Ever heard of the little fast food restaurant named Chili's? To my own benefit, I worked there for a couple years and learned several things that most people who haven't worked in the food industry don't understand. It's important for not only the workers, but if you decide to go out to eat for the evening.
1. Your waiter or waitress has no control over how fast your food comes out.
Don't take it on your server and leave no tip! Some nights get extremely busy and they have absolutely no control over how fast the chefs can cook your meal.
2. The server has a level of patience you've never dreamed of.
The amount of rude people that come intro restaurants daily is uncountable, so make sure you keep this in mind when talking to your sever.
3. The chefs bust their butts off to make everyone food.
No, they aren't sitting back there doing nothing. They're working as fast as they can to make your meals.
4. Multitasking is an acquired trait that the whole restaurant team now has mastered.
Between making bills, shuffling through your cards, separating checks, bringing out the food, remembering orders, and being friendly to guests, there's a lot your server has on their mind.
5. Don't talk bad about other servers to your own server.
Odds are, the restaurant functions as a team. There's a good chance what you tell one server will filter through the restaurant -- whether you want it to or not.
6. People make mistakes.
Just because serving isn't your stereotypical day job behind a desk, doesn't mean it isn't really easy to slip up. Servers and chefs are only human.
7. Please don't come in five minutes before the restaurant closes.
It causes everyone to go home much later than they intended, and keep in mind these employees have families they'd love to go home to after a long day.
8. If you're in a hurry, let your server know ahead of time and they can try to move quickly.
When your server doesn't know you need to get in and out quickly, they won't rush to get your food out or put your order in quickly. If they know, they can do their best to work as fast as possible for you.
9. Snapping your fingers or clapping at your server won't make your food come out faster; it's taken as you being rude or impatient.
It's understandable to want everything to happen quickly, especially when you're hungry. But keep in mind your server is a person too!
10. Minus your tips, servers are typically paid $2-3 an hour.
So, you do the math. If you're not tipping your server may walk away with 20-30$ after a 10-hour day doing a tedious and tiresome job.
11. Don't mistake your server being nice as them "flirting" with your significant other or family.
It's the restaurant's responsibility to treat the guests right and with respect, and this doesn't mean they have intentions of anything but being polite (usually).
12. When they're kind to you, try to be kind back.
The hospitality of your server comes after putting up with many tiresome personality traits, and they're probably exhausted. Try flashing them a smile back when they're kind to you; they'll enjoy it.
