Surviving the Chaos: My Experience at the Old National (Nasty) Ramada Plaza Trap House Hotel

Working at the Ramada Plaza Hotel on Old National Highway in College Park, Georgia, was probably the most challenging experience of my life. To call this hotel rundown is an understatement. The owner, an Indian man named Arman, whose business, Blue Lagoon, also owns a few franchised Popeyes chicken locations. Arman was a master at playing games with the employees, treating us more like servants. As a front desk agent, most of us made $12 an hour with absolutely NO benefits other than deep discounts at Wyndham hotels, which none of the employees could take advantage of due to our low pay. One significant issue was the high turnover rate among staff, not just because of low pay. This constant change led to a lack of cohesion and teamwork, making it difficult to maintain consistent standards. New employees often found themselves overwhelmed due to being undertrained, which contributed to a stressful work environment. Training was confusing, and management relied on a couple of employees who thought they were being replaced to train new hires, leading to incorrect training. Arman had a rule where our checks would be docked for any cash mistakes. During my tenure, some employees had their paychecks docked for incorrectly checking in guests or not checking rooms for damage or smoking before returning the $150 security deposit.

The Entrance to the Hotel

Another major downside was the hotel’s location. While being close to the airport might seem convenient, it also meant dealing with a high volume of transient guests. I'm not talking about the standard homeless person; I’m talking about drug addicts, pimps, hookers, and even drag queen hookers who wouldn’t tell their clients they were actually men. Many times, I would watch the security cameras and see someone running down the hall, chased by a naked man. Usually, the hooker would run out the door with the man's clothes and wallet, escaping onto Old National. This less-than-savory clientele led to various issues, from noise complaints to security concerns. The area around the hotel wasn’t the safest, and employees often felt uneasy, especially during late-night shifts. When they Super-8 Hotel was shut down for violations including running without a business license, the number of really horrible guests ramped up.

I was the only white person working there at the time and received threats during all my shifts just for following job guidelines. Aside from housekeeping, who worked from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., the only employee on the premises was the front desk agent. Many of my shifts were as night audit, from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m., by myself. We did have a security officer who came in at midnight and left by 6 a.m., leaving me alone to protect myself. A few months in, I started bringing a retractable baton, then a taser, and eventually my Ruger LCP-Max holstered to my hip so problematic guests could see I could defend myself. This sense of insecurity was just a fraction of the drawbacks of working at the hotel. I saved video footage of guests abusing employees, and although we were told to ignore it, we fought back because otherwise management would dismiss it as typical for the neighborhood.

Things guests do in the rooms

The working conditions at the Ramada Plaza Hotel left much to be desired. The facilities were outdated and in need of repair, making daily tasks difficult and frustrating. For the first two months of working there, we had no hot water. Imagine housekeeping cleaning and washing bedding with no hot water, or trying to shower in cold water during November and December. Shockingly, many guests were okay with it when told there was no hot water. The housekeeping department was problematic, sometimes just straightening things up and remaking beds upon guest checkout rather than properly cleaning the room and changing the sheets and pillowcases. It was not uncommon for guests to find socks, hats, and dirty underwear in the bed after turning down the sheets. Each housekeeper was required to clean at least 16 rooms during their shift, leading to cut corners and dissatisfied guests. I encountered many bizarre situations, like a guest calling to inform me there was poop under her bed. She was okay with it but wanted to let someone know so she wouldn’t be blamed. Housekeeping didn’t use bleach to clean surfaces, sinks, or toilets; instead, they used Fabuloso.

The lack of proper maintenance contributed to the unpleasant working environment. The maintenance man, Arman's brother-in-law Nick, was not up to code or sanitary standards. He also co-managed housekeeping, limiting their Fabuloso use to a gallon a week for a 271-room hotel. Mold was an issue, and instead of proper remediation, Nick would spray bleach cleaner, often leaving bleach stains on the red dirty carpet. Some ceiling tiles were wet and covered in black mold, dripping on me at times. When guests complained about bed bugs, we inspected the rooms ourselves, put them out of service, and moved the guests. Oddly, when pest control was called, the woman spent no more than five minutes, collected her cash envelope, signed a book, and declared no bed bugs. During ice storms, the owner told us we could stay in a room rather than go out in the weather, but there was NO chance I was staying in one of those rooms.

The ceiling tile that dripped on me

Amenities listed on booking sites were unavailable. Arman forced us to lie, telling guests the hotel was under renovation, which it was not. The pool was cleaned only when a production company rented the hotel to film scenes for the miniseries "Candy" starring Jessica Biel. After filming, the pool was never available, and within a week, it was green again with a diaper swirling around the middle. There was no breakfast, in spite of the websites touting free breakfast, not that normal people would want to consume food inside the building.

