Heritage Lubbock Eatery Asks For Patience As 75 Year Old Building Requires Repairs

Lubbock is rapidly growing and changing- mostly for the better. However, there are a few things that I'm praying stay the same. One of those things is Tom & Bingo's BBQ- a business that is nearly as old as my grandmother. They've been a family-owned and operated business since they opened in 1952! For a little more perspective- they opened for business when Buddy Holly was in high school!

Needless to say, their 75-year-old building can only weather so much use without repairs- no matter how diligent they are at maintaining it. Tom and Bingo's recently reached out on social media to ask for a little patience while they do a little maintenance.

From their Facebook Page:

Thanks to most of you for being patient with us the past couple weeks. Our 75 year old building is currently falling apart quicker than we can make repairs. I promise you we are doing our best to keep the legacy alive. As we figure out what’s next, remember it’s just lunch and it’s not that serious. No need to say disrespectful things to our staff. Thanks!

So, reading between the lines, it's clear that someone was not so nice to Tom and Bingo's staff over this issue.

Here's the thing: the service industry can be brutal. You can do everything to the absolute best of your ability, but then anything can happen outside of your control. And boy do some folks like to abuse the poor person in front of them when that happens. I've seen it happen over and over again- a server losing out on a tip because of something that happened in the kitchen, a bartender's night being ruined by a fight among patrons, etc. And some people just like an "easy" target to abuse. Thus, the term "Karen" was born, and I do feel bad for anyone actually named Karen, as everyone I've met has been a perfectly nice person.

So if you visit Tom and Bingo's (and you should!) remember to practice the virtue of patience, should your lunch take just a little but longer than it should. In fact, I challenge you to do this at any place you visit, because it's rarely the person who receives the abuse's fault.