The Wierd and the Wonderful

Hungry man tweets about steak, gets surprise delivery

From: www.msnbc.msn.com

You've been traveling all day, are hungry, and want nothing more than a delicious steak to be waiting for you when you land at your next destination. So you tweet about this craving. What would you think if your wish came true and a stranger met you at the airport — steak and sides in hand?

Well, this whole series of events did happen to one man — and he shared his exact thoughts in a blog post.

Peter Shankman, an angel investor who appears to spend a great deal of time jetting from city to city, had a rough day on Wednesday. His alarm went off at 3:30 a.m., he had to catch a 7 a.m. flight from Newark, New Jersey to Tampa, Florida, have a lunch meeting in Clearwater, Florida, and then catch a 5 p.m. flight back to Newark.

By the time he was ready to board his return flight, he was starving — the "healthy piece of grouper" he had at lunch just wasn't enough to hold him for the rest of the day. His stomach growled as he took his seat and visions of steak started floating through his head. He decided to cope with the hunger the same way any other social media-obsessed individual would: He jokingly tweeted that Morton's Steakhouse, one of his favorite restaurants, should have a steak waiting for him when he lands in Newark.

Two and a half hours later his flight landed, he grabbed his things, and started walking towards the area where a car would be waiting for him.

Then something strange and wonderful happened:

Looking for my driver, I saw my name, waved to him, and started walking to the door of [the airport], like 

I’d done hundreds of times before.

“Um, Mr. Shankman,” he said.

I turned around.

“There’s a surprise for you here.”

I turned to see that the driver was standing next to someone else, who I just assumed was another driver he was talking to. Then I noticed the “someone else” was in a tuxedo.

And he was carrying a Morton’s bag.

He proceeds to tell me that he’d heard I was hungry, and inside is a 24 oz. Porterhouse steak, an order of Colossal Shrimp, a side of potatoes, one of Morton’s famous round things of bread, two napkins, and silverware.

Shankman was shocked. Not only had he merely been joking when he wrote his original Twitter message, but he also knew that the nearest Morton's was over 20 miles away from the airport. Someone at Morton's corporate offices had seen his tweet, ordered the meal, and had someone drive over 20 miles to deliver it.

Yes, it may have been a publicity stunt — someone may have noticed that Shankman has more than 100,000 Twitter followers who'd hear about the whole thing, after all. And yes, Shankman may have gotten lucky because he is known to be a frequent Morton's customer.

But this is still one fantastic story and a display of what great customer service looks like.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to tweet about my travel plans and food cravings ...

Word of the Day

Side:\ˈsīd\
Origin: Middle English, from Old English sīde; akin to Old High German sīta side, Old English sīd ample, wide
First Known Use: before 12th century
Noun
1a : the right or left part of the wall or trunk of the body <a pain in the side>; b (1) : one of the halves of the animal body on either side of the median plane (2) : a cut of meat including that about the ribs of one half of the body —used chiefly of smoked pork products; c : one longitudinal half of a hide
2: a place, space, or direction with respect to a center or to a line of division (as of an aisle, river, or street)
3a : one of the longer bounding surfaces or lines of an object especially contrasted with the ends <the side of a barn>; b : a line or surface forming a border or face of an object <a die has six sides> <the back side of the moon>; c : either surface of a thin object <one side of a record> <right side of the cloth>; d : a bounding line of a geometric figure <side of a triangle>
4a : the space beside one <stood by my side>; b : an area next to something —usually used in combination <a poolside interview>
5: a slope (as of a hill) considered as opposed to another slope <the far side of the hill>
6 a : the attitude or activity of one person or group with respect to another : part <there was no malice on my side>b : a position that is opposite to or contrasted with another <two sides to every question> <came down on the side of law and order>; c : a body of partisans or contestants <victory for neither side>; d : team 4a <11 players on each side>; also : the players on a baseball team batting in an inning <struck out the side>
7: a line of descent traced through one's parent <grandfather on his mother's side>
8: an aspect or part of something contrasted with some other real or implied aspect or part <the better side of his nature> <the sales side of the business> <the seasoning is a bit on the heavy side>
9 British : sideways spin imparted to a billiard or snooker ball
10: a sheet containing the lines and cues for a single theatrical role
11: a recording of music
12: a side order or dish <a side of fries>
— on the side
1: in addition to the main portion
2: in addition to a principal occupation
3: secretly outside of one's marriage or romantic relationship <seeing another woman on the side>
— this side of
: short of : almost <an attitude just this side of scandalous>

More Vocabulary

Angel investor: n. an investor in a business venture, esp one in its early stages
Craving: n. an intense, urgent, or abnormal desire or longing
Grouper: n. any of numerous fishes (family Serranidae and especially genera Epinephelus and Mycteroperca) that are typically large solitary bottom-dwelling fishes of warm seas and include important food fishes
Jet: v. to travel by jet airplane
Tuxedo: n. a semiformal evening suit for men