Doesn't that look refreshing?

There was also another point of their business, airport parking. They mostly did it through a website called Way but when Way was slow to send the check to the owner, he would cut off the Way customers and they would take out their frustration on us. The owner would instruct us to tell them they can stay in our lot for $10 a day if they chose but it had to be paid up front directly to us. Several times, Collage Park Police would come in issuing fines for illegally running an airport park and ride. Whoever was there at the time would be issued the ticket and would be required to show up at court and the owner felt this was OK. I refused to partake in this practice. It's a parking lot that I would never use for my own vehicle due to the fact that the lot was not monitored or patrols during the day or most of the night. I had many upset park and ride people come in shoving their phones in my face with photos of their broken windows and car damage and the only thing I could point out to them was the "Not responsible for damage" signs. Airport parking was a pain, not only because of all that but also the fact that they offered shuttle service between the hotel and airport from 6am till 11pm, supposed to be every half hour but many times the shuttle drivers would do things on their own schedule, leaving us to receive phone calls from upset people cussing us out. The daytime and afternoon employees told me the best thing to do was not answer the phone. What really sucked about the shuttle were the people who didn't realize there was no service between 11pm and 6am, leaving them to their own devices. I can't count how many times I was threatened over the shuttle service and expected to reimburse the person for their transportation cost, which NEVER happened. After a while, I adopted a fake name as the rest of the staff did for complaint purposes. There's a parking lady that is still threatening to sue the hotel and "Tito" to this very day because her car was towed for non-payment of her extended parking fees. The parking situation was really horrible because they would let it get overbooked to the point where the guests of the hotel would have no parking or we were having to turn away people who prepaid. If they ran over and wanted to extend, they had to do it through us on the phone or they would be towed within hours of the clock striking midnight. Even if the person tried to extend through the Way app, they would still get towed. Nice way to do business huh?

Housekeeping considers this "CLEAN"

Management practices were another point of contention. Many employees felt their concerns and suggestions weren’t taken seriously, leading to frustration and disengagement. Clear communication from management was often lacking, resulting in misunderstandings and mistakes. This disconnect made it challenging to foster a positive and productive work atmosphere.

At Thanksgiving, the owner catered a dinner for the employees, acting as if it was good compensation for what we dealt with throughout the year. Our Christmas bonus was a $20 gift card from Wal-Mart, proving the owner didn’t care about the employees. If he treated us this way, I can't imagine how he treated his employees at the Popeyes Chicken locations he owned.

Lastly, the compensation and benefits at the Ramada Plaza Hotel were inadequate. Many employees felt their hard work wasn’t fairly rewarded, leading to low job satisfaction and motivation. The lack of competitive wages and benefits made it difficult to attract and retain quality staff, further exacerbating the issues mentioned above. Overall, working at the Ramada Plaza Hotel on Old National Highway had its moments, but the numerous challenges made it a tough place to work. I had already told the manager I wouldn’t work overnight, but she still scheduled me for a couple of overnight shifts. I worked one because I needed the hours, but at 1 a.m., I received a death threat call. I immediately called her and the owner, but they dismissed it as a hoax. I didn’t see it that way. That night, I spent a good part of the night taking as many pictures of the property as well as the employee communication notebook pages and some of the illegal paperwork that we were given as terms of our employment which I still have saved to this day. The following night, I was scheduled at 11 p.m. I took my Ambien at 10:45 p.m., told Terry I wouldn’t be returning, and he agreed it was for the best. At 10:59 p.m., I left the work group chat and blocked the phone numbers for the owner, manager, and hotel, then went to bed.

What I find mindboggling is the number of horrible reviews on Google and other sites, including the booking sites, but yet people continue to book rooms there. The owner doesn't even bother to reply because, I mean what would be your reply knowing the truth is spoken? The ones that leave good reviews are either confused or consider anything not a cardboard box as a luxury. Not one of the employees understands how Wyndham would allow this or the hotels around it be allowed to operate under their brand names but I guess that's one of those things between corporate and the people paying for the name rights.

If you are ever driving through Atlanta and you see a hotel in disrepair, keep driving down the interstate until you get to a place that looks like the Bates Motel, you'll have a better experience.

