# Weird restaurant policies **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 22, 2012, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696 "2012-05-22T07:24:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Sister\_Vigilante](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@Sister\_Vigilante](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sister_Vigilante)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/101 "2012-05-23T18:35:42Z")
> [@wevets](#): > > Good point, **Ascenray** - that would be all fair and square, as long as the price you pay is the price that was listed. > I’m still curious where this is happening since I’ve never seen anything like it. > Has anyone besides **MrDurden** and **dougie\_monty** seen this bring-the-bills-but-not-the-coins change practice? I have never even heard of this until this thread. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/102 "2012-05-23T18:42:05Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > What, were you making change out of your pocket, right at the table, instead of going to the cash register? Lots of non-restaurant workers don’t know this, but often-times, there is no cash register. I work weekends as a server (used to be full-time,) and the only ‘server’ who uses a cash register is the bartender. Everyone else just keeps all the cash they get from bills, makes change from that, and then “cashes out” to the manager at the end of the night. It’s actually easier all around (you don’t have a dozen servers on a busy Friday night all trying to use one or two cash registers,) with one exception: Making change when you can’t. In theory, you are supposed to start your shift with enough small bills (1’s and 5’s) to make change from a 20, as well as coins. But not everyone does, and on top of that, it’s easy to go through all of it before you get some back. Especially the coins. Not a lot of people leave coins anymore, so it’s common to have to ask around to another server to borrow coins from them. If they are also out, you have to try the bartender (since they do have a register.) If the bartender can’t do it the next step is to get the manger to open the safe and make change for you from the petty cash…managers hate doing that more than we hate asking.) This takes time, and it’s annoying as fuck. There have been times where I couldn’t find coins, so even though their change might only be something like $5.12, I’ll give them $6 back. I’ve never heard of not giving back coins _at all_, though. At most, I know a few servers that ‘don’t do pennies’, and won’t round up, so you’d at most be out four cents. But, knowing some people here, not giving back that four cents would still be an insult, or something. ---
**Author:** ![lost4life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c4cdca/32.png) [@lost4life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lost4life)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/103 "2012-05-23T18:48:06Z")
NM - Bouv deleted the part I was replying to… I guess round down if you don’t like giving change and four cents means nothing to you. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/104 "2012-05-23T18:50:57Z")
> [@lost4life](#): > > NM - Bouv deleted the part I was replying to… Yeah, I realized I was too snarky, so I changed it. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Sacrilegium](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f05b48/32.png) [@Sacrilegium](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sacrilegium)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/105 "2012-05-23T18:57:27Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I don’t understand pizzerias with a “no double topping” policy. Ever see this? They have a two topping special deal. They will put on 12 pepperoni and 14 mushrooms without a problem, but you can’t get 24 pepperoni or 28 shrooms. As others have said, it’s probably about price. Although it did remind me of the pizza place I used to work out. We would do triple toppings for people if they wanted, but never triple cheese. It wouldn’t cook right in our oven with that much cheese on it. The crust would be nearly burned by the time the cheese got mostly melted. > [@alphaboi867](#): > > She then pointed to small sign taped to the _side_ of the register saying there as a $10 minimum for credit cards. That’s likely a violation of their merchant agreement with the credit card company. Most merchants don’t seem to know (or just don’t care). ETA: I just Googled the subject a little and it looks like that situation may have changed. Might be OK to ask for a minimum on credit cards now, thanks to sorta-recent laws passing. I’ll have to investigate it further when I’m not feeling so lazy. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/106 "2012-05-23T18:59:03Z")
