While each restaurant has its own little culture within its staff, even among chain restaurants, there are many things that each of these places has in common. There are just some things about working in a restaurant that are ubiquitous -- one of them being the language. After working in a restaurant for a while, there are some that I can't help but remember, because I hear them so often.

1. "How late are you open until?"

Whether it's from patrons who've just walked in the door, or people calling us up to ask, this is a popular question. Sometimes, it's asked from people walking through the door at 10:45 when the dining room closes at 11. I guess cheeseburger cravings know no curfew.

2. "How long's the wait?"

Step into a restaurant during prime dinner rush and expect to wait a little while. Sure, you're hungry, but 50+ other people just had the same idea. There'll be a table soon enough -- here's a buzzer, and there's a nice bench over there.

3. "Can I get a runner?"

Need something in the kitchen or in the back? You'll no doubt run into expo asking (begging) for people to run food. Sometimes, you're on too busy of a mission to stop and help, but it never hurts to get on the kitchen staff's good side if you've got a minute to spare.

4. "I'd like to speak to a manager."

This is usually followed by a forced polite smile and an internal groan. The food's messed up, someone's got a problem, or the server hasn't been over to the table in 20 minutes. Cue tracking down a manager to pull them away from the billion other things they're doing and sheepishly ask if they can please go visit table 32.

Mistakes happen all the time -- even if it's your fault, it happens to everyone. The job is wild. Sometimes things are out of your hands.

5. "We're just gonna go sit at the bar."

Go right ahead and enjoy yourself, because there aren't actually any clean tables at the moment anyway.

6. "We'd like a booth."

Ostensibly the most common thing I hear. People like comfy booths way more than they like chairs and tables -- and I totally get it, but it more often than not throws a wrench in your plans if all you've got is a table with chairs, and you just double-sat the only server that has open booths because the party before them just had the same request.

7. "Hello? I still need a runner!"

If it's the second time you've walked by expo and there's still nobody to run food, probably just stop and help. There's a good chance expo will get homicidal if they have to ask a third time.

8. "Can we have a different table?"

Everything's going great, you're taking a party to a nice, clean, available table ... and cue the wrinkled nose and a request. It's too loud over here, I don't want to be sat near a bunch of kids, it's too cold here, I want to sit by the window. Sometimes people have the weirdest reasons. It can be exasperating. But the restaurant business is all about gratification and accommodation ... even if accommodating Mrs. Smith to change tables three times gives you a headache. She ends up happy in the end.

9. "Hey, can you not seat my section for a minute? I need to run to the bathroom."

Servers can go and go and go and go ... until they actually, you know, forget to go.

10. "Oh, my legs..."

At times, servers can pull crazy double shifts that can stretch near 12 hours. At the end of the night, when you've finally slowed down just enough, your legs are going to let you hear it. Being on your feet for that long makes you want nothing more than to take a hot shower to relax your muscles and sleep just as long as you worked.

There's a lot more you'll hear if you work in the restaurant industry, but these are by far the most common. The job is absolutely wild, and sometimes it's unbelievably difficult, but at least you never have to say that you hold a boring job.