New Bedford Dunkin’ Customers Get Formal Apology From First-Time Drive-Thru Worker

If you went to the brand new Dunkin' on South Water Street in New Bedford Wednesday between 10 a.m. and noon, allow me to apologize. I was broadcasting live from the grand opening when I decided that I'd like to try my hand at working the drive-thru.

"How hard could it be?" I thought. I've been through the drive-thru a million times. It's just switching seats. Instead of being on the receiving end of the drive-thru order, now I'd be the one filling the order. "I got this," I foolishly thought.

What no one knows is that working in the Dunkin' drive-thru is like being in the gladiator ring. No matter where you turn, there's more action. One thing I did not expect was the adrenaline rush that it gave me. Apparently, I'm not alone.  Stephanie, who works behind the counter at the new Dunkin', admits that she gets a kick out of the job.

"You should see it in the middle of the morning," she said. "You were doing it during our slow hours."

I can only imagine.

There's so much to think about and so many buttons to push. We have a lot of buttons to push while we're on the radio, but somehow they seem a lot less intimidating than the buttons I was pushing at Dunkin'.

Another thing no one knows is that it's so hard to hear the orders in your headset.  There's so much commotion. There's beeping and talking. The pace is lightning fast. It's hard to concentrate on what the customers are ordering.

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A third thing that surprised me about the Dunkin' drive-thru is that it is a team of people getting it done. I guess I pictured the person taking my order to be the same person cashing me out and collecting the food. In reality, all the different people do their own jobs, then come together to give the customer a seamless experience. There's a breakfast sandwich maker, someone pouring coffee and frozen beverages, and a person working the window.

I tried my hardest to be speedy, yet accurate, and put forward my friendliest customer service attitude. Was I speedy? Not really. Was I accurate? If I was, it was only because of the team of legit Dunkin' employees around me. Was I friendly? Yes, I've got that one covered.

When I brought in some tips, I enjoyed putting them in the shared tip jars. It wasn't even for the money (because I wasn't keeping it, of course). It was more about the recognition from the customers that there was a team of people looking to get the Dunkin' order correct and move on to the next customer.

If you've ever been on a Dunkin' drive-thru crew, much respect.