Why is it so hard to get the bill in a restaurant? Throughout the meal, you get the best service; just a glance will get the waiter scurrying in your direction. But when it comes to the end, you can take your clothes off, stand on your table and use semaphore flags - but will your waiter notice? Not a chance.
I would have thought that they would be desparate to get your table back, or to close, but it seems not.
This has happened time after time, in restaurants great and small. Why?
Well, it shouldn’t be that hard, it’s true.
But things in restaurants tend to happen bunched together in waves, like the lunch or dinner rush. As a result, everyone’s food is coming up at the same time and everyone’s meal is ending around the same time.
Your waiter is trying to juggle all these things at once. He/she is aware that you would be less than delighted to know he/she is prioritizing delivering someone else’s food as it comes up (rather than leave it under the heat lamps), ahead of getting you your bill. Of course, if it was your food sitting under the heat lamps you’d probably feel the reverse.
When the dinner rush ends there is often a bottleneck at the computer/printer while all the servers produce bills and/or run credit cards. Throw in a large table that needs separate bills rung up and/or many separate bills being paid with credit cards, and you can see the problem.
Sometimes the problem is the manager/owner or chef, riding the servers and ordering them around. They may know they should be getting your bill for you, but there may be a higher authority ordering them about, whom they would ignore at the cost of their job.
You’re right they should want to turn the table over and be anxious to get you your bill, and you shouldn’t quite have to go through dancing naked on the table to get their attention, either.
It’s not right, I agree. I’m only offering you this insight as you asked.
Additionally you’d be stunned to know how many people ask for their bill and either order something more, or sit around talking for another 30 mins before reaching for their wallets.
If you know you’re not having anything after the coffee or dessert, when it comes to the table, politely ask the server to bring the bill as you won’t be having anything more. This will communicate to them, without telling a lie, that you are pressed for time.
I’ve found standing up and putting on my jacket to get me very quick service bringing my bill.
It’s because you’re naked on the table.
If they bring you your bill and empty your table, someone else will sit down. If they’re busy, this isn’t always a good thing.
Another thought: the servers know that bringing your food slowly could lead to a smaller tip, but taking a few minutes to bring the check is less likely to cost them, so there is less pressure to hurry.
Really? I never blame the server for slow food. Not bringing the bill is just about the only way to get a bad tip from me. Partly because I feel I’m being held hostage, and partly because it is the last thing the server does and thus is fresh on my mind. That said, I think I’ve only really lowered the tip for this reason twice, and both times the server was generally bad. For one, the server checked back in immediately after serving the food, and then never returned. Twenty minutes after we finished eating, we managed to waive down another employee and get the bill.
It doesn’t just happen during rushes either. We eat dinner late, and it happens quite a bit then, too. I would think they would want us out when it’s getting close to closing, but apparently not. Maybe that’s related to what USCDiver said–they don’t want someone else to come into their section a half hour before close.
I hate having to wait for the bill. My favorite restaurants have the waitress actually leave the bill while we’re still eating and tells us to let her know if we need anything else. Some people think this is rude on the waitress’ part (Why are they rushing me??) but I actually prefer it this way.
Or as someone else mentioned get up and meander slowly toward the door. I’m sure that will get their attention. “Wait! You didn’t pay yet!”
“Yeah! You didn’t bring me my bill yet!”
Come to America. It’s generally much easier to get your restaurant bill/check. This is one of the first things Americans notice when they travel, that in Europe you have to stand on top of your table naked. A lot of Americans don’t know this and sit passively half the night waiting for their bill (or “check” as we call it, for no good reason).
Don’t wait until yyou are ready to leave to ask for the bill, ask for it at your convenience so you can pay at your convenience.
I never ever have a problem with this.
When the server says, “Would you like dessert” or “Will there be anything else?”, I always say “Just the Bill.”
Then, I’ll usually have my credit card ready at hand, so when the bill’s dropped off, I take it and put the cc in and hand the folder right back to the server. Easy, no fuss, and keeps the ball rolling.
It is exceedingly rare that I run into a situation where this doesn’t work.
Ah, but when the server says, “Would you like dessert”, and I say yes, and he brings the dessert, it’s getting hold of him *after *that that I find difficult.
Ask the person who brings the desert?
So I have to ask for the bill before I start my dessert?
That generally works great, in my experience, if you’re actually NOT having dessert.
The times when i’ve had to wait longest are when we DO have dessert and coffee, because the waiter will sometimes just leave you sitting there forever.
Ask for the check when they bring your dessert, so it arrives while you are eating.
Just walk up to the front of the restaurant. The staff will make up your bill pretty quickly then.
A few weeks ago, I ate in a restaurant and waited about 30 minutes for the waitress to bring me the bill. She finally came and asked me if I needed anything. I said I wanted the bill, and she said I could just walk up to the register. They don’t do bills there. Nice to know…
I very rarely eat dessert and I’m a fast eater, so I’m usually waiting for the bill 5 minutes after my food arrives. It’s rare that I’m pleased and don’t have to wait on it at all.
I waited tables briefly and I was surprised during training to find that some things that a lot of people find rude were required of us. Someone in another thread recently complained about having their plates cleared before everyone was done. We were required to clear plates as you finished eating. “Pre-busing”, they called it.
And we were required to withhold the bill until everyone was finished eating and drinking and everything was off the table. Unless you asked for it, of course. For some reason they thought that any earlier and it would feel like we were rushing you out the door. Ridiculous, I know.