 December 15, 2010 - 10:08am | I think I know the race that Will is refering too and he should count himself lucky they left a buck. around here they dont, but neither do they ask for hot water to dunk the silverware in either which begs the question of how well sterlized will silverware be with dunking in hot water and if the silverware need to be cleaned how about the plates and glasses and the stuff in the kitchen that the food was cooked with? I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
 December 15, 2010 - 3:16pm | Being involved in the industry for over two decades now, both on the floor and in the office, I have noticed that race really doesn't enter the picture so much as point of origin. Granted I work in a tourist industry and we get everyone from everywhere, but here's what I have observed: The best tippers tend to be from Hawaii, New York, and Texas --- but beyond that it's completely unpredictable. That's why my routine starts with a "So where're y'all from?" |
 December 15, 2010 - 3:52pm | I think I know the race that Will is refering too and he should count himself lucky they left a buck. around here they dont, but neither do they ask for hot water to dunk the silverware in either which begs the question of how well sterlized will silverware be with dunking in hot water and if the silverware need to be cleaned how about the plates and glasses and the stuff in the kitchen that the food was cooked with? I did say "maybe." The silverware and flatware at WH were plenty clean when I got through with them(changed the dish pit twice a shift), and between the hundreds of degrees hot water and corrosive dish powder, any bugs which survive would make anthrax pale by comparison. Problem is, the dish pit tended to leave waterspots on the silverware, which were immediately attended to with a dish towel(yes, I know, but it was Waffle House Way). BTW, Jedi, I had one tell me I'd get a tip, when he got his reparations. That's funny, considering my mom came over on the boat in the 1950s, and my dad's people all came over in the boat just after Appomattox. Not all are like that, however. One of my best tippers was a retired couple of that certain ancestry(regulars, BTW), who liked the fact that I said "sir" and "ma'am," instead of "honey," "sweetie," "baby," etc., and that I got their orders right. " 'Beware the Beast, Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, for lust, for greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death." |
December 15, 2010 - 4:05pm | Being involved in the industry for over two decades now, both on the floor and in the office, I have noticed that race really doesn't enter the picture so much as point of origin. Granted I work in a tourist industry and we get everyone from everywhere, but here's what I have observed: My guess would be either the people from a certain former American commonwealth, or the people from the country where we lost 57,000 of our guys. My best tippers(in terms of cash and consistency) tended to be Mexicans and Yankees. I always loved introducing Yankees to grits.... Other trends --- I've noticed that as well. People that order a slew of food (such as two people ordering an entree each along with several appetizers and desserts) but stick with ice water. If they can afford $75+ for all that food, c'mon...what's another $3 for a drink?! Yep, you already know what you're getting with that one: Not much. Fifty cents, if you're lucky, a buck, if you're really lucky. Unless, of course, they're drunk, then they go up to two bucks, maybe three. All at the bottom of a glass of ice water. Though, on the other hand, one of my regulars was a retired math professor who only ever ordered a half cup of coffee at a time, and left a quarter tip. But, I knew I was going to get that quarter every morning if nothing else. I could go on all day with this. I already went farther than I wanted to. In short, it's like poker --- In order to play the game, you learn to read their tells. Agreed. " 'Beware the Beast, Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, for lust, for greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death." |
 December 15, 2010 - 4:27pm | People that order a slew of food (such as two people ordering an entree
each along with several appetizers and desserts) but stick with ice
water. If they can afford $75+ for all that food, c'mon...what's another
$3 for a drink?! Yep, you already know what you're getting with that
one: Not much. But I like to drink water over most soda and I don't drink alcohol.  Of course I tip generously at the 18-22% level so a $75 dinner would net my server around $15. Ad Astra Per Ardua! My blog - Expanding Frontier Webmaster - The Star Frontiers Network & this site Founding Editor - The Frontier Explorer Magazine Managing Editor - The Star Frontiersman Magazine |
December 15, 2010 - 4:38pm | Don't blame you on the soda, Tom. I usually order sweet tea myself. " 'Beware the Beast, Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, for lust, for greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death." |