Boogers May Boost Your Immune System

A team of researchers from a West Coast university has discovered that the unsightly habit of picking one's nose and eating boogers may be beneficial to your health. The research team headed by two doctors conducted the project among two different kindergarten classes in two different schools. Each class was selected based on the teacher's observation that showed an equal amount of children that picked their noses and children that did not.

Dried mucus, or boogers, contains various particles of dust, pollutants, allergens as well as agents of infectious bacteria. Austrian doctor, Friedrich Bischinger advocated using fingers to pick and ingest nasal mucus. Dr. Bischinger explains, "nasal mucus contains a cocktail of antiseptic enzymes that kill or weaken many of the bacteria that become entangled in it. Eating mucus is a natural boost to the immune system." We already unknowingly ingest mucus as post nasal drip, it's a natural body function. Most the the harmful items however, are usually caught in the hairs or cilia towards the front of the nostril.

The test findings on the kindergartners, though disturbing, were surprising. Both classes had similar results, almost exactly the same in fact. Throughout the peak of cold and flu season, of the thirty non-nose pickers, seventeen missed classes after becoming ill. Of the thirty "booger eaters" only nine missed school for periods exceeding 3 days. Further findings did show differences in illnesses experienced by by subject types. Only three children that did not ingest mucus tested positive for strep infections. Within the nine children that were marked as booger eaters, seven tested positive for strep throat.

If you gotta pick, go ahead. This does not exempt you from the taboo of picking your nose and eating your boogers, you will certainly be judged. Though the study does show that it may be beneficial to your immune system, remember the places your fingers have been since the last time you washed your hands.

My O'Charley's Experience-No Holds Barred

Last year, I moved from working at Chuy's in Dunwoody, where my income was inconsistent, to O'Charley's in Fayetteville, Georgia, where the earnings seemed more stable. Given that Terry works just two doors down from O'Charley's and earns great money, I assumed it would be the same for me. Boy, was I wrong.

Have you ever worked a job that made you want to call in sick every shift or pop a Xanax on the way to work? That was my experience at O'Charley's. The business was booming, but the customers were the most demanding and ignorant people I've ever encountered. It seemed no one read the menu, which clearly described everything in detail. After a few weeks, my earnings started to decline, especially after the restaurant closed for a week for a modern remodel. Unfortunately, the new look attracted a clientele more suited to McDonald's or KFC rather than a sit-down restaurant. I hoped the decline was temporary because I was not going back to Chuy's.

When I started at O'Charley's, I was excited because my friend Casey was a manager there, and I remembered him as an awesome manager at Rio Bravo. Throughout my time at O'Charley's, I saw Casey working tirelessly in a thankless and unappreciated environment. He dealt with difficult customers, bad employees, and even the other three managers, who were not easy to work with. Working as a server at O'Charley's was like chewing on a stalk of celery—no enjoyment, but at least you could say you ate something. Our GM constantly threatened everyone's job. I saw him scream at someone for scraping a bread plate with their fingernail, then take it to a table, which we all did because our dishwasher was less than marginal in his work. I was determined that if I got reprimanded for anything, I would walk out of a shift in style—full section needing refills and all orders completely wrong. It never happened, but I was tempted on that last day when I walked with less than $13 for the fourth shift in a row.

So, what sucked about this place? The customers. Many people refer to restaurant customers as guests, but I don't. A guest is someone you invite and take care of their meal; a customer pays you. Many O'Charley's customers figured out how to eat without leaving a dime for their food or service. Coupons seriously dragged the clientele down to another level as well.

Here are some of the situations I've encountered... Being assigned tables in the bar isn't fun in any restaurant, especially if you're not a woman. Most managers don't understand, but bad customers usually expect service from a Cocktail Waitress, not a guy. Many times, people assume they'll get special prices or faster service—only during happy hours and not true. That 20-minute ticket time is the same all over the restaurant, and ordering a well-done steak adds more time.

Food allergies... I know the difference between being allergic and not liking something. I hate tomatoes but eat things with ketchup. I don't claim I'm allergic; I just explain I don't enjoy the flavor of raw tomatoes. Don't tell me you're allergic to tomatoes and then ask for ketchup for your fries. Also, don't come in on a busy Friday night and tell me to cook something in a different fryer because of an allergy. Our cooks are basically pot and crack heads who don't care and will nod their heads and do everything the easier way. Everything in the kitchen comes into contact with everything. I'd not be surprised if someone finds a bit of weed in their salad. Also, if you have food allergies, why are you grazing and eating off other people's plates? Someone with a seafood allergy did this, and we had to call 911. The paramedics took her to the hospital. That's on her, not her server or the restaurant.

