Having been a waitress for a few years now, my opinion of “eating out” etiquette has changed completely. I work at a vegan restaurant, which attracts a somewhat pickier crowd (mostly people living on vegan, raw, gluten-free and sometimes soy-free diets). But I’m willing to bet waiters the world over deal with the same issues, if not to the same magnitude.
Now that I’ve worked in food service extensively, when I eat at a restaurant, I keep in mind the same values that I hope people uphold when sitting at my tables. For you, the students of this university, I’m sure we have a few thousand past/present/future waiters and waitresses out there – particularly the theatre majors. So here’s my take on being a patron, having been a waitress.
1. The first, and most obvious calamity as a waitress is a poor tipper. The general rule of thumb as I see it is 15 percent for adequate service and 20 percent for good service. Obviously, if your server is rude to you, or causes some mistake that renders your meal inedible or massively unpleasant, your tip should reflect that. However, punishing your waiter for things that are out of his or her control (i.e., food taking a long time) you’re only affecting the waiter – the kitchen gets paid hourly. I know I make an effort with my tables to be pleasant, run little errands, offer soup samples, make good recommendations and have everything out in a timely manner. And yes, I expect to be paid properly for that. My hourly wage is less than $4, so if every table decides to leave 15 percent or less, I’m making far from minimum wage.
And if you’re looking to change the way the restaurant industry pays its workers, don’t use the excuse that your crappy tip to me is a political statement. Write a letter. Lobby Congress. But leave a decent tip. For poor college students, if you can’t afford a decent tip, then you can’t afford to eat there. On the same note, though, waiters: Don’t work like your 20 percent is built in. Earn it – it’s your job.
2. Make an attempt to treat your waiter like a human being, not your personal servant. Keep in mind your waiter probably has 8,000 things to do in the space of the next five minutes before people start complaining. Waiters do their best to make life pleasant for everyone. This is coming from a girl whose certain unnamed relatives have instructed waiters to give them “the best piece of meat.” Acting like this is also embarrassing for the rest of the table. No one is impressed by your power trip in getting someone who is obligated to serve you to do obnoxious little chores.
3. The restaurant is not your kitchen. If you’re looking to have something prepared beyond the scope of reasonable adjustments (no tomato, medium rare, dressing on the side, perhaps a simple substitution), make it at home. For instance, consider rethinking your request of “a little dressing on the salad and the rest on the side.”
My restaurant accommodates a huge number of allergies (I didn’t even know people could be allergic to red pepper vinaigrette), and I still serve people trying to have spinach-artichoke dip without spinach, as well as black bean and corn quesadillas without corn. Come on, people, let’s be reasonable. If you have to morph a dish so much that it no longer resembles what the menu advertises, maybe consider ordering something else.
Waitressing is probably the most thankless job I’ve ever had, and that includes two unpaid internships and working a few summers scanning thousands of pages when my dad’s insurance agency went paperless. But the satisfaction of having a good night and going home with upwards of $200 keeps me in the game.
Sarah Gordon is a junior neurobiology and physiology major. She can be reached at opinion@umdbk.com.
