When people eat out, they don’t just expect to eat great food. They also consider the quality of service and level of attentiveness of the waiting staff as critical factors for their dining experience.
When Owen Long, an autistic teenager, went to get takeout for dinner, his family was shocked by how the restaurant treated him.
With his condition, Owen is quite predictable when it comes to food.
According to his mother Sandra Block:
“Owen likes to know exactly where he’s going to eat every night.”
On that day, he chose to eat at the Sun Restaurant.
He went out with his father Pat to pick the food from the said restaurant in Williamsville. The pair went through their routine in getting food.
Because of his condition, it can be quite difficult for Owen to interact with others. So, to make things easier for him, he gets a menu first to give himself more time to pick the food he wanted.
Everything went out as planned as first.
However, when Owen didn’t return right away, Pat started to get worried. He decided to go after him and see what’s taking him so long. There, he was shocked to see how the staff were treating his son.
Owen got more than a takeout menu.
Upon entering the restaurant, Pat found Owen sitting at a table by himself. There, he was indulging in a hot bowl of beef curry.
Pat learned that Owen did request a takeout menu upon entering the Sun Restaurant.
However, when the restaurant’s manager and partner Aye Thein saw him, she instantly saw how special the boy was. She felt she needed to do something for him.
Aye explained:
“When I look at his face, from my heart, I said, ‘Oh, he’s a very special boy to me.”
She asked what the teenager wanted to eat and Owen replied that he wanted beef.
Upon hearing his request, she immediately sat him down and asked the kitchen team to make beef curry for him and to make it fast. Moreover, he let Owen eat for free.
Aye had no idea that the boy had autism. All she did was practice Mettā.
She explained:
“Mettā means loving and kindness to everybody.”
The teenager’s parents were blown away.
For Aye, it might seem like a simple gesture of kindness. For Pat and Sandra, her gesture meant a lot. They were so happy about the uncommon kindness the restaurant showed their special son.
Sandra shared:
“To the point of sitting him down and making him a beef curry… that’s insane, that’s just so crazy awesome to me. That is just so uncommonly kind, like how often can you imagine… I’m going to cry thinking about it.”
Owen’s parents posted about the experience online and a lot of people felt inspired by the story.
In fact, their story easily went viral.
Sandra recalled telling Pat:
“Hey we got like a thousand likes on this.” And then I’m like, ‘No make that 1,200. Make that 1,240.”
More than 140,000 people have watched their interview.
Most of the people gave praises to Aye and the restaurant. Others found Owen a remarkable kid for having an innocent and pure heart.
One viewer said:
“So heartwarming to see the kindness that some still have for others.”
Another one said:
“Lovely story and such a nice woman and the restaurant deserves praise for such a kind gesture.”
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