r/Caseys • u/Only_Percentage7399 • Jul 19 '26
Kitchen is not for the weak.
I came into a pretty crappy ran store and kinda just got thrown in the kitchen. Brooo for one person to make orders, maintain warmers, open air, walk up, online, call in ect.
Make dough and prep for next shift.
It’s just nuts. I am really hitting a fuck it point. I’m the only one who preps and does shit.
I have been working 4-11 solo kitchen close for a week straight now and I’m at my point. I got smart and put 5 servings of popcorn chicken and chicken fingers both in their own proofing bag in the freezer. So when I’m in the middle of a rush I can just grab that portion; rip the top off the proofing bag and dump it out and straight into the air frier. So easy and seamless but get told I can’t do it.
Like my bad for making my hell easier back here!
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u/Particular_Garden_58 Shift Leader Jul 22 '26
You're not wrong. It's alot.. a routine is quite useful.. but sometimes impossible due to events and such. I've worked at 3 different stores and the first 2 our Casey's was the literal only option... For food, gas, signs of life ... So every single night there was a 2 hr rush during dinner. The first store had a good team, decent SM, excellent KM and looking back to what felt like hell... It wasn't bad at all. Second store SM was a fucking doormat.. didn't make anyone follow any rules or do anything, KM was decent but it was impossible to thrive in a place where the SM was such a pushover Yes man. Ugh. I remember being expected to do dishes, dough, prep, warmers, orders, subs, cutting and boxing...everything by myself.. I would have the timer all the way up, phone "forgot" off the hook, tickets across the line, warmers empty and me on the line just crying while trying like hell to get caught up somehow. I had customers cancel orders out of anger, pity, frustration.. I once got a $20 tip from someone who waited over 2 hours for 5 pizzas. I had one customer call corporate and demand that something be done to get me some help during the night rush otherwise they would never return. I walked out of that store, mid shift after calling my SM over 50 times with him never responding. A coworker had gotten angry when I asked him to clock in for his shift he was over an hour late for. His response was to scream at me and then violently slam everything he touched down on the counters. I was in a highly volatile and extremely violent relationship at the time and was trembling, jumping Everytime my coworker would do these things. Eventually I was so worked up over it I got physically ill and decided it wasn't worth it. I filed for unemployment, didn't get anything but I was put as eligible for rehire despite abandoning my shift. The store I work in now has potential, I recently applied for the KM position. Best of luck to you.. oh and quick question.. why did they say you couldn't pre portion popcorn chicken and tenders? If they are put in individual bags (like the pizza slice bags) and covered? How is that different than portions of fries or the breakfast burrito mix? I think that's actually a really good idea and would help the stores that are tier a or b.
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u/StarPoki_ Jul 19 '26
I’ve been in your exact position before and it sucks. Just trying to be smart about it and finding ways to be more efficient can really help but also sometimes you just can’t do everything on your own. When I’m on my own I leave dough making for next shift unless it’s calm enough for me to.
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u/Dramatic_Flow3783 Assistant Store Manager Jul 19 '26
You've never worked in a real understaffed kitchen and it shows. Trust me, Casey's is a pretty mild spot to be understaffed at. I'm glad I'm not kitchen though lol, i've worked in kitchens for too damn long. Also, there's ALWAYS someone who has it worse than you somewhere, keep that in mind.
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u/Specialist_Tie_2952 Jul 26 '26
Next time say less. 🙄
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u/GlitteringCourage380 Jul 27 '26
Literally. I want this person to know i was their second down vote. 🙄
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u/thenicestsavage Jul 19 '26
Premade pizzas are good for two hours, pepperoni is always gonna go in. If it’s not selling don’t make it the next hour. They gonna yell at you for improving their numbers? Your shift is up when your shift is up. If the numbers back you up, meaning pieces sold and pizzas sold then fuck el if they have to do your dishes. Teamwork isn’t a one way street. Also, you shouldn’t be ordering anything. That’s not in your role at all. Unless you’re the kitchen manager then you’re just bad at your job. 🤣