Disclaimer: this list was created with the assumption that you are with a server that genuinely wants to be in the job that they are in. However, there are a handful of just plain bad servers that work in the industry. If you have the misfortune to sit in their section, there really isn’t much to be done. Speak to a manager if this happens, as I’m sure you’re not the only customers to have an issue with this server.
Everyone loves going out to eat. Restaurants remove the hassle of having to cook a meal, allow you to have something you couldn’t cook on your own and gives you the chance to do something nice with your friends and family. However, there are many factors that go into the overall experience you have when dining out. For the most part, most restaurant staff members are there to get you what you want and what you need. But, in order to do this, there are lots of things that customers can do to help workers create the best experience possible. By following the upcoming list, there should almost always be a pleasurable experience eating out, and the restaurant will function the way that it is supposed to. Without further ado, here are the things that you, the customer, should and should not do when you go out to eat.
Do: Wait to be seated by a host/hostess if the restaurant has one.
Regardless of how busy the place is, please treat this rule with a ton of respect. Restaurants almost always operate by a floor plan/seating chart, and seating yourself throws off the flow of the staff. It not only increases the time it takes for your server to greet you, it makes the rotation of tables unbalanced; servers are all there to make money, and by seating yourself, you are denying whomever was up for a table the chance to do so.
Do: Look around as you take a seat at your table.
Is your server currently running out another table’s food? Have more customers been sat in tables that are close by yours? Do they have many tables of customers? These are some factors that play into the time it takes for you to be greeted. As previously mentioned, servers are there to make money, and they aren’t purposefully ignoring you. Rest assured, they’re probably more stressed out about the time it takes for them to get to you than you are.
Make it a habit to do this throughout your dining experience, as there is a chance that the server’s situation can change any moment.
Do Not: Reply to your greeting with a drink order until your server has asked you for one.
As a way to start off your dining experience positively, most servers will say hello and ask how you’re doing that day. At some dining establishments, servers are also required to inform customers about any specials that they are offering that night. Please let us get through this formality, as it is stipulated to be part of our job.
To reciprocate these greetings, the way to go is to respond appropriately. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve asked how someone is doing, and they’ve replied “Coffee!” or “Diet Coke!” This just makes things awkward for us.
Do: Read your menu prior to ordering, and ask questions if you have any.
Reading your menu and the ingredients listed for your entrée is crucial to maintaining proper service. One of the hardest things for a server to do is to send back a plate of food because there’s a specific ingredient in a plate that you don’t like or cannot have. This holds up everyone else’s orders, irritates cooks who try to blame the server and requires that you wait longer to get your food. Good servers don’t mind a specific order, because it certainly beats having to run your food out again.
Do: Inform your server of any dietary sensitivities or allergies when they ask for a drink order or prior to ordering your entrée.
Cross-contamination is something that servers are consistently trained in, and knowing exactly what ingredients are in what menu items is their specialty; they’ll know if a product that you’re allergic to is associated with something that you’d like to order, and if they don’t, they’ll ensure that they find out and keep it away from your food and drinks. The last thing anyone wants is their client to be sent to the hospital due to a food reaction.
Do: Place your order one-by-one.
Nothing is more confusing than a group of people shouting what they’d like along with specifications and substitutions at a server. Not only does this take the server a longer time to organize and send your order to the kitchen, it also increases the likelihood of an error occurring. Ordering one at a time allows the server to make sure that each meal comes the way that you want it, and it keeps things, if you will, orderly.
Do Not: Call out to your server as they’re addressing or helping another customer.
Not only is this incredibly rude, but there is hardly any excuse for this to happen in the first place. If you followed the last few rules, there should be nothing in your plate that would bother you. There’s really one solution to this problem: just don’t do it. Wait until they come to your table or pass by you, and they will be more than happy to help you out.
Do: Take your table’s inventory of what you need or would like when your server comes to check on you.
If there’s one thing that wears me out the most, it’s having to run back and forth from a service station/the kitchen to a table and grabbing only one drink or one sauce for a customer. While this is my job, it makes my job a nightmare. It is one thing to forget to ask for a refill or sauce side, but it’s another to ask for something every time your server passes your table. It throws a wrench in their list of things that they need to do, and it makes you and other customers have to wait longer to be served.
Do Not: Blame hiccups and wait times on the server.
If you follow that rule about looking around when you sit down, you might see that the restaurant is currently in the midst of their breakfast, lunch or dinner rush. Thousands of people dine out every day, and sometimes things take more time to prepare. Your server is doing the best that they can with the situation, and they’re ensuring that your food is coming out as soon as it’s ready to come out. Just be patient and understanding; this is something that should be applied throughout the experience as a whole.
Do: Tip your server at least 10 percent of the check.
A tip is something that should be factored into your dining out budget. Servers are almost always paid what is called a “tipped wage.” This basically means that they don’t earn the minimum wage that each state/country sets and they rely on their tips from customers to make up the majority of their income. While a tip is something that is given to show the quality of service that you received, it is also something that is a systematic necessity. Servers are taxed based on the amount of sales that they make, and about 10 percent of that is taken out of their paychecks before reported tips and other government taxes are taken into account.
If you don’t tip at least 10 percent, the server is literally paying for you to go out to eat with money that should be put towards bills and other financial responsibilities. A tip of 18-20 percent shows excellent service, and stiffing your server just makes you look bad as a customer. Trust me when I say that servers remember who tips and who doesn't; this knowledge can greatly impact the quality of service that you receive before you even take a seat.
And, above all, please remember that your server is a person, as well. They have hardships, they have feelings and they deserve to be respected. After all, without them, you’d be forced to eat drive-thru food or cook something at home or yourself.
