Why do restaurants add a 18% gratuity automatically for parties of 6 or more? When did this practice start?
Working a large table is very time consuming and resource hungry. In many cases it will take more than just a single server to manage the customers and keep them happy. Also, many times these tables will request separate checks which further slows down the flow of the restaurant. Since the restaurant industry is exempt from minimum wage laws, if they want to keep their good servers, they need to make sure that it is worth the trouble of catering to an atypical situation that might tax the staff more than usual. Keep in mind that the servers and other staff still need to keep the other patrons happy as well.If you receive poor service and your table is subject to the mandatory gratuity all it takes is calling the manager of the establishment over. If you've got a valid gripe they will in almost all cases waive the mandatory percentage.Now, if the manager was me, you better have a really good reason. The customer is not always right and if its obvious that you are trying to pull something over on the establishment just to save a few bucks or get a free meal Ill gladly keep the charge on the ticket. It is customary and expected that you are to leave 15% or better in the US, is it really worth arguing over 3%?Just to stress it again, if the service sucked, make sure management knows about it. If this is really a problem under normal circumstances, stay home.I have never been charged this mandatory charge if it was not clearly stated on the menu.
Why do the waiters in most restaurants collect the menus back from the table once the orders have been placed?
Firstly finer quality restaurants menus are printed in limited quantity as they are not your laminated sleeves that never change, they usually are printed depending on availability of fresh produce and seasonality of produce. Menu covers or booklets can also cost upto $100 each. So a 60 seat fine dining restaurant may only have 35 menus available during 2 seatings.Secondly as others have mentioned table space is a premium entree cutlery, mains cutlery, wine glasses, water glasses, cruet, side plate, wine list. There simply is no room for menus to sit around unattended.Most importantly though it allows all waitstaff and management to know exactly were you are at in the sequence of service. Every restaurant of standing has a sequence of service they vary slightly depending on the owners preferences and the culture, but in essence it reads like a play. Some sequences of service will only allow water, complimentary bread and oil to be delivered after your order is taken. Usually the sommelier will come and talk to you about your wine preferences once you have chosen your meal. Your cutlery has to be adjusted to your desired menu selection as well. Amuse bouche will arrive compliments of the chef once menus are cleared.None of this can happen unless every member of the team is aware exactly were you are at with the sequence of service.There will be all sorts of little signals like this throughout a fine dining meal.If you go to the restroom during the course of the meal, upon returning you will find your napkins neatly folded beside your plate (folded in a different manner to the neatly folded napkin you found on first sitting at your seat), this informs staff that this seat is occupied, the guest has shortly stepped out and has left the table early in which case your napkin would have been removed.Sequence of service is hard to discribe but the more attentive the restaurant the more complicated it becomes.a basic dining room may visit your table or check from afar 2–4 times, a fine dining restaurant may have 14–20 sequences, about a third of which will have cues attached to inform other waitstaff of where you are at.Watch closely next time you are out at a nice restaurant, the cues and switches are subtle. Also listen you will often hear faint noises maitre d’s and managers use as cues for waitstaff. Waiters are tuned to listen for them while non-entrusive to diners.
When you make special requests at a restaurant due to dietary restrictions or food allergies, do servers ever lie or ignore requests?
No, but sometimes they’re just ignorant. Most restaurants want to stay in business, so they want to avoid the bad PR that would come with angry or dead customers. I have a common food allergy (peanuts) and intolerance (dairy)… but then I am also allergic to melons and chamomile (they’re related to ragweed, look it up). My reaction to melons will range from hives and stomach cramping to full blown anaphylaxis. At restaurants I am familiar with, I know what to order. When going to a new place, I look at the menu ahead of time online and check the ingredients. Most chain restaurants have this option. When I get to the restaurant, I tell my server that I am allergic to xyz. They usually write that down and we’re on our merry way. But, I have had a few experiences where the server is particularly ditsy. We used to frequent a chain brunch place where the go-to side was “seasonal fruit” and it was brought out in a little bowl on the side of your breakfast entrée. Each time we went, I would ask if the seasonal fruit included melons due to allergy restrictions. I carry an epi-pen and benadryl, but going to the hospital for anaphylaxis is not how I want to spend my Saturday morning. Most of the time, the servers would go and check on it then let me know. One time, the server checked for me and said no, so I ordered it. My plate was brought out with my side of fruit that was only melon balls… and it was directly on the plate, touching the rest of the food. Because it was delivered by a busser and not our server, I had to sit there and watch my husband and our friends dig in to their plates. When the server came by to ask how it was, I explained to her that I have already stated that I am allergic to melons and that I will need my plate to be remade. She was not terribly apologetic and seemed pretty clueless about my reasoning. The manager came by about this time (he did his rounds through the dining room pretty regularly) and I explained the problem. He was apologetic and had my meal remade and it was comped. I’m hoping he talked to the server about what had happened. Because melon is not a common allergen, I do not expect people to remember or keep track of it. Even my own family does not remember, even though we have a summer BBQ and family reunion every summer and this comes up. My dad is also allergic to melons (same reactions) and watermelon always gave my mom heartburn (she never had an allergy test done to confirm if it was an allergy).
