PART 1: PET PEEVES
Food Allergies: This is a major pet-peeve of almost all servers because of the one fact that most if not all servers have no clue what all the ingredients are in every menu item. When someone comes in with lets say a gluten allergy, and the server has to go in the kitchen and ask the chef what menu items are gluten free #1 There's a good chance the chef or cooks don't know either and #2, the biggest reason servers hate it is because it's time consuming. When you have 2, 3 or more tables working, what you don't need is a table that is going monopolize your time, especially for allergy problems.
Vegetarians: Not as bad as food allergy people but when I hear vegetarian, it usually means: cheap. And if they are vegans, then they are a huge problem, and they fall into the same category as food allergies. My best advice is to grin and bear it- and get rid of them quick, so you can use you talents on people that are easy and spending money.
Separate Checks: Separate checks are not as major a headache as they once use to be- because of computers. Computers make it very simple and quick, however where it gets difficult is when you have a party of 15 or more people and they want a separate check. Really, are you kidding me, do people realize how confusing that can get. Then here comes the kicker. They wait until the very end of the meal to spring it on you, then your screwed . So the best way to handle this situation is to have a house-policy that stipulates on the menu, and that management stands behind 100%: NO SEPARATE CHECKS, or at least a limit on how many checks per table. I personally don't mind at all doing separate checks when it's done within limits, like 10 or less people. I find, say a party of 4 women' all wanting their own check- that I actually get more tip' when I accommodate their: separate check request. A simple solution to not getting caught off-guard at the end of the meal with a separate check request, is simply to ask in the beginning, "will this be on one check." At least you know and can organize yourself, so you can get it done quickly.
Kids: I personally don't have a problem with kids, but at times they can be difficult. The ones that are crying and throwing food all over the floor. Most restaurants have the server sweep their own station, so the last thing you want is some fucking rug-rat' that has parents that couldn't give a shit if their brat trashes your station.
Being under-tipped: being given something less than the normal 15-20% or more, when your service was every bit worthy of it-- is a straight-up insult. If you can afford to spend forty or fifty bucks on yourself- to eat dinner, you can afford to tip the waiter, appropriately. Nothing pisses a server off worst then giving your all for a table, and you get the payment back from the customer and there is 10% or less tip in it for you. If I didn't deserve 20% or even 15% and they left 10% or less, I'd be the first to admit it, but when people pat you on the back or shake your hand and tell you how much they enjoyed it and then leave you 10% or less- their simply scumbags!
That holds true especially for foreigners, and yes black people, as well. I can't tell you how many foreign-tables' servers wait on, and they have a 100 dollar check- and give the server 5 bucks. They know better, they just play that' I'm in a foreign country and don't know the customs, bullshit. Then there's the blacks, that totally screw you. Let me be clear. This is not a black and white issue. Almost all the black-servers I've worked with, will tell you the same thing- they don't want to wait on black people, either. They complain from the moment they sit down till the end of the meal- hoping to get something free, or to have an excuse not to tip. I will also say that I have waited on alot of blacks, that have been super nice, tipped well, and were an absolute pleasure to wait on. I've even had tables of black-women, that have complimented me about my service and attentiveness to management. So this is not a racist thing, I think it's education, or lack of it, a class thing- because usually the blacks from the northern-states act totally different from the New Orleans ones, anyway. The same goes for foreigners. I've had alot that have tipped me well, and know what the tipping standards are. It's just such a shame that the good tippers have to off-set the bad ones, but it's part of the business.
Team Service: This is a major peeve of mind. Not because I'm not a team player, because to the contrary I will go out of my way to help a fellow employee. I don't mind helping good people out when they need help, but I go to work to make money for myself no one else! When I first started waiting tables (the first ten years and then some)- it was every man for themselves: You either sink or swim on your own...the cream rises to the top.. To me hiring people based on a team system, is a cowardly way for the managers to cover his or her ass, with the owner. Basically to me it says: I, the manager, can try and evaluate employees, and pick good ones all day long- and still not have a clue. So I'll make everyone help each other. The ones that suffer are the good servers. Something else I hate about team service is I can't stand for other people to serve my table. To me in my mind, it looks to the customer that I can't do my job, that I need others to complete the task- not true. All servers, when it gets busy, and especially when you don't coordinate things properly, or the kitchen or bar throws your timing off; all servers sometimes get weeded and need help- I said need help, not others to do what the customer is going to pay me for at the end of the meal. I earn my bonus tips by the way I hustle for people. When I say hustle I mean how hard I work to insure that everything is just the way they expect it, not hustle people for extra money, like street people hustle you, big difference.
Lemon-Water: I can understand going to a fast-food place and ordering water to save the extra buck or two- they charge you for a soft drink, or even in tourist-trap areas that charge you 3 or more dollars for a soft drink, but when people go out to a nice restaurant and ask for water with lemon, so they can make lemon-aid with artificial sweetener-- what your saying to the server is: I'm a cheap motherfucker, and this should tell you what kind of tip I'm getting ready to leave you, like 10 percent.
