You only say that, StarvingButStrong, because you’re SELFISH and obviously MAKING EXCUSES!!!
As she has pointed out repeatedly, not making SpringS1and her every need an absolute priority is utterly DISRESPECTFUL!!! and UNFAIR and MORALLY BANKRUPT!!eleventyone!111
Springs1,
I’m going to take an unscientific guess and say that over 95% of customers at restaurants don’t care about what seems to anger you so much THAT you’ll PUT in CAPS and STARS and BOLD CAPS STARS to MAKE your POINT.
Why 95%? Because if more than 1 out of every 20 people truly cared about any of the stuff that sends you into a tizzy because of how UNFAIR it is, waiters might do things differently. But they don’t.
If 20% of people who ordered a Coke then got a Sprite on the next go round then waiters would start asking people what drink they wanted when refilling. Most people want exactly what they got before.
If even 10% of people cared that someone dropped off a side salad on the way to bringing you a drink, then waiters might consider making the longer out of the way trip to serve the farther table first.
If even 5% of the dining world got red in the face at the mere fact that a waiter DARED to say to table 44 “hold on folks, be back in a moment” before coming to table 43 who had clearly been seated 5.278 seconds in advance, then they might, possibly, do it your way.
But they don’t. They don’t because I think I’m being generous (way way generous) in saying you’re on the outlying 5% of what restaurant customers want or expect. So waiters naturally choose to go with the service that the vast majority of customers will be pleased with and, lo and behold, it works the vast majority of the time.
And the times it doesn’t, I think it should be encombant upon the outlier (i.e. YOU) to state what you expect upfront and then let the waiter work around that.
But this doesn’t even get to the core of the problem with your system. You get so pissed when things don’t happen in order and in a timely manner. But what’s your proposed solution?
A waiter should ask every person with a softdrink 1) if he wants a refill and 2) whether he wants the same drink or would like to choose from the menu of options including tea and coffee
Do you have any idea how long that would take? Multiply that question by 40 across the section and your entree isn’t coming out this hour.
A waiter should serve everyone in order, take every order in order, despite the route one has to take through the restaurant to do so. Again, do you know how much this will slow things down?
You’re throwing a tizzy over being served off the same tray 15 seconds later than the next table over. Seriously? And your proposed solution is to implement policies which slow every server down on every interaction? So instead of waiting 15 seconds in the same pass, you’re waiting 15 minutes while your server is halfway across the room desperately trying to interrupt a conversation to ask if a guy REALLY wants a Coke or if a Mountain Dew would do this time and then going to the other corner of the restaurant to clear away a bowl because he saw that the guy finished his soup 12 seconds before you put down your menu and were ready to order.
THEY do!!! What is your SOURCE of your DATA?! IS IT POLLING? HAVE YOU TAKEN POLLS?
WHAT POLLS HAVE YOU TAKEN?!?!?! MY poLLs SAY DIFFERENTLY!
You are ANTI-CUSTOMER! You ARE BREAKING THE LAW and you are PROBABLY A communist!!!1!!
POLLS?!! What are you TALKING about? It’s got NOTHING TO DO with polls! I have an endless list of ANECDOTAL DATA!!!
Why, just last night I was out (with my husband, of course) having dinner at ::INSERT FAMILY STYLE RESTAURANT HERE:: and the lady at the table next to us said EXACTLY THE SAME thing I always do. You see what happened is the lady came in as a PARTY OF TWO and was seated at one of those dinky tables that can only accommodate two people and then the very next people they sat was ANOTHER PARTY OF TWO who was seated at a LARGER TABLE that can accommodate AT LEAST FOUR PEOPLE!!! Do you know what she said? Well, she said that it was unfair that the OTHER COUPLE who came in AFTER she did, GOT THE BIGGER TABLE!!! CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT? Well, I just know if that had been me, the hostess would have gotten MULTIPLE POINTS OFF for that! And I would have taken that OUT of the tip, of course, since the server didn’t make sure the customers in his station were treated WITH RESPECT!!!
As a European, it’s not that we don’t tip, but that we tip different. In every German restaurant - no matter how high or low class - I expect without actually checking that service and tax (uniform tax of 19% for all of Germany) is included in the printed prices on the menu. Sometimes, there’s a small line there that spells this out, sometimes not. Usually, I don’t even look for it.
Now, when I pay, I round up to the next number, and calculate a rough 10% for normal service. E.g. the sum is 23 , I round to 25; the sum is 26, I round to 28 Euros. If I only have one drink for 2,90 Euros, I may not leave a tip at all because I’m being frugal at this moment, but waitpersons have said that they don’t mind that. What they hate are people hosting huge dinners for 30 people, bill running up several hundred Euros, “put it on my credit card” (Diners Club) and then add 10 Euros tip. That’s cheap.
So why don’t Europeans tip the American way when they come to visit? My WAG is a combination of factors:
If only there was some experience with other countries who do pay their waitpersons a good wage, and also consider waitperson a proper profession, not a job for college kids, like say … most European countries? Because then you could, you know, compare different attitudes and systems and see that a trained professional waiter (training takes 2 years properly) with a decent wage will also give good service even though the service charge is already included. (We still round up a little bit to indicate we’re happy).
That’s also the reason why European waiters don’t like to be treated like dumb college kids from snobby American tourists who seem to think that because they pay some service drone he’s their personal slave. (Maybe that’s where the misconception about snobbish French waiters comes from).
If the effect of a standard wage for every employee were indeed to lower work output, then wouldn’t it logicaly follow that every job should be tipped? Tip the cook so your food is well done and not just-so. Tip your computer person to get top service. Etc. Only real professional people know that good service is part of their job and want to feel proud of doing a good one. Only if you go above and beyond the call of duty is a tip outside waiting appreciated and even then, a heartfelt thanks is better than money.