December 15, 2010 - 6:09pm | I drive for a catering company that is the big fish in a little pond: family owned, two locations, 20 vehciles (mostly Found On Road Dead vans and a couple of jeeps that I suspect stated life as the personal vehicles of the owners) one of the quirks of this business is that it is a caterer and not a resturant. thus they got the Meals on Wheels contract for several cities in the local plus they can sell to food stamps holders. Yep people with their EBT card can order a box of pastry and a pizza and have it delivered. The EBT deliveries are a pain as even though they in about 25% of the case seem to live far better than I do and they didn't have to pay for this they wont tip. Where you will see a tip is from those who really really look like they need the welfare and then its pretty consistently $2 oh yeah and those that tip on a EBT delivery are all older (upwards of 40) and white, everyone else- nothing what really bugs me is the foodstamps delivery to the house in the good neighborhood, with high end patio furniture, granite counter tops, a flat screen TV that puts walls to shame, and massive all leather sectional furniture getting $240 worth of foodstamps delivered for a party and no tip. jeesh. The other one that kills me is the drug reps who order food to whoosze and shooze doctors offices and hospital departments and they cant or wont have a tip put on the invoice for the driver who is the one that is taking care of their client and setting up the food in their absence- off all the drug reps there is 1 that takes care of the driver. but I'll stop griping now. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
 December 16, 2010 - 3:58am | I've been out of food industry for almost 15 years now, and I don't ever want to go back. Retail pays about the same, and all you really have to do is smile. Now my IRS job... Well, if it were perm instead of seasonal, it would be perfect. Twice service industry pay plus vacation, sick leave, every frakkin' holiday off paid, and benefits to type. Just type... But yeah, I treat my servers well when I go out; I know what its like, even though I was always the cook and never the server. Long live the Frontier! |
December 16, 2010 - 3:26pm | Thanks to local union wages & benefits, I really have no reason to get out of the industry. I won't get into the politics of unions and government, I am by no definition of the word a "union man". Let's just say that my union really loves me during election drives...  I dropped out of college halfway into my senior year for these jobs, they paid better than the entry level positions I was studying for (I was a CRJ major with the intent of getting on the police force --- higher pay and not getting shot at, no brainer LOL). It's actually a big epidemic here for UNLV students, one of the reasons the campus has one of the highest non-completion student rates in the country. Sure, I'd probably be making more today if I spent the past 20 years on the force. Statistics say I'd also have gotten divorced more frequently and still be drinking...assuming I survived and didn't go off the handle. I drive for a catering company The lowest form of life, even lower than all the aforementioned low/no-tippers combined, is someone that orders a delivery service and doesn't answer when you get there. I prefer getting no/low tips than making another trip back there (at which point you usually get the no/low tip anyways, after all these are scum-bags that don't stick around for their delivery and scum-bags never tip well). There simply is no excuse for not being there to answer the door or phone, but the excuses are always the same anyways: 1> "I was taking a shower." Cleanliness is better than receiving your delivery? 2> "I was here, I didn't hear anything." I knock on the door three different times (as well as ringing the doorbell where applicable), each one gets consecutively louder and harder. I use a solid object on the third time (side plate, rock, wooden handle, etc), if you don't hear that one you're either deaf or not inside. I also call before leaving, from a house phone or as the wonders of technology permit: cell phone. 3> "Bull$#!&, you never came here!" You really are drunk, deaf, and/or dumb...ain'tcha? See #2... 4> "I was outside/in the back yard/mowing the lawn/firing up the grill/in the attic etc." And didn't think to bring the cordless/cell phone you left the call-back number for? Again see #2 5> "I thought I had time to go to the bank/grocery store/mall/casino etc." My all time fave: you knew you were getting a delivery and left anyways?! Moreso when a delivery estimate was given...you KNEW you would have someone knocking on your door in 45 minutes but you left for a couple hours. There really is no excuse for not being there to answer the door or phone. If you gotta leave, call and cancel the delivery. It's the same number you called the last time you used the phone, if you can't remember the number press "redial". Because all those lame excuses will only net you a longer wait next time, and in the case of food don't expect it to be hot & fresh...that's how it was the first time around and we already know you weren't serious about wanting it as such.  That said, I always refuse to make a third trip. I'll (reluctantly) give benefit of the doubt for a second trip, but never a third...once is "accidental" behavior (and I use that term loosely), twice is intentional behavior. And if a higher-up makes me go a thrid time, I'll go...but not to the recipient's locale. I'll simply disappear long enough to feign a delivery (take a break, eat lunch, read the paper, etc) and come back with "No answer again." |