Chronic Complainers: These are people that for whatever reason complain from the moment they walk through the front door, about every little thing- until they leave the building. I mean everything, "the music's to loud, it's too cold, the food's too salty or not enough, the silverware is dirty, it's too dark or too bright in the restaurant." Whatever they can bitch about- they do. I would guess that 80% of chronic complainers- are women, although I have had my fair share of men, as well
Owners or Managers that refuse to shut the doors even 15-20 minutes, when you haven't had a table in 2 or 3 hours: It's called a bad night, and it ain't gonna get any better if some schmuck decides he's gonna come in at the last minute, to eat. It's called cutting your losses, and the best thing you can do for your over-head- is to shut down early, if it's a bad night. It also does wonders for your staff's moral- if they know that your that type of owner or manager. Which makes this a double pet-peeve, because people that come to eat within the last 30 minutes of the night- are really pissing the staff off, and the later you come in the madder the staff gets. The kitchen's trying to clean-up and put things away, and the waiters and bus-boys have started doing their closing side-work. The last thing they want is to get stuck at work an extra hour, because some idiot decides to eat- at 10 o'clock at night. It's different when it's Friday or Saturday night, you expect it, but not during the middle of the week; which brings me to the next peeve...
People that won't leave: O.K., you've had a nice dinner and we've given you ample time for your meal to settle, and it's closing time. You can hear and see the staff work feverishly to get their closing work done, so they can get the hell home- it's now time to take the party down the street; like to a bar that's not gonna close for another 3 or 4 hours, get it !
Sidework: Although side-work is a necessary evil that all restaurant employee's hate, some places are simply out of control with the amount of things they want you to do. Some places want you to clean bathrooms, windows, polish furniture, even pickup trash in the parking lot- which is basically housekeeping. In other words they want you to do these things either because they don't want to pay someone else to do it, (like the dishwasher or janitor) or they are scared to even ask them to do it for fear they won't like it and quit.
Cleaning when slow: This is another way managers and owners milk you to their advantage. If its slow and nothing is going on, they want you to clean light-fixtures, polish-furniture, wipe-walls down-- anything so you're not standing idol. They seem to forget, they only pay us $2.13 per/hr. I know in other areas of the country they pay wait staff more per hour, and that makes it more acceptable. But, when I'm only making $2.13 per/hr.-- don't ask me to be a housekeeper, too.
Food Allergies: This is a major pet-peeve of almost all servers because of the one fact that most if not all servers have no clue what all the ingredients are in every menu item. When someone comes in with lets say a gluten allergy, and the server has to go in the kitchen and ask the chef what menu items are gluten free #1 There's a good chance the chef or cooks don't know either and #2, the biggest reason servers hate it is because it's time consuming. When you have 2, 3 or more tables working, what you don't need is a table that is going monopolize your time, especially for allergy problems.
Vegetarians: Not as bad as food allergy people but when I hear vegetarian, it usually means: cheap. And if they are vegans, then they are a huge problem, and they fall into the same category as food allergies. My best advice is to grin and bear it- and get rid of them quick, so you can use you talents on people that are easy and spending money.
Separate Checks: Separate checks are not as major a headache as they once use to be- because of computers. Computers make it very simple and quick, however where it gets difficult is when you have a party of 15 or more people and they want a separate check. Really, are you kidding me, do people realize how confusing that can get. Then here comes the kicker. They wait until the very end of the meal to spring it on you, then your screwed . So the best way to handle this situation is to have a house-policy that stipulates on the menu, and that management stands behind 100%: NO SEPARATE CHECKS, or at least a limit on how many checks per table. I personally don't mind at all doing separate checks when it's done within limits, like 10 or less people. I find, say a party of 4 women' all wanting their own check- that I actually get more tip' when I accommodate their: separate check request. A simple solution to not getting caught off-guard at the end of the meal with a separate check request, is simply to ask in the beginning, "will this be on one check." At least you know and can organize yourself, so you can get it done quickly.
Kids: I personally don't have a problem with kids, but at times they can be difficult. The ones that are crying and throwing food all over the floor. Most restaurants have the server sweep their own station, so the last thing you want is some fucking rug-rat' that has parents that couldn't give a shit if their brat trashes your station.
Being under-tipped: being given something less than the normal 15-20% or more, when your service was every bit worthy of it-- is a straight-up insult. If you can afford to spend forty or fifty bucks on yourself- to eat dinner, you can afford to tip the waiter, appropriately. Nothing pisses a server off worst then giving your all for a table, and you get the payment back from the customer and there is 10% or less tip in it for you. If I didn't deserve 20% or even 15% and they left 10% or less, I'd be the first to admit it, but when people pat you on the back or shake your hand and tell you how much they enjoyed it and then leave you 10% or less- their simply scumbags!
