Next to being outside under a sun-kissed sky reading a book, I would have to say that my next favorite place to be is at a restaurant! Joel and I try to have a "date night" once a week which frequently involves going out to eat somewhere. I really hope restaurants are NOT the next thing in my lifetime to be taken over by computers (like everything else!). I truly think restaurants have not gone "out of style" yet because of the atmosphere that they are constantly promoting. We live in a truly disconnected world nowadays because technology has taken away the precious face-to-face contact that we humans subconsciously crave. Many may disagree on the disconnectedness because of Facebook, Twitter, and texting, but you just can't get that deep and true connection with something as "only on the surface" as Facebook. A restaurant is set up in a way to give us back what we are missing!
As someone who frequently used to work in restaurants only a short time ago, it's amazing to me how much our society has changed in their viewpoints of proper restaurant etiquette! We now live in a world where trying to get the most bang for your buck and stretching every last dollar has become the trend. I have now seen many people go into restaurants and try to haggle their way into getting discounts or getting something for free like they are in a retail store or something. We Americans always want our cake and the attention of every onlooker to watch us eat it too!
I've devised a restaurant etiquette list for you in order to save your cheap soul from degrading yet another restaurant worker...
1. Always tip your waiter EVEN WITH BAD SERVICE! On a typical restaurant visit, I will generally tip around 20% of the total bill. Now if the service was beyond terrible, I will still give them at least 15% because I know from experience that regardless of what happens they are there to MAKE A LIVING. Typically a server has to give about 3% of their earnings to a busser, hostess, and bartender. That doesn't leave them with much if they work at an inexpensive dinner location. The funny thing is, most of the time if something goes wrong it's usually NOT the servers' fault. They are just in the unfortunate position of the customer choosing to "kill the messenger." Think about this...does your boss at your cushy corporate office cut your pay in half when you do something a customer doesn't like? Not usually. If you ever think that you are above tipping at a restaurant because of some sort of sense of entitlement, then you need to step yourself right out the door and not go in. If you can't afford a tip, then you can't afford the food. Karma, anyone?
2. Take your kids outside the restaurant to punish them when they misbehave. Even though most people don't say anything, I guarantee you, nobody wants to witness Junior get in trouble for crying hysterically or gettin' jiggy with it in the lane where all the servers and patrons are trying to move through. Your kids are fun at home. If they aren't physically or emotionally capable of behaving in a restaurant then mommy and daddy should probably go without them until they're old enough to handle being with the family in public.
3. Don't haggle with the server or the manager. Surprisingly enough, given the day and age we live in now, the number of people that still do this is small. About 1% or so. But as a former server, they can really make your day a living hell. Haggling in a retail store is normal, because they are in constant price wars with other stores, but when you do it in a restaurant...it makes you look really bad...and cheap. You may be really baffled that you just paid 8 or 9 bucks for your burger, but that 9 dollars gets dispersed into many different areas of the restaurant (servers, cooks, building, etc). I know most of you are similar in importance to the President of the United States, but you are not entitled to everything for free just to prove a point to someone or unleash your entitlement wrath on your server or the establishment.
This list is short, but distinguished in the simple reality that this is ALL you need to know when going into a restaurant establishment. Simple as that. The restaurant and its servers will show love to those that show them the love. In a nutshell, if you want the star treatment...treat them like they're stars! I PROMISE you, they will break their backs trying to please you. Unless you like the taste of saliva in your food. In that case, disregard this post. Enjoy your next meal!-----Amy :)