December 16, 2010 - 5:10pm | When I first went back to work after my injury I drove pizza; we had one house (multiple customers in the same house so I dont say customer but house) that was consistently rude, arrogant, sometimes didn't answer the door and of course didn't tip. They were pure ghetto/ trailer park trash except they didn't live in a trailer park but in the housing project (Boston has torn down most of the old projects and built townhouses so that you're not suppose to call them housing projects but its the same class of people) Anyhow we had a bit of a blizzard last Jan or Dec (cant remember exactly when) but they wanted everyone off the road yet Pappa Ginos didn't close and wonder of wonder with everyone staying home I was balls to the wall with deliveries. Normally I can get a delivery to the door from the moment its ready in 15-20 minutes even with bumping a known good tipper over your order. But this night it was freaking crazy and I decided that everyone's order got bumped over these jerks and did 3 on one side of town before doing their (2 of the 3 were known tippers and all 3 took care of me). Long and the short was that I was rocking on the street simply because it was just me, the plows, and a cranky cop. Took me 30 minutes to get them their food once it was ready to go out the door and that aint too bad in a snow strom thats bad enough for the mayor of boston to declare a snow emergency (Nothing personal against my fellow Southern Frontiersman but the kind thats a snow emergency in my neck of the woods is reason for calling out the national guard south of Mason Dixon- and even then I find snow emergencies funny after living in Alaska and seeing 70 below). Any how these turds read me the riot act about how late their food was and wanted to know why it took so long. I looked them in the eye and said "There's a blizard and I had good tippers that I delivered first." My boss asked me about it latter and I said, "Yep and if you want to fire me go right ahead." (He wouldn't since I was his best driver) I made a habit of telling people that I bumped them up in the delivery que because they were frequent customers or good tippers. Sometimes it was true that I had bumped them up in the que and other times I had been standing around waiting for a delivery and told them they'd been given preferential treatment anyway. Got to the point some of the good tippers would say, "where were you last night?" (day off) or "What days do you work so I know when to call?" Its now gospel with me that I look for ways to let people know they got preferential treatment. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
December 16, 2010 - 5:21pm | oh yeah on catering deliveries I use a bit of physche-social manipulation I introduce my self (and any helpt with me) then tell the wife that I'm here to help set her party and do whatever needs to be done to make it a success and that I wont leave until she's satisfied. I tell them any little extra things I brought or did (that most of the other drivers dont bother with) then I review the invoice and get the credit card slip signed. And one of the last things I say is, "Is there anything else you need before I run out of here" its all physcology- women like to be in control of men and so I tell them they're in control of me. I specifically mention "before I run out of here" so that they know that I'm not running out on them and that I wont leave till they're satisfied. One party the wife had me move a dining room table for her (not my job) only to discover that the guest would now be wacking their heads on the lights that had been over the table so we moved it back. All told we moved that table 3 times with me smoozing and butt kissing the wife the whole time. I left without a tip but 5 days later a letter came to the company praising me up one side and down the other with $40 bucks. The fact that I was new to the company and the boss had to read that letter was almost as good as getting the tip. In fact it was better because a few weeks latter he put me in for an unsought after raise. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
December 16, 2010 - 5:40pm | I drive for a catering company that is the big fish in a little pond: family owned, two locations, 20 vehciles (mostly Found On Road Dead vans and a couple of jeeps that I suspect stated life as the personal vehicles of the owners) one of the quirks of this business is that it is a caterer and not a resturant. thus they got the Meals on Wheels contract for several cities in the local plus they can sell to food stamps holders. Yep people with their EBT card can order a box of pastry and a pizza and have it delivered. The EBT deliveries are a pain as even though they in about 25% of the case seem to live far better than I do and they didn't have to pay for this they wont tip. Where you will see a tip is from those who really really look like they need the welfare and then its pretty consistently $2 oh yeah and those that tip on a EBT delivery are all older (upwards of 40) and white, everyone else- nothing what really bugs me is the foodstamps delivery to the house in the good neighborhood, with high end patio furniture, granite counter tops, a flat screen TV that puts walls to shame, and massive all leather sectional furniture getting $240 worth of foodstamps delivered for a party and no tip. jeesh. The other one that kills me is the drug reps who order food to whoosze and shooze doctors offices and hospital departments and they cant or wont have a tip put on the invoice for the driver who is the one that is taking care of their client and setting up the food in their absence- off all the drug reps there is 1 that takes care of the driver. but I'll stop griping now. Wa-wa-wait a minute! The Communist State of Mass(hole) allows welfare bums to order hot food off of food stamps?! WTF?! That was, BTW, the only thing which caught me by surprise. " 'Beware the Beast, Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, for lust, for greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death." |