That holds true especially for foreigners, and yes black people, as well. I can't tell you how many foreign-tables' servers wait on, and they have a 100 dollar check- and give the server 5 bucks. They know better, they just play that' I'm in a foreign country and don't know the customs, bullshit. Then there's the blacks, that totally screw you. Let me be clear. This is not a black and white issue. Almost all the black-servers I've worked with, will tell you the same thing- they don't want to wait on black people, either. They complain from the moment they sit down till the end of the meal- hoping to get something free, or to have an excuse not to tip. I will also say that I have waited on alot of blacks, that have been super nice, tipped well, and were an absolute pleasure to wait on. I've even had tables of black-women, that have complimented me about my service and attentiveness to management. So this is not a racist thing, I think it's education, or lack of it, a class thing- because usually the blacks from the northern-states act totally different from the New Orleans ones, anyway. The same goes for foreigners. I've had alot that have tipped me well, and know what the tipping standards are. It's just such a shame that the good tippers have to off-set the bad ones, but it's part of the business.
Team Service: This is a major peeve of mind. Not because I'm not a team player, because to the contrary I will go out of my way to help a fellow employee. I don't mind helping good people out when they need help, but I go to work to make money for myself no one else! When I first started waiting tables (the first ten years and then some)- it was every man for themselves: You either sink or swim on your own...the cream rises to the top.. To me hiring people based on a team system, is a cowardly way for the managers to cover his or her ass, with the owner. Basically to me it says: I, the manager, can try and evaluate employees, and pick good ones all day long- and still not have a clue. So I'll make everyone help each other. The ones that suffer are the good servers. Something else I hate about team service is I can't stand for other people to serve my table. To me in my mind, it looks to the customer that I can't do my job, that I need others to complete the task- not true. All servers, when it gets busy, and especially when you don't coordinate things properly, or the kitchen or bar throws your timing off; all servers sometimes get weeded and need help- I said need help, not others to do what the customer is going to pay me for at the end of the meal. I earn my bonus tips by the way I hustle for people. When I say hustle I mean how hard I work to insure that everything is just the way they expect it, not hustle people for extra money, like street people hustle you, big difference.
Lemon-Water: I can understand going to a fast-food place and ordering water to save the extra buck or two- they charge you for a soft drink, or even in tourist-trap areas that charge you 3 or more dollars for a soft drink, but when people go out to a nice restaurant and ask for water with lemon, so they can make lemon-aid with artificial sweetener-- what your saying to the server is: I'm a cheap motherfucker, and this should tell you what kind of tip I'm getting ready to leave you, like 10 percent.
Chronic Complainers: These are people that for whatever reason complain from the moment they walk through the front door, about every little thing- until they leave the building. I mean everything, "the music's to loud, it's too cold, the food's too salty or not enough, the silverware is dirty, it's too dark or too bright in the restaurant." Whatever they can bitch about- they do. I would guess that 80% of chronic complainers- are women, although I have had my fair share of men, as well
Owners or Managers that refuse to shut the doors even 15-20 minutes, when you haven't had a table in 2 or 3 hours: It's called a bad night, and it ain't gonna get any better if some schmuck decides he's gonna come in at the last minute, to eat. It's called cutting your losses, and the best thing you can do for your over-head- is to shut down early, if it's a bad night. It also does wonders for your staff's moral- if they know that your that type of owner or manager. Which makes this a double pet-peeve, because people that come to eat within the last 30 minutes of the night- are really pissing the staff off, and the later you come in the madder the staff gets. The kitchen's trying to clean-up and put things away, and the waiters and bus-boys have started doing their closing side-work. The last thing they want is to get stuck at work an extra hour, because some idiot decides to eat- at 10 o'clock at night. It's different when it's Friday or Saturday night, you expect it, but not during the middle of the week; which brings me to the next peeve...
People that won't leave: O.K., you've had a nice dinner and we've given you ample time for your meal to settle, and it's closing time. You can hear and see the staff work feverishly to get their closing work done, so they can get the hell home- it's now time to take the party down the street; like to a bar that's not gonna close for another 3 or 4 hours, get it !
Sidework: Although side-work is a necessary evil that all restaurant employee's hate, some places are simply out of control with the amount of things they want you to do. Some places want you to clean bathrooms, windows, polish furniture, even pickup trash in the parking lot- which is basically housekeeping. In other words they want you to do these things either because they don't want to pay someone else to do it, (like the dishwasher or janitor) or they are scared to even ask them to do it for fear they won't like it and quit.
Cleaning when slow: This is another way managers and owners milk you to their advantage. If its slow and nothing is going on, they want you to clean light-fixtures, polish-furniture, wipe-walls down-- anything so you're not standing idol. They seem to forget, they only pay us $2.13 per/hr. I know in other areas of the country they pay wait staff more per hour, and that makes it more acceptable. But, when I'm only making $2.13 per/hr.-- don't ask me to be a housekeeper, too.