Jokes service workers are tired of hearing

I once spent a summer in fast-food purgatory, repeatedly encountering the same “If it’s free, I’ll take two!” remark every time I asked, “Would you like anything else?” If you, too, have endured these jokes service workers are tired of hearing, you know the pain all too well. Customers—armed with dad-level puns—are convinced they’re comedic geniuses. Meanwhile, we, the unfortunate employees, feign a polite chuckle. This collection highlights the excruciating punchlines forever stuck on replay. Prepare for a cringe-worthy reminder that no matter the establishment, some jokes never die—no matter how stale.

These photos capture classic scenarios: a barista rolling her eyes while a customer tries another round of annoying customer jokes about “extra foam, extra free?” Or a checkout clerk politely tolerating stale punchlines like “Guess this means it’s free!” whenever the scanner won’t read a barcode. It’s a loop of overused retail humor that frontline workers globally recognize, from coffee shops to hardware stores. Among the comedic gems, you’ll see screenshots of text exchanges where store managers share their daily puns scoreboard, or sly selfies of colleagues rolling their eyes mid-joke. Each snapshot screams “We’ve heard it a million times,” underlining how universal the phenomenon is: well-intentioned but cringe-worthy remarks from patrons who think they’re the first to say it.

After scrolling through these cringeworthy moments, you likely chuckled in sympathy—or in secondhand embarrassment. You encountered photo after photo of servers, clerks, and baristas caught mid-smile as they endured the same tired lines. You recognized the world-weary glint in their eyes, the forced grin that says, “Yep, that’s the hundredth time I’ve heard that this month.” It probably brought back memories of your own retail or restaurant days, whether you were the joker or the long-suffering punchline receiver.

If jokes service workers are tired of hearing made you laugh, check out other Thunder Dungeon collections about comedic work struggles—from hilarious coworker pranks to awkward tipping moments that leave everyone speechless. Because sometimes, misery loves comedic company.