December 16, 2010 - 6:10pm | I kid you not people on the EBT card (which is paperless food stamps- works like a credit card) can order catered food. Pizza, chicken zitti brocoli, pastries, cookies whatever we make. They cant go to a resturant or order pizza from pappa ginos but because we're caterer's we fall under different rules. it sucks though I hate the EBT deliveries- pretty much a waste of my time and the occasional jerk that jerks me around on those deliveries really is a waste of my time. The saddest is grandmother who lives in east boston will order pizza and cheese sticks for her grand children who live in Winthrop and we deliver it to those ungreatful arrogant jerks and I get the feeling that they dont call their grandmother unless they're looking to get her to buy food. I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
December 16, 2010 - 6:15pm | I kid you not people on the EBT card (which is paperless food stamps- works like a credit card) can order catered food. Pizza, chicken zitti brocoli, pastries, cookies whatever we make. They cant go to a resturant or order pizza from pappa ginos but because we're caterer's we fall under different rules. it sucks though I hate the EBT deliveries- pretty much a waste of my time and the occasional jerk that jerks me around on those deliveries really is a waste of my time. The saddest is grandmother who lives in east boston will order pizza and cheese sticks for her grand children who live in Winthrop and we deliver it to those ungreatful arrogant jerks and I get the feeling that they dont call their grandmother unless they're looking to get her to buy food. Or drugs. Oops, did I say that?!  Anyway, many states(including Oklahoma and Georgia)don't even allow EBTs for catered food, but I feel ya on delivering food in certain kinds of hoods(1st job @16 was delivering for Domino's in Macon's ABC City and Unionville neighborhoods)...you were damn lucky not to have gotten robbed and rolled for your trouble. " 'Beware the Beast, Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, for lust, for greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death." |
December 16, 2010 - 6:17pm | The EBT abuse does not surprise me in the least. California has just discovered that a lot of their Dept. of Welfare issued debit cards are being used in vacation hot spots such as Las Vegas and the U.S. Virgin Islands. |
December 16, 2010 - 6:24pm | The EBT abuse does not surprise me in the least. California has just discovered that a lot of their Dept. of Welfare issued debit cards are being used in vacation hot spots such as Las Vegas and the U.S. Virgin Islands. So the corporate welfare cheats and plain, ordinary welfare cheatin' bums are frequenting your town on my dime. Sigh...I am so beside myself with shock.... " 'Beware the Beast, Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, for lust, for greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death." |
December 17, 2010 - 1:27am | Like I said, it shouldn't come as a surprise. Used to be, food stamps could only be remitted at grocery stores (or other such related outlets). Once you give someone "free money" in the form of a credit/debit card (i.e. with a Visa logo), they can spend that money however (and where ever) they see fit. It's really no different than a gift card...I can give you a $100 gift card to Olive Garden or a $100 reloadable Visa card. The former can only be spent in one place, the latter can be used anywhere. Obviously some rocket scientist in legislators in California (and as jedion mentions, other states as well) decided it was a good idea not to restrict this spending...it's the bail out principle at work: take our tax dollars and give it to others to "spend freely" in order to "support the economy".  |
December 17, 2010 - 2:50pm | On EBT cards, it depends (at least in Missouri) on whether its for food or cash. There are two different programs. The cash version allows you to spend on anything, even drawing cash at an ATM. The food stamps version only allows you to buy food; raw, cold, frozen, but not hot food from a deli, delivery or caterer. But you can still buy chips, soda, candy, and other junk foods with it. Long live the Frontier! |
December 17, 2010 - 3:09pm | i so would use food stamp money at the super market, If I had it. buying the raw ingredients and making stuff from scratch saves so much money its rediculous to do otherwise (my one consession there is that the price of hotdog and hamburger buns as well as sliced bread and french and other type loaves is so cheap that they are a good buy pre-made. Though my Fougassi bread from southern france, baked as an oval loaf in the oven with sauted onions and crumbled bacon in it with grated cheese on top freaking ROCKS and if I cut into it and have a bit with butter while its still hot then half the loaf will be gone before dinner) hamburger buns, bread sticks, and even french bread are fun and of course I do pizza dough and let the kids make their own pizzas I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
