My experiences waiting tables - There a two very important, often missed factors to the meal. The beginning and the end.
In the beginning, greet the table fast, get the drinks fast. Smile. First impressions matter.
And, when people are done, get thier tab out! Just leave it on the table if necessary. Nothing kills a tip like having a good meal, and then waiting ten minutes to pay out.
Never let an empty dish remain on the table, remove it immediately.
Never ever allow a drink glass to be empty. Offer a refill when it gets lets than half full.
Smile, be friendly but not too friendly. If I am reading my book don’t interrupt my reading to chat about the fact that you dont’ read.
Check back a few minutes after delivering my food to make sure everything is fine and that I don’t need anything.
Other than that deliver my food hot and fast, and make sure it’s what I ordered, my silverware and table are clean.
When you give me my change don’t round off the change unless it is in my favor. I don’t care if it is only a penny, it’s MY penny.
You may feel like you aren’t responsible for the chef screwing up the order but you are the restaurants representative so you and your tip will be held responsible for my dining experience. If the experinence is bad so is your tip, if the experience is good, so is your tip. (but if everything else is fine and I have hunt for you to refill my drink, your tip will go down)
Oh and by the way, I often tip 20 to 30% or more. And on Thanksgiving or Christmas day, I tip even more for good service just because you have to be there.
Let me add just a couple of thoughts here. Sometimes people want to drink one more cup of coffee, water etc after the check has been paid. Don’t leave us hanging. If it is at all possible don’t walk up and ask me how the food is when I just took a big bite of the food you just served 2 minutes ago. See if you can time the question between bites
Some people will be assholes, don’t let get you down, others will be great.
One of my biggest pet peeves is when a member of the waitstaff reaches over me to fill my water glass while it’s still on the table. The reason it’s one of my pet peeves is because a couple of times, even at nice restaurants, someone has reached over me to fill my water glass and either splashed water all over me, and once, all of the water fell into my plate that was full of food. When you’re re-filling water glasses, take them off the table to fill them, holding them near the bottom.
As stated before, work well with the kitchen and busboys. Learn how the kitchen needs the orders to be organized, abbreviations etc. Tip out the busboys a little more than everyone else. They will clear your tables first when you want them to and help you when you are in the weeds.
Know the menu. What can be prepared differently when requested and what can’t. Know what to recommend and what not to.
Timing is everything. You need to control the pace of the meal. Know how long it will take the kitchen to prepare the items you need.
Very important. If a guest is going to have wait, do not avoid them, acknowledge them. Most guests will understand and can see that you are busy, but only if you acknowledge them.
Never seem rushed. A fast waitperson does not have to move fast. As posted before, always have something in your hands. Bring something to the kitchen and from the kitchen (or other areas) on every trip. Never waste a trip, if you don’t need something now bring something for your coworkers.
On that note, help your coworkers and they will help you. Help bus your and your coworkers’ tables. Every thing needs to be a team effort.
Learn to read your guests. Have several styles of service. Some guests will need a very formal service others will be more relaxed. If you are not sure, error on the side of formal.
Do not let one table dominate your time. All the tables deserve excellent and attentive service.
Learn and use your guests’ names. Hint, friends tip friends more and everyone wants to feel at home.
Do not stereotype your guests. Everyone will eventually learn to tip appropriately for superior service. In fact, some will over compensate when pleasantly surprised.
Do not sleep with your coworkers. It always causes problems.
Beware of over socialization with guests and coworkers. People in the restaurant game tend to party hard!
Do not get discouraged. In time you should know everything. Until then apologize sincerely when you make a mistake. “I’m new” is not an apology it is an excuse.
You’ve gotten some great advice here, and no bad advice - but it is a lot to cope with all at the same time. My own secrets are as follows:
You work in the restaurant, but you work FOR the customer - think of yourself as a commissioned sales/service person, instead of a hash-slinger. DON’T push willie-nillie appetizers and desserts by rote, but keep in mind stuff like the lady who orders Diet Coke and a salad with no dressing and repeatedly mentions that she’d dieting - when time comes to offer her dessert, she’ll appreciate it if you offer the fresh fruit sorbet, or the fruit cup, rather than the Death-By-Chocolate Brownie Explosion.
There is probably very little your restaurant serves that people can’t get somewhere else - they are paying for the privilege of your excellent service. With some exceptions, people are going out to eat as a “treat”, so make it worth it for them and they’ll return the favor.
If you have a service bar that allows it, learn what drinks come in what glasses and how they are garnished - you can make the bartender your biggest fan if you set up, ice and garnish your drink glasses. He’ll love you even more if you have a soda gun and you “mix” yourself. And he will worship you if you get your drink orders together in something resembling sense (in other words, if you say, “Vodka tonic, vodka gimlet, rum & coke, bourbon on the rocks, two Heinekins with glasses” rather than “Um…vodka gimlet, rum & coke, a heinekin, vodka tonic, oh, another Heinekin, bourbon rocks and oh yeah, I need beer glasses.”) Doing so will ensure that your trips to the bar are fast and painless, and he WILL take care of your orders before the servers he knows are going to sit there fiddling about. Your customers will appreciate getting their drinks faster, too.
A few more tidbits…
Do not EVER ask the customer “Do you want your change?”
I come close to ballistic when asked that question… YES, I do want my change, every single penny, even if it is ONLY two pennies… EVEN if it is just enough to cover the tip. I will decide how much I give…
I can’t tell you how many times a waitperson has asked me that… :eek:
I cannot type here what I really want to say to them, but you can bet they will NOT get a tip…
Do not EVER assume the MAN is paying for the meal or ASSUME that the MAN/husband is the one who decides the tip percentage…
Be nice to the LADY too, and do NOT flirt with the MAN… badbadbad…
other than that…
Bless your heart and GOOD LUCK!!!
Indeed. The ONLY thing you should say to a customer when taking a cash payment is, “I will be right back with your change.” This gives the customer the option of saying, “Oh, no we’re all set” if s/he chooses to. Incidentally, keep this thought in mind when handling customer payment: between the time you drop off the check and the time you pick up payment, the foremost thought in a customer’s mind is usually your tip. This would be an exceedingly bad time to screw up. Do not make your guest flag you down to pay you, and don’t hover either (it’s a delicate balance, but not all that difficult.) Do not vanish with a customer’s charge card or cash, never to be seen again, but return promptly to the table with the charge slip or change and thank the customer again (you already thanked them when you dropped off the check, right?)