1. Greeting and Drink Order: The server greets you within 3-5 minutes. The server writes down the drink order and RIGHT AFTER
the server should go get the drinks, NOT checking on other tables until
the request is fulfilled, unless another table's food order is ready
that ordered BEFORE the current order that was just taken. In other
words, when I order, it's MY turn now, so don't go
greet the next table until you are finished with getting the soft drinks
that I have ordered. If someone's food is done that ordered BEFORE me,
then by all means do that first, but don't go to 2 tables to check on
them before fulfilling my request.
Uuum no, if a server is triple or quadruple sat, they're going to treat all tables as one big table, in no situation should the server be required to hold everyone up on a busy Saturday night to cater to your picky ass.
2. Taking the Food Order: The server writes down the food order and IMMEDIATELY
after goes put the order into the computer. The server should be going
in order that requests come in. So, if Table F placed their order just
now, then Table F's orders should be getting into the computer as SOON
as the server gets to the computer terminal. The server should not be
going to Table D to ask them if they need a refill and grab their
finished plates. In other words, do things in order so Table F will be
getting their food cooked that much sooner if the food is in the
computer, which goes to the kitchen, where the cook can start cooking
the food. If the server goes to Table D BEFORE putting Table F's order
in, that server is DELAYING Table F's food for NO
REASON. It's Table F's turn, so FINISH Table F's turn by getting the
order sent to the kitchen, instead of a HALF-WAY TURN meaning, if the
server goes to Table D BEFORE putting in Table F's food order, that's
giving Table F a HALF-WAY TURN. Table F is NOT getting a FULL TURN,
because the server went to another table, which is going OUT of ORDER.
It's almost like the server let Table D cut in a line for a minute or
so. If it's Table F's turn, then it's Table F's turn, meaning finish
with the task being requested, which is taking the order as well as
putting in the order. That would be a FULL TURN.
In other words, you'd love your server to wait in line to put your order in, delaying all their other work for you, doesn't happen that way, sorry. For instance, server takes table F's order, sees three coworkers at the computer, uses the time to take all orders, and gets to the terminal at the same damn time with your order as if they'd waited in line, only they get three tables done at once.
Example: no one cares.
3. Clean Up Work: Bussing a table should be done AFTER
a request, NOT EVER before a request. Example: One time at Chilis, my
husband and I finished eating. The waitress asked "Did we want any
dessert or anything else?" I ordred a margarita and a refill on my soft
drink. My husband ordered a refill on his soft drink also. She grabbed
our plates, but then proceed to put them on the table across which was
empty, but had lots of dirty dishes on it. She proceeded to stack the
plates on top of ours and bussed the entire table INSTEAD of going to
put our order in. HOW RUDE! So, those dirty dishes and dirty table on
the side of was going to give her a tip, I think NOT! I could have had
my drinks faster if she didn't worry about clean up work. Cleaning
should be LAST and requests should always be FIRST.
Customer's time is WAY more important than a clean table across from me.
For sure, we could have had our soft drink refills brought to us by the
time she bussed the table and put all those dishes in the kitchen. The
bartender could have already started making the margarita when the soft
drinks were arriving. She could have bussed the table right after our
soft drinks were brought, then proceeded back to the kitchen to deliver
the dirty dishes, then to the bar to pick up the margarita, then back to
our table again to bring the margarita. Instead, she didn't think of
the "CUSTOMER'S TIME", ONLY HER OWN TIME! CUSTOMER'S ARE FIRST, CLEAN UP IS LAST!
Again, computer in use, or the dreaded full hands rule, If they don't clean as they go, you, your highness might end up at a dirty table. Betcha the bussing would matter in your service a whole lot then.
4. Chit-Chatting With Server: Most people want to order their food and receive it in a TIMELY MANNER, NOT
to make a friend. I don't like it when a server starts a conversation
with me INSTEAD of just taking my order. I came there to EAT AND DRINK
and socialize with the person or people that I am with, NOT the wait staff.
Actually, most people like to feel welcome in a restaurant, if you have a medical issue with not eating right away, it behooves you to nicely let the server know. if not, you're just a snot-pick who likes to order people around.
5. Correct Order: The order that is brought to my table has NOTHING
missing and if there is something missing, the server should say their
sorry for forgetting it. Example: A side of ranch dressing. If I ordered
it with my meal, the server should reread the order BEFORE
bringing it to the customer. If it is the completely wrong thing
brought to the customer's table, that's a mistake in of itself. NEVER
bring food to a table that is COMPLETELY wrong! I have had that happen.
I ordered "Bar-b-que chicken nachos" and got "Quesadillas" brought to
me from the SAME waiter and he wrote the order down. That's just PATHETIC!
