We got to the restaurant about 45 minutes before closing and were told there'd be a 5-minute wait. We went and got the camera that had been left in the car, and while we were outside, our buzzer went off, letting us know our table was ready. We headed back in only to be informed that this was a mistake. We sat down and waited. About 15 to 20 minutes later, a manager jogged up and sort of quietly shouted (if there is such a thing) at the hostess.

When we asked the hostess what was going on, she let us know that their computer system had gone down and that they now didn't have a record of what people had ordered or how much it was. The manager had told her not to take any more people. We asked how long it would be until we could be seated, because, after all, the servers could recall who had what or they could simply explain the problem to the diners and then add it all up manually. Not a big deal. Apparently, we were wrong. A weak "sorry" was given, and we (along with two other groups) were turned away.