usually be frowned upon, but in this case, is it fair to Hot Dog Island to keep the topic subject as is? Could a Moderator remove the first three words?

Seconded

Octarine wrote:

nr706 wrote:I know the practice would usually be frowned upon, but in this case, is it fair to Hot Dog Island to keep the topic subject as is? Could a Moderator remove the first three words?

Seconded

Yes it's fair, IMHO. That is apparently the OP's opinion, and the thread title should reflect that. To change it based upon the majority viewpoint would amount to censorship, IMHO.

thirded. the line must be drawn between opinion and spam. OP has posted the same "review" on other internet sites it seems. if OP will not defend the "opinion" it should be deemed as spam and the thread modified accordingly.

If the concern is about fairness to the restaurant, it would seem to me that leaving the thread's title as-is, exceptional venom and all, says a lot more about hotdiggity's credibility than altering or removing it.

Good point.

My concern was that not everyone viewing the topic title would open the thread ... they'd just be left with the impression there was something awfully wrong with Hot Dog Island.

And if it wasn't a first-time poster who had posted the same thing elsewhere, I wouldn't have suggested the change. I don't think changing the title is censorship - after all, no one is suggesting removing the initial post.

As Ronnie Suburban pointed out, getting the finger at a fast food place, while inappropriate, really shouldn't be a big enough deal to splash a "stay away" message all over the internet.

I suspect there's an underlying story here, which Hot Diggety hasn't chosen to share with us.

nr706 wrote:My concern was that not everyone viewing the topic title would open the thread ... they'd just be left with the impression there was something awfully wrong with Hot Dog Island.

Some might view giving a customer finger is something "awfully wrong" with HDI, regardless of whether the OP did something to "deserve" it or not.

nr706 wrote:As Ronnie Suburban pointed out, getting the finger at a fast food place, while inappropriate, really shouldn't be a big enough deal to splash a "stay away" message all over the internet.

I suspect there's an underlying story here, which Hot Diggety hasn't chosen to share with us.

Maybe, but we can all read the post and glean from the alarmist title and lack of detail that there may be something more to the story. Maybe there's not something more to the story - why speculate? If titles were to be changed simply because of speculation surrounding the incompleteness of the underlying story, then there would be a lot of more moderator involvement here.

If someone has something positive to say about HDI, they can start a new thread. But if someone else goes there, and gets the finger while ordering, then they know exactly where to place that post.

LabRat wrote:As the waiter principle tells us, you can tell a lot about the character of a person by how the act toward those they feel are below them.

after working in the service industry for only 6 years, there is no statement on earth that I agree with more. I would change it to "how people act towards those that they aren't required to be respectful to" but it's the same concept.

I only have one philosphy that i operate on and its to treat others like you want to be treated - and i've NEVER had someone flick me off in a restaurant. wonder why.

what a ridiculous original post.

Just an additional data point or an amusing aside -- the fourth Google hit when seaching for hot dog island skokie is:

LTHForum.com :: View topic - Hot Dog Island Skokie - Not Great Beef

Of course, the Google bots presumably haven't crawled and cached this thread yet; it will be interesting to see where it ends up in the results.

Is it flicked off or flipped off? I always thought it was flipped...

i think it's either.

Like, some people say "Buck naked" where as some others say "butt naked" - same rule seems to apply here.

EDIT: yeah, i'm definately bored

nr706 wrote:My concern was that not everyone viewing the topic title would open the thread ... they'd just be left with the impression there was something awfully wrong with Hot Dog Island.

Maybe you will take comfort from the fact that this reader would never have opened a thread simply titled "Hot Dog Island in Skokie," because I don't live in Skokie and am not that into hot dog stands, but was compelled to open "STAY AWAY from Hot Dog Island in Skokie" because I just had to find out what was so awful about it, upon which I learned that Hot Dog Island is a great place which I now have on my radar as a place to visit whenever I'm on that stretch of Dempster. If I'm typical, the existing thread title is the best thing that has happened to Hot Dog Island since the invention of mustard.

Ah, I see. I am a flip off and buck naked guy myself.
Well not right now, as I am on the Metra Rock Island. (Bored too, and I figured I'd derail a silly thread)

I love the detail that her newborn was with her. Few newborns would: a) notice that a counterperson is flipping the bird at it; b) appreciate what the gesture means; and c) take offense. This must be one of those genius babies, getting its brain food at Hot Dog Island.

because I just had to find out what was so awful about it, upon which I learned that Hot Dog Island is a great place which I now have on my radar as a place to visit whenever I'm on that stretch of Dempster.

