I gave some specific reasons for why I prefer it. Fear of change is not one of them.
I’m in the USA and this is what I generally do.
The other night, my wife and I ate at a well-known chain restaurant that wants its baby back, if you get my drift. She was completely finished, and I was still picking at the fries, which were in a separate container and I had placed them on the table off my dish. The waiter came to take her plate, which was fine with me, but then, while he was there, he grabbed my main plate (which was empty) and left me with the container of fries only, which felt awkward for some reason. As he was doing that, he asked if we were ready for the check. No question about dessert or coffee or anything. I must admit I felt a little uncomfortably rushed.
I’m not sure, though, that restaurants and/or waitstaff really want people staying for dessert and coffee during relatively busy times. I suspect they make more money by turning over the tables and getting more entrees sold. There’s a Mexican restaurant in our area that doesn’t even offer dessert - just eat your meal and hustle your butt out the door. Their food is really good, though, so they are always busy.
Yeah, I’ve read the profit margins on desserts isn’t great. I think most restaurants would rather keep turning those tables than serve a few extra desserts.
I don’t think this practice is customer friendly, which is why I guess I ‘prefer’ it not be done, but I also don’t really care. I’ve come to accept this is the world we live in. A lot of old restaurant practices are relics of a simpler, slower time, that I’ve long accepted is on the way out.
Dirty continentals. The only proper way to do it is fork and knife together, tines up and blade in, with the handles at six o’clock!
As long as they don’t take the plate while I’m still eating, I don’t really care.
It doesn’t bother me to be done and have a clear space to place my drink (or fold my hands, or stack coasters, or whatever) while others are still eating. Likewise, it’s no skin off my nose if someone else wolfs down their meal and gets their plate cleared away while I’m still eating. On the whole, I’m a fan of efficiency, so whatever helps them get the job done–thereby incidentally giving them more time to attend to any requests I might have–is okay with me.
I like for them to wait until everyone is done, even though it does make more room to clear as people finish.
If there are four people and three have had their plates cleared, it can put pressure on the fourth person to either eat the rest of her food as quickly as possible, or to just say she is done even if she’s not. Etiquette is about making people feel comfortable. If I am lagging behind for some reason, but everyone else is done, I don’t feel as singled out if their plates are still on the table as I would if the table was empty and I was still eating.
Depends on what type of napkin I’m provided:
If it’s a paper napkin kinda joint, like a diner or Chili’s or the like, used crumpled napkins (and any other trash like straw wrappers) go on top of the plate, then it’s pushed to the edge of the table.
Cloth napkin restaurants, I sorta just put the utensils down and push the plate a few inches toward the center of the table and wait for someone to remove it.
If they don’t offer dessert, they don’t offer dessert. But rushing patrons out the door is not compatible with good service. Tips should suffer, at least; in egregious cases complaints and bad reviews are appropriate.
Hostility to customers should never be allowed to become a profitable strategy.
That’s what I was taught, and these days I’ll also move the plate closer to where it’s easiest for someone to take it away.
Otherwise leave it alone. My plate might be empty, but I might still be using it anyway, like if my picky eater dinner mate shovels some of their food onto my plate so I can finish it.
We eat dinner out two or more evenings a week, and “atmosphere” is a big deciding factor on where we choose to patronize. The places we eat all are laid back, no hurry type places.
Even better are the restaurants we go to when we vacation in St Martin. We usually go to dinner around 8 pm. Drinks are offered (and accepted) before dinner. A second round of before dinner drinks before ordering is a possibility. Appetizers are ordered, and a wine chosen. We linger over our appetizers and wine, then order an entrée and wine for that course.
If we tell our server there is no room for dessert, they leave and come back with a complimentary aperitif, then come back later to see if we might want to share a dessert. Around this point the owner comes out to say hi, ask how things are going back home, etc.
I really love dinners that start at 8 and end at midnight, especially if there is live music, but I can see the need for places like Aplebees if you are taking toddlers and Aunt Selma out for grub.
That’s not too surprising, I’ve noticed in my travels abroad that the more traditional, laid back concept of dinner is still much more common in other parts of the world. America has adopted almost a “required fast-casual” mentality in many of its restaurants. Not that you cannot still find a slower paced place here, you just have to look for it now where it used to be the norm. It used to be if it wasn’t a diner or fast food, you were expected to take hours for dinner, not 45 minutes.
Lunch service was always kind of a different beast, which is why traditionally a restaurant’s lunch menu is quite different than their dinner menu.
Generally, it’s just two of us dining out, and most of the time, we’re seated at a 4-top. That leaves us space to put our dishes as we finish. Whether they sit there or are whisked away doesn’t bother me at all. But I do get ticked if someone reaches for my nearly empty plate as I’m picking at the last little bits.
Mostly, tho, I’m glad to have the dirties cleared.
I generally make a point of stacking my utensils, napkins, and any straw wrappers or the like on my plate to make it abundantly clear that I’m done with the plate and would like for it to be taken away. The message is usually received.
This, yes, thank you. Why would people form some weird Freudian bond with an empty plate? Do they also keep empty toilet paper rolls and chewing gum wrappers? It’s an empty plate. I’m done with it. Thank you for taking it away.
Sheesh, people are screwy!
Please take my plate when I’m finished and have stacked all the miscellaneous crap in it. Otherwise, my elbows will find their way there and I have no desire to go home with them covered in left over food particles.
I’m always the slowest to finish. Because I chew my food. I’ve seen how the drive to earn a living has resulted in many hard workers habitually bolting down an entire meal in 15 minutes flat for their lunch so-called hour, and eventually every meal is bolted. But I have wended a less hectically-driven career path through life, smelled the roses, and always chewed my food. It’s a habit formed early that I cannot/will not break.
As for the poll question, I answered that I don’t care either way. I’m pretty easygoing in general.
I’ve never used tobacco, but I can remember being in restaurants with someone who used their plate as an ashtray. It was really disgusting, even more looking back from today’s mores. That was whack.
I like having my plate taken when I’m done eating, makes room. I also put it out on the edge of the table, so the bus boy knows to pick it up. As the plates start piling up it becomes obvious the customers’ desire.
Only glanced at the articles.
If someone has apparently finished before the others, and some amount of time has passed and all the rest of the diners haven’t apparently finished, a server could ask if the empty dishes should be cleared. If the answer is no wait until the rest of the diners appear to be done. If the answer is yes they can take away the plates empty at that time. They may repeat based on time and number of plates.
That applies to normal dinners though. If it’s a large party or multiple table event then clearing plates early may be necessary to maintain the service. That’s no excuse to take away my plate with uneaten food on it when I got up to get a drink you moron (not you, you know who I mean).
So when I’m having dinner with friends, do I want to be interrupted multiple times with servers removing plates, or just once? That’s right, just once. Don’t keep swooping by and picking up one plate at a time. Leave us inmolested as much as possible.