> [@Morbo](#): > > There’s a Mexican place near my house. The setup is you order food, take a number, then go get it when they call you. When you’re finished there are signs everywhere telling you to bus your own tray. Plates go here, silverware goes there, cups go there. No waitresses. > > Which would be fine, but there are signs about tipping **everywhere**. Signs at the table, handwritten, saying “Tips appreciated!” Signs at the register saying “Tipping is not a city in China.” Huge signs with arrows pointing to the tip jar. > > Pretty off-putting, even more so when there’s not even wait staff and you’re busing your own table. I’d be sure to tip the waiter and busboy handsomely. Oh look, it’s already in my wallet! ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/107 "2012-05-23T19:14:24Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > This is a silly question, but having never visited somewhere where “Coke” is the generic soft-drink name, how do you order the specific one? I’m guessing: ask for a “Coca-Cola”. > > Also, if “Coke” is the generic soda, is “Diet Coke” a generic diet soda, or is it understood to be a diet Cola? I guess most restaurants don’t have diet drinks other than Cola, so this might not come up. That never actually happens in Georgia restaurants. Ever. If you order a Coke in Georgia, you get a Coca-Cola. If they don’t have it, they’ll ask you if Pepsi is okay. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/108 "2012-05-23T19:17:06Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > That never actually happens in Georgia restaurants. Ever. > > If you order a Coke in Georgia, you get a Coca-Cola. If they don’t have it, they’ll ask you if Pepsi is okay. As I said before, they have to. In fact I believe that Coke sends secret shoppers around to Pepsi-only restaurants to make sure that when someone asks for Coke, that the server specifies that Coke isn’t available. ---
**Author:** ![Lasciel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e79b87/32.png) [@Lasciel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lasciel)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/109 "2012-05-23T19:25:49Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > That never actually happens in Georgia restaurants. Ever. > > If you order a Coke in Georgia, you get a Coca-Cola. If they don’t have it, they’ll ask you if Pepsi is okay. I’ll add that really good waitstaff will also respond to an order of “Coke” with the confirmation “regular Coca-Cola?” allowing the coke-ordering patron a chance to elaborate that the “coke” they wanted was actually Diet or caffeine-free or Mr Pibb or something else brown and fizzy. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/110 "2012-05-23T19:26:44Z")
> [@dougie\_monty](#): > > I used to go to buffet/all-you-can-eat restaurants with a woman I’ll call Shirley. When she filled her buffet plate, she would come to the table and take several zip-loc bags out of her purse and fill them from the plate, to my surprise. > … > I don’t go to restaurants with her any more. I haven’t even seen her in more than a year. I was surprised you went to a restaurant with her a \*second \*time, actually. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/111 "2012-05-23T19:29:00Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > As I said before, they have to. In fact I believe that Coke sends secret shoppers around to Pepsi-only restaurants to make sure that when someone asks for Coke, that the server specifies that Coke isn’t available. I wonder if they’ll offer to get you one from a nearby store in some cases. An old GF offered to do that when she started as a waitress. They wanted a tab. She thought they meant a diet soft drink! And the other day I asked for a decaf at a restaurant. The waitress said they were out, and went to the convenience store next door to get some, just so I could have a cup. She got a nice tip! ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/112 "2012-05-23T19:59:07Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > I called the Old Spaghetti Factory the other day at about 6:20, got our name on the list and they said they’d keep it there for up to an hour. We got there at 6:40, and they gave us a wait time of 60-90 minutes. Holy fuck. I won’t wait 90 minutes to eat at…well, anywhere, much less a Spaghetti Factory. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/113 "2012-05-23T20:00:26Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > As I said before, they have to. In fact I believe that Coke sends secret shoppers around to Pepsi-only restaurants to make sure that when someone asks for Coke, that the server specifies that Coke isn’t available. It’s true. They even dress them like [this](http://lh6.ggpht.com/-BZP31khhUJc/RzCzpdKU-hI/AAAAAAAACRs/N9piHtRm_zM/NDVD_011.jpg) so nobody suspects anything. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/114 "2012-05-23T20:02:30Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > As I said before, they have to. In fact I believe that Coke sends secret shoppers around to Pepsi-only restaurants to make sure that when someone asks for Coke, that the server specifies that Coke isn’t available. When I was a kid (the '80s) Coke was at McDonalds, Pepsi at Burger King. (We lived near, and regualrly had, Burger King) ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/115 "2012-05-23T20:10:16Z")