Oh, and what are all those bus boys doing in a restaurant, that’s different from a waiter? (I take it’s not related to autobuses.)
Don’t know about waiters, but in other professions, people will feel insulted if they get given money for simply doing a job (esp. if they are civil servants of any kind and thus forbidden from accepting any gifts of any kind, since those are “bribes”. So if you want to thank your kindergarden teacher/librarian/the city worker, I’d recommend a bar of chocolate/some pralinees much more discreet and nicer than a 2 Euro piece, 5 Euro bill.)
The manager does his job as a manager and talks to the badly performing waiter, watches if he improves, and fires him if he doesn’t? And takes care to hire a good waiter instead of a warm body next time, then with a decent pay, he also doesn’t have such a high turnover rate? (Because new employees still learning the ropes of this particular place simply can’t give such a good service as long-time employees?)
Seriously, does physics work differental in restaurants, too, if all other rules don’t apply? Good manager + carefull hiring + good training + proper feedback + decent wage + good workplace = good employees.
Change any part of this equation, whether hiring people not suited as waiters, or having dumb/incompetent managers, or no training, or a bad kitchen, and you have bad service. Rather easy, I’d say.
I think that’s another part of the different expectations of what makes a good service/waiter in Europe and in the US: Europeans generally want to be left alone from faux-friendliness, instead simple competency is enough. (A waiter that’s nowhere to be found is bad service, of course).
Americans seem to expect a waiter that runs up every five minutes to re-fill their glasses (no free drinks in Europe!) and chat with them, so American tourists may rate European waiters against those expectations and call it bad service.
While Europeans are getting bothered by waiters despondent for tips, and call that pestering bad service.
Holy. Crap.
I haven’t had internet for a while, so wow. It’s gonna take a while to read all this.
You’re in for a THRILL RIDE.
best thread ever
ETA: Whoah! The Board just totally lower-cased my post! I typed that in all caps, I swear.
That is because you are IMMORAL and SELFISH!!! You were too BUSY doing other THINGS to take care of US!! YOU started this THREAD–and the MORAL thing for you to do is to put ALL of the REST of your so called LIFE on hold. You were probably taking care of some BABY. Forget that BABY–I have NEEDS!!!
Springs1 come back–I need my giggles for the day! You make me laugh!
I’m quite confused about one repeated element in your posts about people cutting in line (like the mother with the child who wanted milk) and being served fair - do you eat in fast food restaurants only, where people stand in line? Because if you stand in line, I can understand why somebody cutting ahead is considered rude. But in a sitdown restaurant?? How can you tell which table gets first and which arrived later than you? I never pay that much attention to the other patrons, I’m either eating or talking with my partner. I also don’t need to eat and be finished in 30 minutes, so why does it matter if my drink comes now or in 10 minutes?
And I certainly would want the server to give the mother of a screaming unhappy baby some milk first! If only to stop the screaming from getting onto my nerves, but also because a baby doesn’t understand concepts of fairness and waiting their turn, they are hungry and unhappy now.
Springs1, I just wanted to point this section out for you.
So the situation is this. A waitress comes by another table and says “good evening folks. If you’ll hold on just a minute I’ll be with you shortly.” Then she comes to your table and take your drink order.
This is unfair, you say. It’s unfair because 1) the waitress went to another table first, however briefly and 2) it could have led to the potential that the other table starts ordering, thus elongating your wait time.
Yet, when the situation is reversed, when it’s YOU who gets the greeting and the “I’ll be right back,” you take advantage of the situation and go ahead and order. You slow down a waitress who has told you where you fall in the lineup and you purposely cut in line ahead of those who have been seated before you.
It is rude. It is inconsiderate. And, coming from you, it’s extremely hypocritical.
I certainly hope you choose to respond to each individual comment…
AWESOME SAUCE
We GOTTA keep this one going.
SPRIIIIINNNNNGGGGGG??? Where ARE yoooouuuuuuuUUUU?
ETA: That ‘gotta’ doesn’t look very bold. I swear it is bolded, italicized, underlined, and in all caps…
Oh, and ps, springie- how come you didn’t use any italics? Not LOUD enough for you?
The point is, if I purchase something which is defective (and cold food is “defective”) then I can make a return or get a refund. You are saying that the customer does not get to be made whole for defective merchandise.
Um, when you have cold food as specific example of bad service (instead of bad service in general), then you would tell the waiter to fix that now, wouldn’t you? Because witholding the tip at the end doesn’t make the food hot. Talking either to the server or, if he doesn’t listen, to the manager right now, will.
And the manager, if you have a complaint, will be able to make the decision to change the bill. If the food is undercooked, is just as defective, but the kitchen’s fault. So you tell the waiter, who either gets new food or brings the manager. You don’t get to change the bill yourself.
I also can’t remember ever getting cold food when eating in a real restaurant in Germany. I got pizzas about three times in all that had been in the oven a bit too long and thus were a bit black - but that’S the kitchen, not the waiters fault.
This drove me nuts the first time I went–I suspect it’s similar to the frustration Europeans feel coming here and having to deal with the tipping thing.
I like a lot of water with my meal. I kept asking for “Plain tap water” 'cause I don’t want to go through a liter or two of water in a meal and pay for fancy bottled (“still” water–can’t stand the fizzy stuff) water that has no flavor. And the waiters kept looking at me like I was ordering human body parts or something. It was a very strange culture clash for me.
Idiocracy: “You want water, from like, the toilet?”