The Production Desk Coffee Break: Kitchen Rules

For this snack break, we decided to take it to the rule-laden work kitchen.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:02

Okay, for this mini episode, for this little snack break, we thought we would take it to the kitchen, the production kitchen at work. We were talking about how funny it is that there's always something, usually food, but sometimes not just food, free to take from the kitchens at work. Because what tends to happen is, and I would think more so than other than like an insurance company or something, right? Because what'll happen is a show will have some sort of celebration with cake, or maybe there was an exec meeting where they ordered extra sandwiches or something. And so it feels like at any given time you walk into the kitchen at work and it's like, oh, a treat. And we thought it would be funny to talk about like the I don't know, the rules of the free stuff in the kitchen or the questions that come up. Like for me, I will eat anything that's just sitting in the kitchen. And then it often doesn't occur to me till later, like, how long have these donuts been there? Was this from this morning? Was this like I didn't notice it yesterday? I'm trying to be a little more, what's the word? I don't know if a little more choosing? Yeah, a little more selective about what I go. Ooh, yummy, free stuff in the kitchen and eat. Because I don't always know how long it's been there.

SPEAKER_00 1:13

I could just see the name of this episode. Mini coffee break will be production kitchen rules with dramatic fanfare around that. Production kitchen rules. I love days where there's an exec meeting and there's always extra pastries. It's always some bougie bakery, which I always appreciate very much.

SPEAKER_01 1:35

It is funny when it's very specifically leftover food from an executive thing, because I do feel like we're like, oh, peasants gather round and the kings have left their leftovers in the kitchen.

SPEAKER_00 1:48

People descend so fast. There was, I remember one time at work, a chef prepping delicious sushi, and I am not exaggerating when the food was put back out, everyone descended and all own it. I was one of them, and it was very, very delicious.

SPEAKER_01 2:06

At a previous studio, some executive group always had bagels on Wednesdays, and it was specifically for that group, but they ordered a lot and would put the leftovers in the kitchen. But it got to a point where the rest of us, you know, production staff would just go take the bagels, or we're like, where are the bagels? We wouldn't even wait for the leftovers, and that made me laugh too. Yeah, I don't know. Free food at work is funny.

SPEAKER_00 2:28

It is, or you know, there's often like old art books that are left for people to take, or sometimes I've seen recently like DVDs and which I appreciate. I know that's not something that's as widely available anymore.

SPEAKER_01 2:46

I would say quite confidently, the rule is if something is in the kitchen, you know, unless it's like a missing wallet or something, right? If it's food items or yeah, books or whatever, if it is in the kitchen on the kitchen count, not like deep in refrigerator or something, but like on the counter, and it's not labeled as this belongs to this show, you know, or like do not eat. This is for something meeting. If there's no label, that is fair game, period, the end.

SPEAKER_00 3:15

Do you agree with me? I do agree. I do agree. Especially, you know, and people will leave their personal belongings if they're running the bathroom. Like, obviously, that is a very different story. But things, as you said, that are left on a kitchen counter that is a shared space with everyone in the studio, and it's just sitting there without a note, hanging out with no clear owner, like that often is the signal of first come, first serve. It is.

SPEAKER_01 3:42

And I am gonna make you share a story about when someone didn't realize that that was the rule.

SPEAKER_00 3:48

Oh no. Oh no. I'm so still mortified from this. So I came into the kitchen and there was a box of swag. And my first thought was like, oh, oh my god, that's so cool. That's so sweet that they're putting this stuff out. My friends' sons will love this. And I took a few things, put it on my desk, and went about my day. I was just so mortified that that was not the case. They were for somebody, and as soon as they tracked me down, I returned it and wanted to put my head like an ostrich in the ground. And yep.

SPEAKER_01 4:24

I said to that story, who leaves stuff in a kitchen? Who leaves a box of swag in a kitchen and thinks no one's gonna take it? The rule is if you leave it in the kitchen without a label, that is fair game. So that is on that person, I'm sorry to say. And we all make mistakes, but that was their mistake and not yours.

SPEAKER_00 4:43

I stand by this. I felt so bad. I'm still so mortified. It was just being in the wrong place and getting excited at the thought of free stuff at the wrong time.

SPEAKER_01 4:51

You did nothing wrong. It's free.

SPEAKER_00 4:53

Thanks, Nat.

SPEAKER_01 4:54

Thank you. But yeah, that was a little snack break for today. Brought to you by Kitchen Rules.