It's a 5 hour journey I take at least once a month, and it involves a sleepy start at 6.15. So I'm very happy to load up with food at the Upper Crust at King's Cross station. The cost is sweetened by my Bite Card - a scheme that offers 20% off food bought at Rail Stations.
This is the conversation I have almost every time I travel:
Sleepy me: Do you take the BITE CARD?
- Holds it up for identification - I do this because of previous problems...
Sleepy server: Yes!
Me: I'll have the ham/cheese baguette please.
- Server taps till, bags, hands over sandwich.
Server: That will be £3.99
Me: Is that with the 20% Bite discount?
- Server goes pale, glances at till.
Server: Ah - um....
...
Server: Would you like a free coffee instead.
- I'm already juggling a Cafe Nero coffee (Upper Crust Coffee is pretty vile stuff)
Me: No thanks.
Server: Oh.
Obviously the till does not allow the server to retrospectively apply the discount if it's been forgotten. I leave with a random discount in loose change, and the server ends up with a till that won't balance....
This has happened five times this year... and I still have one more 6.15 trip to make before 2010!