So tonight my section was in the back along the wall. This is usually the section that ends up with the larger parties. There was an off table that didn't end up bieng joined to make one of the bigger tables and I would swear tonight someone put a curse on that lone table. The first table to sit in it was a couple with their three highly undisciplined little girls. Every server cringes when they see a table that involves multiple little youngsters because it usually goes very bad for the server and all ends in a giant mess to clean up after the whole ordeal is done. The couple were friendly enough to me and I was friendly back. I tried to make the parents feel comfortable and welcome. I tried to accomodate their kids. Making shirley temples and bringing extra little plates and spoons... giving Mom the girls food first so she could cut it up and portion it out then enjoy her meal, filling Dad's 5 waters he loved to drink so fast. Placing items out of reach so the baby wouldn't knock it over. Was any of this to any avail? Hell no. The girls still managed to spill not one but two of the drinks all over the table. I had baby proofed the girls drinks and placed Mom and Dads drinks out of harms way. I tried to help clean the mess and after that the parents decided to box up what was left and leave. I closed them out got them boxes and tried to help Mom clear out some of the mess so she could box her food and pay but she said she was fine. When she left there was ice cubes, spaghetti and crayons everywhere. Great right... and like deja vu from the last baby table... what did they leave for a tip??? Less than 10%.
F***ing incredible. I wonder what you'd tip if I actually treated you the way I feel like treating you when you walk in with a bunch of kids. Mom and Dad... you of all people should understand and appreciate it when someone cooks and cleans up after your children. Seriously... think about it. These are your kids and you love them. You still hate to cook, clean up and deal with the whining neediness. These are not my kids and I do not love them but it is my job to wait on whoever comes to my restaurant and make them feel welcome. If you know how bad it sucks to do my job then why would you abuse me like that. F*** you housewives who say you work hard and aren't appreciated then go into a restaurant with your kids and slap your server in the face like that.
So after that ordeal was done a party of 8 was seated in my section at the tables next to the one that was previously the baby table. When their food was ready I trayed up half (it was all I could fit) and asked another server to follow me with the rest. In the time it took me to tray up the food and walk from the kitchen a table had been sat in the cursed table. As I am walking with a giant tray packed with food to this big table next door obviously about to serve them the woman at the cursed table points her finger up in the air at me like she's saying come here now. I am OBVIOUSLY tending to another table right now and trying to serve them their food. should i just drop my tray and run over?? So I tried to be nice and while passing out the food quickly ask her if she would like me to get her something to drink while she waits. Well, oh no. she stopped me from what I was doing to ask a million stupid questions and tell me everything she wanted from the drink to app to the entree while the table next door I was trying to serve watched half their food just sit on the tray. It didn't stop there. Everytime I would check on her she would say she was doing just fine then a minute later there she'd be pointing that finger and waving it in the air. It was like she enjoyed being a condescending biotch so much that I started believing she would intentionally wait until I walked away or was trying to take care of other customers just so she could shake that little finger and demand my presence immediately. If there is anything that rattles a servers cage it's having fingers snapped and pointed at them like "HERE SERVANT SERVANT".
I understand some people don't realize it's rude because they've never been in a server or bartenders position before. There was this one time I went to visit my roomate at the bar she works at and have a few drinks. It was super busy and this one guy kept banging his empty beer on the bar at her everytime he needed another one until she dropped everything else and got him one. Since I was a customer and not an employee of this place I exercised my freedom to let that guy know what an asshole he was being. I called him over and I told him how rude and degrading it is when you do something like that to a bartender. He thought about it and then appologized and said he just wanted to get her attention. I told him that I'm sure she noticed you were out of beer but had a line of people also ordering drinks and it takes a few minutes to get to you and a better way to get your drink on time is to call her by her god-given name. I told him her name and I said next time he needed to get her attention try calling her by her name and I say I need a beer when you have a minute. He ended up tipping her a hundred dollars that night because he was in fact a very cool older guy... he had just never worked in a restaurant or bar and didn't know how it felt to be snapped, banged or pointed at.
Rule #7 and #8: If you come in with your kids please acknowledge and appreciate that it is a headache to deal with and clean up after them and tip accordingly. Never snap at, point or bang a glass at your server. A friendly wave or name call is just fine... but not if they are talking to and or serving the table next to you.
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