Walking into this interview I had no expectations. The tall brunette across the table from me explained, “walk the people to the table, set down the menus, and keep a smile on your face.” How hard could this be? Little did I know, I was just scratching the surface of what goes on beyond that hardwood grill. The 17-year-old version of myself was not prepared to be dealing with entitled coworkers and egotistical customers. The life lessons I have learned is payment in and of itself. Two years later, I am still dealing with the restaurant drama, so here’s a survival kit of what I’ve gone through so far.
- People demand impossible things, but just go with it
I find it so humorous how this society has such high requests that no human being can possibly meet. If you work in the restaurant industry, you can agree with me that some of these questions and demands are a bit ridiculous. “I want medium…and medium rare. ehh, something in-between.” okay ma’am, ill write that down and see what the cooks come up with. A young couple requesting a quiet booth for their romantic night out at 7:00 on a Saturday night dinner rush is a hostess' biggest pet peeve. I have 13 other reservations at 7:00, you are lucky if you even get a seat. Please do not come up to the hostess stand and bug me with your incompetent requests. After an enduring 8-hour shift, when people start demanding the impossible, my coworkers and I have come up with the “winning smile”. This is when you have hit the wall and your pupils show no light or emotion anymore, and your mouth is slightly open barely showing any teeth.
2. You become stereotypical
Elderly people like close, well-lit booths. Just bring them a plain baked potato and keep it moving
Home coming season… request off. If you can’t request off, be prepared to watch a 90 pound
girl pick at a plate of pasta and her boyfriend leave you a dollar.
3. You learn what “Hangry” really means
When you are on a 45-minute wait and the lobby is filled with zombie looking faces. These people literally look like they are going to bite your head off at any moment. If the wait prediction is a minute off of what we gave someone, we will be stampeded with arguments and complaints. Sir, we will get you seated as soon as a table opens up. There is no other possible explanation to why you aren’t getting seated. The wait time is only an estimate, please get this into your head. We are doing our best
4. Every day is a new day
The restaurant industry is the number one turn over rate in business. You will see familiar faces one week, and then completely different ones the next. Learning to adapt and comply with new coworkers and bosses is a positive attribute as an employee. You might not like everyone you work with, but knowing how to get the job done is what is important. On the other end of the spectrum, you will meet some of your closest friends and be able to bond with these crazy people every single shift. Work friends know you the best. They know how to cheer you up when annoying guests are getting on your nerves. You will learn how to work as a team with these individuals to give off the best service possible.
I have been blessed with a job that not only puts me through college, but that I genuinely have come to love. Before working in a restaurant, I always looked at servers with no empathy, always undermining them. I never really knew what went into taking someone’s order and bringing the food out to them. The pace of a restaurant can be overwhelming sometimes. Everyone is always in a rush, bussing tables, interacting with guests, and trying to balance five dishes on one arm. I have developed a strong sense of humility and patience when I am sitting in a restaurant now. I have so much more respect for servers, hostesses, bussers, and chefs. We all deserve a round of applause once in awhile.
