This sort of thing doesn’t bother me one iota. I think it’s good service when they refill my diet cola.
I can’t remember ever dining at a place that would reuse a glass for a refill unless it was done at the table from a pitcher. Every time I get a glass taken away, a new clean one is returned to me. (I can tell because straws are removed, ice level is different, new lime wedge, etc.)
What kind of scuzzy place is going to touch germy glasses to the communal beverage dispenser? (I’m imagining those soda dispensers with the lever you push with the cup here.) I’m willing to bet such a practice would be against the health code.
However, if the germy cup doesn’t touch anything but the waitress’s hands, how is that different from the first time it was brought out to you?
JinWicked is correct, insofar as the Texas health code goes. Picking up glasses and taking them away from the table, so as to prevent using a new glass, is:
1.) Against health code in Texas, and
2.) Bad form regardless. If the waiter is slow, I’d like my ice to suck on, please!
(The rationale is the same as the reason why you get a new plate each time you visit the buffet; cross-contamination of your plate/glass.) Some people do it here anyway, but I don’t make a big deal of it; I’m pretty easy-going about germs and I don’t get sick any more often than my germaphobic friends. :shrug:
Ditto for take-out boxes. I work at a tourist bar, and a lot of people from out-of-state will hand me their plate and say, “Can I get this to go?”
I say yes, very politely, leave the plate, and grab them a to-go box and bring it to them.
Most people assume that, “Oh, that’s how they do it here,” but I’ve had a few people assume that I’m just giving bad service or lazy or something. Nope. It is a violation of Texas health code for me to box up their food for them. So sorry.
(Yes, for those of you who are wondering, I’ve taken a class on this tedious crap. In Corpus Christi, where I was raised, you have to have a Food Handler’s Permit in order to serve food, and it’s an intensely boring six hour class that’s all about the health code and ‘proper food handling.’ Where I found out that you are not even allowed to paint your nails if you serve food. Doesn’t stop me. ;))
My drink refill story:
Hubby and I went out with another couple to what turned out to be a semi-snooty restaurant. We all had water goblets and the other woman, Lori, was drinking Sprite, too. The waitress came by partway thru the meal and added water to all the glasses, including the one with the Sprite. When Lori pointed out the error, the waitress said, “Oh, ok. How much did you drink?”
:eek:
Lori did get a fresh full glass of Sprite. And we never went to that restaurant again. They were out of business within six months.
A couple people I traveled with got into trouble with that in France eating at a sandwhich shop near the Palace of Versailles(sp?). They said that the menu was pretty reasonable for the food, and they never looked at the price for sodas until the bill came. Once they figured out the exchange rate, they realized they’d been billed $15 a soda, about twice the cost of the food. When they got back to the bus, they were royally peeved off…
They did say they were big Cokes, though. 