Pet Peeve #1293: One (free refill) for the road

Fast food restaurants began offering free refills for soda quite a while ago. This policy spawned one of my biggest pet peeves, the "one for the road refill."

The idea for the restaurants was more business. I imagine that some bean counter determined that the cost of soda that an average consumer could drink during a visit would not be substantial when compared to the amount of business a free refill policy would generate. However, I  believe, the policy was designed to accompany a purchased meal, as referenced by signs in the restaurant when the policy first started.

Okay, so where's my pet peeve come in?

Well, my peeve is the customer that "gets a lunch refill to take back to the office to sip on all afternoon." This customer usually gets the jumbo soda in the first place, just to ensure that they get the maximum amount of liquid back at their desk for the afternoon. Okay, so no big deal, right? The restaurant does offer free, unconditional refills, right? Well yes, but I don't think this arrangement is what they have in mind.

Let's examine this from a non-restaurant perspective:

Suppose that you have a friend over, say to watch a game, movie, or something. As your friend arrives you mention that "their's refreshment in the fridge."  This is an open invitation to your friend to grab something to drink, "help yourself!" So, the visit progresses and your friend goes to leave. As your friend leaves, he stops by the fridge one more time and grabs one "for the road."

Now, he's your friend. So grabbing an extra beverage isn't a big deal, but "one's for the road" are generally offered by the host, not assumed by the guest. That's my peeve. The restaurant visitor that makes the same assumption.

Apologies to some of my friends who regularly practice this behavior.