Why do I have to tip the server?
When restaurants began, waiters were volunteers who worked only for tips … and had to pay the more successful establishments for the privilege of serving their customers. Then some restaurants began paying the best waiters in addition to tips, in order to keep the standard of service high.The upper class routinely tipped everybody for every service, because that was part of their noblesse oblige. The upper middle class tipped in order to emulate them and appear richer than they were. There's a lot of history behind tipping.In recent decades, many cultures have come to regard tipping as an offensive relic of the class system. In America, though, the opposite happened. Tipping in restaurants and various other situations became universal. Because of this, restaurants are allowed to pay wait staff LESS than minimum wage. So if you don't tip in an American restaurant with table service, you really are hurting the waiters’ income. Only if a restaurant has official policies against tipping, or builds a mandatory tip into the bill, are customers exempted from the cultural expectation of tipping.Some foreigners are disdainful of American tipping practices, but when I travel to places where tipping is forbidden or rare, I'm very uncomfortable walking away without leaving something for the waiter. We all have our own customs and cultures, and it's no surprise when travelers prefer their home culture! But we must still observe the harmless customs of the local culture, wherever we go.When you're deciding where to eat out in America, you look up the menu, examine the prices, and then estimate an additional 25% for tips and taxes. If that number gets too high for you, pick a less expensive restaurant where you WILL be able to afford to tip. You shouldn’t expect the serving staff to subsidize your meal by performing their service for free.
Tips for a first time food runner?
The number one rule is to have clean hands! Handle your dishes in small groups until you're confident in carrying more, it's always better to make two trips then drop something. Be sure to ask the customers if there's anything else they need (provided the waitress isn't standing there when you deliver the food, asking the same thing) and be sure to bring what they ask for promptly if you get any requests. A friendly attitude is a huge help, and don't be afraid to interact with them! And about tips...most times runners and bussers are tipped out at the end of the night by percentage from the waitstaff. Unless you're told otherwise, assume that to be the case. Hence, making the customers happy is also your job, and the better your service, the better tip the wait staff will get, and the higher your tip will be.
What places can a teenager easily get hired at?
Burger joints and other fast food places. Fancy restaurants will hire you as bus boy/dishwasher (they are often one in the same position). Some restaurants might be willing to hire you as waitstaff, but they always start off waitstaff on shifts where they aren't making any money or getting many tables. I would avoid waitstaff positions until such time as you can legally work full time. Hand car washes are a thought. You even get tips at some of those places. Intwerview: Khaki pants and a solid color button up shirt, or polo shirt. Shake hands, yes sir no sir, don't chew gum, maintain good eye contact but don't get into a staring contest, don't fidget. Never show up to work with your pants sagging. Don't laze on the job, even if your coworkers do. (Remember Murphy's Law). If you have a tongue ring, eyebrow ring, nose ring, etc., take it out before going inside your place of employment. Remember, if it is honest work, it is not beneath you. There is no shame in cleaning toilets for money. But there is definitely shame in taking handouts if there are at least toilets out there that people will pay you to clean. Working menial jobs isn't beneath anyone. I am glad to see a young person who actually wants to work. Good luck to you, and be well.
Why do waiters generally wear black?
Many of these answers state that they wear black because they don’t show stains. While that’s true, it’s not the only reason they wear black.Many upscale restaurants have dimmed lighting and train the servers and bussers are trained to perform silent service, which basically means that unless it’s absolutely necessary to speak with the guests, you don’t. You deliver food knowing exactly where it goes, so there’s no need to speak. You clear plates as stealthily as possible.When you’re not servicing your tables, you stand against the wall (which is less well lit) and observe your tables, waiting for the next items they might need. When you wear all black, you disappear into that wall so that you don’t distract the guests from their conversation. It’s all part of that stealthy ninja-like service that allows people to have a perfect dining experience.