> [@](#): > > Has anyone besides MrDurden and dougie\_monty seen this bring-the-bills-but-not-the-coins change practice? > [@Sister\_Vigilante](#): > > I have never even heard of this until this thread. Me, neither, for the record. And, yeah, and hour-and-a-_half_ wait time is re-friggin’-diculous. ---
**Author:** ![Rand\_Rover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/db5fbb/32.png) [@Rand\_Rover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rand_Rover)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/116 "2012-05-23T20:15:45Z")
Re: the “no double toppings” policy, another reason for it may be to avoid fights with customers. I could see a lot of this going on: “That’s only one topping of \!” “No, that’s really two of our normal portion amounts of \, ma’am” “:mad:” “:rolleyes:” “I’m calling corporate!” “OK fine! No double toppings from now on!” ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/117 "2012-05-23T20:16:38Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > And, yeah, and hour-and-a-_half_ wait time is re-friggin’-diculous. I have never eaten at an Outback Steakhouse for this very reason. The first time it was a 2 hour wait, the second time it was 90 minutes. It was the last restaurant we saw in Massachusetts before we crossed over in to New Hampshire. We figured that we’d eat somewhere in New Hamshire. But you want to know something about New Hampshire? THERE ARE NO RESTAURANTS IN NEW HAMPSHIRE. We didn’t eat until we got to Vermont. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/118 "2012-05-23T20:36:19Z")
> [@FuriousGeorge](#): > > This, big time. Mother’s Day breakfast and you’re NOT taking reservations? Good call. You don’t even have a bar to hang out in and buy overpriced mimosas. Genius! Restaurants hate reservations and all restaurants would do away with them if they could get away with it. You instantly take a hit from all the no-shows (which is around 20%). If someone lingers at a table too long and blocks off the next reservation, you need to shunt them to the bar and feed them free drinks until the table is ready. If you’re a high end place and you want to turn a table twice a night, you need to offer inconveniently timed seatings at 6:30 and 9:30. If a restaurant has lines out the door, it has no motivation to offer reservations. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/119 "2012-05-23T21:32:35Z")
> [@Kimballkid](#): > > We don’ need your fancy shmancy ‘French Baguette’, we use good ol’ American bread 'round these parts. For our “Freedom Toast” 😛 > [@Morbo](#): > > Which would be fine, but there are signs about tipping **everywhere**. Signs at the table, handwritten, saying “Tips appreciated!” Signs at the register saying “Tipping is not a city in China.” Huge signs with arrows pointing to the tip jar. I briefly tended bar (I was actually the cook, but when I was on-duty by myself I also poured beers and waited tables) in a place where the owner wouldn’t let us set a “tip jar” behind the bar because, “It’s discriminatory”. 😕 > [@bouv](#): > > Lots of non-restaurant workers don’t know this, but often-times, there is no cash register. I’ve been in the restaurant business for nearly 29 years. > [@](#): > > I work weekends as a server (used to be full-time,) and the only ‘server’ who uses a cash register is the bartender. Everyone else just keeps all the cash they get from bills, makes change from that, and then “cashes out” to the manager at the end of the night. Okay, I’ve seen that kind of thing in some of the bars I’ve worked in, but only with the cocktail staff. Food orders were still rung through the register. But of course, my experience is limited to the restaurants I’ve worked in. > [@bup](#): > > Holy fuck. I won’t wait 90 minutes to eat at…well, anywhere, much less a Spaghetti Factory. I like good food (I mean, I cook for a living), but I’ve never had food so amazing that I’d be willing to stand in line outside of a restaurant for it. I can only assume that lines out the door are there for “the place”, not “the food”. But then again, I’m pretty utilitarian about my own eating. Get in, eat, get out. I don’t go to a restaurant to absorb the “atmosphere”. ---
**Author:** ![tumbleddown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tumbleddown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tumbleddown)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2012, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696/120 "2012-05-23T22:25:09Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > As I said before, they have to. In fact I believe that Coke sends secret shoppers around to Pepsi-only restaurants to make sure that when someone asks for Coke, that the server specifies that Coke isn’t available. They do. They also send secret shoppers to Coke-only restaurants to check on the quality of the drinks, look at self-serve fountains to make sure they’re setup properly, working, clean, etc. They’re very very serious about their brand and their secret shoppers. I used to be one. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/weird-restaurant-policies/622696.md?page=7)