He admitted to pressing the wrong button and I only got a "Sorry", his
tip was ZERO. He didn't even have the decency to give us the wrong food
for free even, instead of throwing it away. He also didn't ask the
manager anything or have anything taken off the bill. The customer
should get a HUGE apology for a completey wrong entree. The server
should ask the manager if he or she can take something off the bill for
the CUSTOMER's INCONVENIENCE. That would be the RIGHT and CARING thing
to do.
A wrong order? Easy, let your server know, nicely, that they brought the wrong order, try "Excuse me, but I ordered the..." Most servers will be happy to fix that for you. The social contract is that you're made whole, not that they sacrifice their livelihood for you because you pout. Now, if you were Muslim or Jewish and they force fed you pork, that would rate a comp, not a simple mix up.
Besides, if you were that pressed for time, I would hope you'd go for fast food, or cook at your convenience at home. BTW you're just a douche, stiffing someone over a word choice.
6. Check: When requesting the check, this should take 3 minutes or so, not 10 minutes.
Quite honestly, most servers will try for that, but if they're slammed, shit happens. If you've been decent to them, they'll apologize, if not, no1curr.
7. Ringing up the check: This shouldn't be a 10 minute wait, this should be around 3 minutes or so,
no more than 5 minutes.
See previous answer.
8. Overcharging or Undercharging: This is the responsiblity of the SERVER. A customer should NEVER
have anything the customer didn't order on their bill. The customer
also shouldn't be charged another customers table's bill on their credit
card. This has happened to me twice. Both times I received no apology
for my wait. I also feel that the server should be responsible enough to
"KNOW THE MENU PRICES." I have had an experience where
I was in a restaurant for the first time and the waitress charged me
for the salad without an entree price and I had ordered an entree. The
overcharge amount was $1.51. I think it's PATHETIC when the CUSTOMER
knows more than the wait staff about the prices. I have also had a
couple of servers charge me $0.04 over the price it stated on the menu
for an item. The server should tell the manager if the menu doesn't
match the computer's price, NEVER, EVER, should it be the customer that has to bring the mistake up to the server. It's NOT the CUSTOMER'S fault that the menu states a certain price, it the server that is charging the customer the wrong price.
The menu also states "prices subject to change without notice". You, the customer are given an itemized bill for your perusal, the reason you're given this, is so you can check and make sure everything adds up. Four cents? C'mon! if you get charged $10 over, nobody would blame you for questioning, but four cents isn't stealing, it's either a menu change, or a round up.
9. Knowing the Menu: I have had times where I have
ordered a dish and it stated it comes with "Bar-b-que sauce" or
"Marinara sauce." The server didn't bring it to me when the food was
brought out. I had to remind that server that "It's suppose to come with
such-n-such." I think it's pretty lazy when a server can't "COMPARE THE MENU WITH THE PLATE OF FOOD."
I also feel just because a customer orders something extra that the
server shouldn't assume they don't want what suppose to come with the
food. A couple of times, I have had servers not bring the marinara sauce
that was suppose to come with mozzarella cheese sticks(which was listed
on the menu it came with marinara), just because I ordered a side of
ranch dressing along with it. If the server had doubts, they should have
ASKED me. They should NEVER ASSUME what a customer wants. Food runners should "REREAD the Menu" BEFORE
taking the food to the customer, even though they actually didn't take
the order. One time, a food runner brought out chicken tenders without
the bar-b-que sauce that the MENU stated it came with. I had also
ordered a side of honey mustard with the chicken tenders and of course
that wasn't brought with the chicken tenders either. The waitress(not
the food runner) brought the honey mustard, but I had to TELL HER that
"The menu states it comes with bar-b-que sauce." That's just PATHETIC to
me when a customer(which was me) only had been to this particular
restaurant once before about a year or so ago, knew the menu BETTER than the wait staff did. Are wait staff just that dense that they don't know the food they are serving, that's SAD, REALLY?
I know what you're referencing, it's pretty goddamned simple, if you want the marinara sauce, as well as the ranch, it's your responsibility to say so. if you said "I'd like the mozza sticks with ranch, a server will hear "sub ranch" instead. You've already made it painfully clear that the server shouldn't try to read your mind, if you want the marinara as well, you've set the expectation that you should only receive it if you've requested it. As to the menu, a good server WILL know the menu inside and out, but a) menus change without notice sometimes, and b) If you've been a jerk to them, by this time, they're savvy enough to spend their precious time with a table who's going to treat them decently.
10. Refills on Soft Drinks: I feel the server should ASK the customer if they would like a refill or a customer be able to ask the server for a refill, but NEVER a refill be brought to a table without it being ordered. There should NEVER be something brought to someone's table that was NEVER ordered. A CUSTOMER should be given the OPPORTUNITY to decide if they would like some more drink or even the same drink. I hate when servers make decisions for me, when it's the CUSTOMER'S DECISION if they want another refill or not, NOT the wait staff's. It's lazy when the server just brings a refill, instead of coming to your table to ASK if you want anymore drink. The customer should be able to order for THEMSELVES.