Another thing that we have noticed that has been settled some time ago and seems to have been forgotten or not passed along or just ignored is the waiterzerzerzerz or waitressessess proper title...
There is no sexual identity that goes with this position, because everyone is treated equal and has been decided long ago and still to this day the proper title is...Server...
Just like you wouldn't call an airline Flight Attendant a Stewardessessess or Stewardzezez, you wouldn't call a server a waiterzerzerzerz or waitressessess...
The second thing we see that has been settled sometime ago is the follow up visit after the customer has had a chance to eat a few bites of their food...
It's very important to go back to the table within the first 5 minutes of dropping off their food to make sure their items are cooked properly and that they have all the condiments needed...
A lot of servers don't even follow up that we've seen, they just drop off the food leave all your dirty plates then come back later and drop off a check, sometimes w/out a thank you...
We also see another mistake made by a great number of servers with the way they address you after they have dropped off your food...
The wrong approach that is seen way too often is when the server comes up to the table they ask you, "is everything okay"...
This is wrong on so many levels and we can't believe people still make this mistake...
First of all when you ask, "is everything okay" your face shows a shock and awe expression, the eyebrows go up, the eyes widen, the bottom jaw drops and the head is straight up and down...
This presents uncertainty to your customer that maybe you know something they don't know like the cooks/chefs don't know what they are doing and could draw a response of, "I don't know, should there be something wrong"...
If you do get passed the idled uncertainties you might only get a response of, "It's Good, it's good everything is...good...
The correct way to approach the customer on the follow up visit is to ask them, "how is everything"...
ex: How is everything, today; how is everything, prepared; how is everything, this evening, but always starting with, How is everything...
This approach is much more subtle because the eyes are softer, the eyebrows are level with the eyes, the head is tilted exposing the neck, and a smile on the face is more inviting to the customer...
You'll find that your customer will be more engaging with you and typically reply with, "excellent, everything is excellent, thank you"...
Whatever you do in life, you'll find that you'll use those skillz somewhere along the line of your life, and it's best to do whatever you're doing the best you can do, regardless if it's not what you want to be doing...
Influence is all around you all the time and opportunity can come knocking without any warning whatsoever, so it's best to be professional in everything you do because you'll never know who's watching...and that's a fact!
**UPDATE**
Another thing that needs to be addressed in Restaurants is the handling of the food and plates from the Server...
The Server should "NEVER" touch used plates on a table due to the germs left behind from the customer...
It's the Server's responsibility to bring your food to you, sometimes they have a runner on busy nights, but even then the runner should "NEVER" touch used plates...
That's what a busser is for, not a busboy, a "Busser"...
We just went to a diner today for breakfast and sat at the counter and we had the worst service imaginable for being right at the front of the restaurant next to all of the bins...
Our server never came back and asked how our meal was, as she walked by us a 100 times while hacking up a storm (cigarette smoker), she never cleared our plates that we finished using, dropped off the check and said, here's your check and left...
Not a thank you, not a how's everything, just as we were saying above, the worst service imaginable, so we left her a 10% tip...
We think she was mad because after we ordered we asked did the meal come with toast, and it didn't so we ordered that midstride of our meal already being cooked...
When the food came up which was a few minutes later, it didn't have toast which was understandable, but the toast took 10 minutes after the meal was served, so we waited for our toast and nibbled on the bacon until it came...
Not only that, we've noticed that most restaurants don't do the simplest of breakfast meals, two eggs, two pieces of toast, hashbrowns or country potatoes, bacon or sausage and and and a Pancake...
sidenote: Or a Waffle, same amount of ingredients, just one is perforated and the other is not...
You'll never see that as an option on a menu, that exact combination, nonononono you won't, it's always missing something...
Today our choice was Two Eggs, Bacon or Sausage and a Hot Cake for 9.95 9.95! for that! which is status quo for restaurants...
We had to add toast and hashbrowns to our order to make it a complete meal, with juice was 19.95+tip, what a rip off...
Typically you get two eggs, hasbrowns, bacon or sausage and toast anywhere from 4.95-9.95, but a hotcake is extra, but sometimes you can sub out the toast for a hotcake...
The cook is responsible for wearing gloves and hair-nets, but the servers walk around, clean tables, pick their nose, smoke cigarettes, grab dirty plates, handle money and then here they come with sanitized plates and food from the kitchen with their unwashed hands and loose hair GROSS!