High chairs or chairs at the end of a booth... We have tables, people. Booths were not designed to have a baby at the end of them. It's a fire hazard and a danger to your child when they grab for the hot plates our food runner is delivering to your table. Also, I don't want your slobbering child's DNA on my arms or hands as they grab for me.

Happy Birthday... We don't sing, and though I'm a good singer, I'm not singing for you. I don't care that it's your birthday. I don't know you. Also, why are you at a place like O'Charley's for your birthday? The party sections at the more elegant Olive Garden or Red Lobster booked up?

Handing me a check presenter and proclaiming that you left my tip in it is like announcing that you left the equivalent of what it costs to do a load of laundry at your apartment complex. We had a tip guide on the receipt showing 20%, 18%, and 15%. When you leave less than 10%, I feel my butt start to bleed. I am an OCD server. I have a script that I follow, and I touch every facet of the serving manual. When I hear you say, "Thank you so much, you did a wonderful job!" I know that was my tip, and I will give you no service next time.

Drinks for kids are clearly marked on the kids' menus. They offer no juice for kids for free, and if you order it, you are charged. If your kid sucks that juice down and wants another, you get charged for a second, third, fourth, and so on. It wasn't my policy or rule, so don't blame me.

Ordering... When you say, "I guess I'm ready," then proceed to ask, "Is this Prime Rib Pasta in horseradish sauce spicy?" or "Do you have any other sides besides the 12 listed here?" I know you're going to be difficult and not compensate me. Also, when you order a well-done steak, it's going to be dry.

Impossible orders... Knowing what you're talking about helps when ordering. When you tell me, "I want my steak medium but don't want any pink or red in it," that tells me you're confused. Medium is warm and red on the inside.

Being picky... I had a woman order "Cajun Chicken Pasta," then complain about too many peppers and onions, pick them all out, eat the chicken, and leave the rest. She then claimed she was still hungry. Lady, you ate all the chicken and left the rest. No wonder you're still hungry. You should've ordered Chicken Tenders if you just wanted chicken. She also complained that a margarita was too sweet, drank both the original and the remake, and was upset about being charged for both. She didn't tip me and shorted the bartender 50 cents. Her friend ordered a well-done steak but didn't want it dry, so she wanted it cooked in "Barbara-que" sauce. We don't cook steak in frying pans; it's grilled. Barbecue sauce will just burn and make the steak drier. Enjoy your shoe leather, Miss Well Done.

Yeast rolls or bread... NOT biscuits. They are free. We bring one per customer at the table plus one extra. That's the rule per our kitchen manager. Your refill is one per customer. They are free. Don't complain they are too light, dark, or taking too long. They are free. Furthermore, I'm allergic to the yeast in them. I don't touch them, put them in, or take them out of the oven. They are free.

Sitting in the bar and ordering water, water with lots of lemon for your nasty free lemonade, or ordering non-alcoholic beverages for everyone at the table is not acceptable. Also, bringing your kids to sit in the bar is inappropriate. Just saying.

To-go cups, plastic ware for the germophobic... Guess what? The silverware and glasses go through the same dishwasher as the plates you are eating on. Remember the pothead cook statement? They don't take the time to scrape off the stuck-on food from the plates like we do with the bread plates. You might be enjoying someone else's food on your plate along with yours as you enjoy your beverages from Styrofoam cups and eat with plastic ware like you're at a barbecue.

Regulars, friends of a manager... I don't care who you are. Just because you feel a sense of entitlement through a personal connection does not excuse you from tipping or acting like you have no manners. Within this location, I found an extreme "us against them" stance. I witnessed many servers, even the ones of color, referring to customers as ratchet or using the "N" word. As one of the few white servers, I found that many customers didn't appreciate me or any other servers who weren't black. I never understood the race card, even though I was raised in the deep south. Many black servers understood the struggles I and other servers of different races were dealing with. However, a few couldn't wrap their heads around the concept and claimed we were incompetent as servers. One server, who threw this in my face, was a full-time server with an associate degree as a dental hygienist. She got fired for sleeping with the married doctor, told me she has herpes, and gave me the rundown on who she's slept with at work and every place she's been fired from. I know how to follow steps of service and conduct myself in front of customers. I don't need a sex-crazed person giving me career advice.

After nine months of O'Charley's "Passion to Serve" BS, I had to get out. I realized why one of their values for employees is "Passion to Serve." If you had no passion to serve, you'd not last a day after making marginal money. The day I walked out, I added O'Charley's to my list of places to never go back to, and so far, I've kept my promise. If I want a cheap steak, I'll go to the grocery store.