1. You, the customer, are never right
"The customer is always right" doesn't apply to restaurants because the customer is always wrong. If you ask a question, don't argue our answer; arguing doesn't change facts.
Can I get the pasta with no basil?
No, the basil is in the sauce. If you want no basil we can leave off the sauce.
There's no way to take it out?
No, listen to me, it is in the sauce. If you want sauce, there is basil. If you want no basil, there is no sauce.
But in the description it sa--
Oh, since you argued, you are right. We'll take the basil out for you.
We know what can and can't be done with the food. If you don't like what can't be taken out, don't order it, please refrain from asking us why or arguing with us that you are right. You are not. It's embarrassing to you and makes us instantly dislike you.
 |
| "Oh, you can't eat any sugar? Well, our lemonade already has sug-- Since you argued, I'll go use a spoon and scoop the sugar out."
Stock Free Images
|
"Excuse me! Could I get a refill!" If you do this, you are being killed in our heads. What's worse is when you clarify what you were drinking; we remember, and if we don't, it's written down. What's worse is when you do this while we are talking to another table. I'm sure you would love it if we got distracted from your table by another rude customer. Think about other people's needs, not just your own.
Here's a bit of advice that will make us love you; in the manner of an elderly woman, politely ask for a refill "when you have time." This shows us that you respect our time and, in turn, we will be much more respectful to you.
3. Don't make a fuss when we ask for your I.D.
Fines for serving underagers are steep and our job is on the line when dealing with underage drinking, so don't get offended if we ask for your I.D. Most of the time, we trust that you are of drinking age, but we just want to save our asses if you aren't. There are a lot of people we serve in a night, so a few underage kids might try slip to through the cracks, which is why we card a lot of people. Making a fuss about it is the most annoying thing you can possible do. What makes this worse is adding some snarky comment after we do so, "I've never been carded before, why do you want to see it?" Because that comment really makes us not trust you anymore. Shut up, politely show us your I.D., and we will gladly get you drinks.
 |
| "Hey puta, argue with me some more and see what happens."
Stock Free Images
|
Don't condescend us and call our job easy, it's not. We'd like to see you do it for one night. Anybody who thinks waiting tables is easy has clearly never worked in food service. I'm not going to call servers "special," but it takes a special kind of person to handle the job. Could you remember the drinks and food orders for five tables? Most of the time you can't remember what you ordered for yourself.
Who ordered the cheeseburger?
*Silence*
Dan, wasn't that you?
Oh, oh yeah.
And Dan thinks he could be a server? We have no connection to you and really couldn't care less what you order, but we will remember it and, in addition, remember everybody else's orders in our section. I speak for all servers when I say we would love to see you face the hours of mental and physical stress dealing with guests, managers, cooks, and other coworkers. After that, then you can decide if our job is easy or not. This is why having other food service workers at our tables is a blessing. They know what it's like to work in a restaurant and respect what we do.
5. We make less than minimum wage
Our wages are in the $2-4 range, far below minimum wage, so we rely on tips to pay the bills, buy food, and pay for the hundreds of other expenses we have. Unless you have terrible service, please tip somewhat decently. We would love 20%, expect 15%, and usually end up getting 10%. It's the harsh truth. If you can't afford to tip, stay at home or go eat fast food.
 |
| My tips feed my kitty. Don't let my kitty go hungry...
Stock Free images
|
Last time I checked, servers aren't octopuses. We have two hands just like everyone else, so don't give us bad looks when we have help bringing out your food. Going along with that, if you ask us for multiple things from the kitchen, let's just say eight different kinds of dressing, it's understandable because sometimes you just need extra dressings and we will gladly get them for you, but when we bring out four of the dressings, don't say, "Where's my ranch? You're bringing my ranch, right? Did you forget it?" Calm the fuck down, remember, two hands like everyone else.
 |
| The ultimate server. |
We don't care how old your kid is, if they are too shy to talk to me, talk for them; we have other shit to do besides waiting for your kid to mumble some order. If they are crabby and throw a fit about what they want to eat, ask us to come back in a minute, don't make us stand there and wait while you fight with your family.
8. Would you leave food on your floor?
I've got an idea. Let us come to your house for dinner and throw our food on the floor, but we won't just let it drop, we are going to step on it and really grind it in. You wouldn't like that? Well, neither do we. After the restaurant closes, it's the server's job to clean the tables and floor. It's just wonderful seeing food stepped on and rubbed into the carpet. It's understandable that a few crumbs may fall, but when you drop forks and sandwiches on the floor, please pick them up.
9. Our name is not our job title
We introduce ourselves for a reason, so you can refer to us by our names. Yelling out, "Server!" is unacceptable when you know our names. Would you like it if we came to your job and called you "secretary"? Probably not; don't do it to us.
 |
| "Hey Construction! Build a house."
Stock Free Images
|
10. Don't ask for things that clearly aren't possible
If we tell you that your bun can't be replaced with onion rings and the burger with mozzarella sticks, just believe us, even if it is an incredibly amazing idea (I actually pitched this idea to coworkers who aptly named it, "Death."). Don't question why it can't be done, we really don't know. Honestly, if the creation you want sounds good enough, we will probably steal the idea for our meal later because we can do stuff like that, sorry. Everybody would enjoy a cheeseburger with steaks as the buns, but, sorry buddy, we can't do it.
 |
| The burger sent from Heaven.
Red Robin
|
This is one of my most hated ones. "Excuse me, how long will it be on our food?" Just don't even ask us this, it will get to you when it's ready. If your food is taking a long time, we are aware of it, you don't have to remind us. And if you are going to ask how long your food will be, make it a realistic expectation, don't ask where your well-done steak is after five minutes of waiting, settle down because you're waiting another ten minutes.
 |
| "I want this done well, but in two minutes."
Stock Free Images
|
It is a asking the "meat bringer" if she is bringing the food...
"'They're called 'servers,' my wife whispered when she was out of earshot. 'And if you hadn't ordered steak and replaced all of your sides with 'also steak,' the food would have been here by now. Why do you have to make everything difficult?'"
There you go; study this, remember it, apply this and try to be a respectful guest next time you are at a restaurant. Your server will love you for it.
Servers, any other complaints? Customers, any rebuttals? Comment below and let us know!
Love #9. Good reminder.
ReplyDeleteThat was way more interesting than I thought it would be.
ReplyDeleteHaha, glad to hear it. Thanks for reading and commenting :)
Delete