I have to agree with riddlemay. You don't get more than one post into it without realizing that the OP is the only one, so far, with said opinion of this place. I always read through a whole post (or, at the very least, the last page or two of multiple posts) so I can get an idea of what the general opinion is of a place.

And honestly: I'm really freakin' curious for some more details on this. I'm afraid we've probably scared [her] away, but really, I'd like to know more. What led up to being flipped off? Was the food really awful, or did the finger incident color the entire trip? I know I'm not the only one who's wondering. Am I just feeding a troll?

The thing that really makes me wonder about it was the phrase, "...and don't know where to turn." It was confirmed that a similar post was made on Yelp. Obviously, the post was a cry for publicity. I understand if it was a bad experience, but there's more tactful ways to go about it. And signing up just so you can post that doesn't make you look too good. I don't know. I'm torn.

aschie30 wrote:Some might view giving a customer finger is something "awfully wrong" with HDI, regardless of whether the OP did something to "deserve" it or not.

If it was "seconded" by a manager,
then maybe it would be worth concern..

You don't get more than one post into it without realizing that the OP is the only one, so far, with said opinion of this place.

Well... not the only one.

If you work in a bussiness that requires you to service customers why would giving the finger be okay under any circumstances? If the person would do that to a customer I can just image the care they would put into handling the food.

OMG, this thread is like a train wreck...I want to look away but I just can't.

The OP has succeeded; we're all buzzing about her and we can't stop.

Mike G wrote:

You don't get more than one post into it without realizing that the OP is the only one, so far, with said opinion of this place.

Well... not the only one.

i never felt comfortable ordering at that location... the new location seems to be better

Mike G wrote:

You don't get more than one post into it without realizing that the OP is the only one, so far, with said opinion of this place.

Well... not the only one.

Oh...no wonder the thread title hasn't been changed.

Heh.

Based on Mike G's post it seems likely that something may indeed be amiss at HDI. While it's true that you can tell alot about a person by the way they treat those they are not obliged to respect, it's also true that much is revealed about the character of a business owner by the way he treats his customers. It may well be the case that the bird giver who so offended the OP may just have been reflecting a culture of disrespect fostered by the actions of the owner.

Mike G wrote:Well... not the only one.

Why can't parents understand that
not everyone finds Little Haden/Skylar's
climbing, kicking and running "charming"?
I once applauded someone with the cajones
to kneel down and explain to a child that
this (restaurant) "was not his rumpus room".

riddlemay wrote:

Mike G wrote:

You don't get more than one post into it without realizing that the OP is the only one, so far, with said opinion of this place.

Well... not the only one.

Oh...no wonder the thread title hasn't been changed.

Another example:

If the subject of this thread isn't changing, then you can bet that the barrier to entry on a subject change is pretty high.

SCUBAChef, obviously you jumped right past my actual 2003 post to a conclusion. I suggest you read it this time before you judge how my children disturbed the decorum of a hot dog stand-- and this time you might pick up on the actual point of the post, which really has nothing to do with kids per se.

they've got a good hot dog with everything plus kraut... other than that im sure there's probably more hospitable dining establishments... its not some place id go for an outing; its a place i goto to pickup a dog and pizza puff

Mike G wrote:SCUBAChef, obviously you jumped right past my actual 2003 post to a conclusion. I suggest you read it this time before you judge how my children disturbed the decorum of a hot dog stand-- and this time you might pick up on the actual point of the post, which really has nothing to do with kids per se.

OK, I'll play along.

Maybe YOU need to read and comprehend.

[your QUOTE]
As I was finishing ordering I heard the owner say
"Son, sit down" to my 4-year-old, who I guess
had been standing in the booth as I ordered.

(obviously you WERE NOT WATCHING your kid)

Then the owner says: "These parents, they don't
watch their kids, y'know?"

So, yeah, sometimes the truth hurts.
Just don't act surprised when someone
speaks up IN THEIR OWN RESTAURANT.
Jeez.

Next time I'll order with my back to the cash register and without looking at the menu.

Thanks for the helpful advice. Parents all over America thank you for your tolerance... and your own shake their heads in remembrance.