Cheapest way is still to look at the loss leaders and flyers before you shop. Those boxes work if you've got zero discipline, but they're a crutch, not a fix.

See, I actually went the opposite way with this. We made our house rules so SIMPLE that it was almost dumb, like a single notebook page with printed columns. If a rule didn't fit on that page, we didn't use it. The whole point was less thinking, not more. Once people stopped trying to memorize every weird bonus and just wrote down the final score each night, the keeping track got way easier. Your cousin's problem sounds like the system got too fancy, not that keeping score itself was broken.

So did the line out the door make you think the boycott actually drove away the regulars, or were those people always there and you just didn't notice because you were avoiding the place? I'm curious if the owner posted an apology or just doubled down on the rude comment, since that usually decides whether the crowd sticks around or moves on to the next drama.