There is an old saying that “the customer is always right”. This is especially true in the food service industry, where running tight ships and ensuring prompt, cordial service is vital to the survival of a business.
At least, it used to be.
Israeli restaurateur Tal Rashevski is breaking convention and breaking the internet with his cheeky yet humorous demeanor, whimsical management style, and seeming indifference to customer concerns.
Rashevski’s credit recently went viral after a short film chronicled Kan’s positive attitude and unconventional work ethic, dubbing him “The Pasta Nazi” on social media.
Tometomato, Rashevski’s fresh pasta joint in Tel Aviv’s grungy-yet-chic Florentine district, is open only on the days he feels like it, and only the few hours he can bother to work. . If customers don’t like the way they look, they say the wait will be very long. how long? really really long. In fact, they might not care, but hey, it’s a free country.
This 7-minute video follows 36-year-old Rashevski as he goes about his business. Kan’s video has over 100,000 views on YouTube (with English subtitles below) and nearly 180,000 views on Twitter.
“I love my clients, but I choose them carefully,” he says. “When I see someone is a troublemaker, I let them go before they order.”
He will also do it if he simply feels that he is too busy.
“Sorry for the long wait,” Rashevski says to one. “How long?” the woman asks. “I don’t know. It’s very long, I don’t know,” he says.
“An hour?” Another question. “Maybe an hour, maybe more,” Rashevski replied with a shrug.
If you really want to drive traffic, you might announce a special on your Facebook page instead of following it. He casually and pointlessly lies when curious customers come to inquire.
“It’s in the oven, we were confused,” he tells one who asked about the promised dish. .
If work gets too busy, he might drop everything and go out for a cigarette break.
How does Rashevski want to maintain his restaurant with this attitude?
Oh he doesn’t He adamantly does not. In fact, he often hates it all. But the money is too good, and blasted customers keep coming back for more.
“It’s like a couple who have been married for 30 years,” he says. “They have good sex, but they have bad relationships. , I love it, and I want it to burn out.
The place is open 2-3 days a week, about 3 hours at a time. If the waiter doesn’t feel like coming on a particular day, that’s fine.
“Closed because we were tired,” reads one post on the restaurant’s Facebook page.
On social media, dozens of users have reacted with their take on the infamous “Pasta Nazis.”
“Those seeking refined service have plenty of other options for dinner,” wrote one. “I somehow respect a man who works only half a week and is not kind to his customers.”
Some say Rashevsky cleverly pierces modern consumer culture.
“I have never seen a more clever marketing trick than Dutch doing himself a favor by not spitting on his customers’ pasta in Florence,” wrote another.
Asked by Kang about his plans for the future, Rashevsky said: That’s my dream. ”
Still, there seems to be one reason people keep coming back, and it’s one of the reasons he’s (sometimes) passionate about.
“I don’t care if they wake up and go home, if they come back. It doesn’t matter to me.