 December 17, 2010 - 5:06pm | Yes tip the server give, them a big smile, chat them up, and continue the HUGE injustice of the system. What am I talking about? Your server listened to you walked back to the rear and then anywhere from 2 to 10 other people actually did all the work cooking your food. Unless the restaurant pays below scale and expects tips to cover it, which is another unfair part of the system then you heavily tipped someone who really only fetched and carried. In other industries these people are called gofers and production assistants and interns and such and are the lowest people on the totem pole. Ever send a tip back to the cooks? Ever send a compliment back to them? Or do you just tip the pretty ones in the short skirts? Sounds like a great job but where did you say we had to go? |
 December 17, 2010 - 5:20pm | Isn't it dangerous to cook in a short skirt? "Hey guys I wonder what this does"-Famous last words "Hey guys, I think it's friendly." -Famous last words "You go on ahead, I'll catch up." -Famous last words "Did you here that?" -Famous last words |
December 17, 2010 - 6:51pm | I regularly send a compliment back to the cook and I'm guessing that rattraveller has never been a waiter or he'd have a clue You tip the server as a way of saying, THANKS for INSURING PROMPTNESS: TIP hence the origin of the word Tip. Why tip at all? Duncan Ds in central square was right around the corner from my house and was an excellant place to get a cup of joe in the morning. That was until the owner (who happened to own something like 16 of them) decided to remove the tip cup. First thing that happend was all the good employees left then the lousy ones left too and today I wont even go into what I call "3 stooges coffee" (now all of them around here that he owns dont have the tip cup and they all suck to one degree or another- almost tempts me to try Starbucks). I might not be a dralasite, vrusk or yazirian but I do play one in Star Frontiers! |
December 17, 2010 - 7:14pm | As per previous post I work as a cook ans deal with alot of waiters/waitresses and TIP is just a slogan put forth after the custom started (gotta love advertisers) otherwise why would you TIP the maid at your hotel or the tattoo artist who did your sleeve or your real estate agent for the three months it took to sell your property or the gas station attendant (for those of us who are old enough to remember them) or as a paid tax preparer I've been tipped and there is nothing prompt about taxes? Think about why are you paying extra to your wait person to insure promptness when there job is to bring your order to you before it gets cold. Tipping is just a way for the owners to not pay the wait staff legal minimum. Don't be fooled by the slogan. Sounds like a great job but where did you say we had to go? |
December 17, 2010 - 10:01pm | On EBT cards, it depends (at least in Missouri) on whether its for food or cash. There are two different programs. The cash version allows you to spend on anything, even drawing cash at an ATM. The food stamps version only allows you to buy food; raw, cold, frozen, but not hot food from a deli, delivery or caterer. But you can still buy chips, soda, candy, and other junk foods with it. Oklahoma's the same way. It should be illegal for them to buy junk food with my money, but it isn't. Sigh. " 'Beware the Beast, Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, for lust, for greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death." |
December 17, 2010 - 10:03pm | i so would use food stamp money at the super market, If I had it. buying the raw ingredients and making stuff from scratch saves so much money its rediculous to do otherwise (my one consession there is that the price of hotdog and hamburger buns as well as sliced bread and french and other type loaves is so cheap that they are a good buy pre-made. Though my Fougassi bread from southern france, baked as an oval loaf in the oven with sauted onions and crumbled bacon in it with grated cheese on top freaking ROCKS and if I cut into it and have a bit with butter while its still hot then half the loaf will be gone before dinner) hamburger buns, bread sticks, and even french bread are fun and of course I do pizza dough and let the kids make their own pizzas I'm so having dinner at the Verrieults'. " 'Beware the Beast, Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, for lust, for greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death." |
December 17, 2010 - 10:11pm | Yes tip the server give, them a big smile, chat them up, and continue the HUGE injustice of the system. What am I talking about? Your server listened to you walked back to the rear and then anywhere from 2 to 10 other people actually did all the work cooking your food. Unless the restaurant pays below scale and expects tips to cover it, which is another unfair part of the system then you heavily tipped someone who really only fetched and carried. In other industries these people are called gofers and production assistants and interns and such and are the lowest people on the totem pole. Ever send a tip back to the cooks? Ever send a compliment back to them? Or do you just tip the pretty ones in the short skirts? I tip the cooks too. And, most do pay sub-minimum, and expect tips to cover it. Some are even hoping the servers are stupid enough to actually report their tips. As for waitresses, especially the teenagers with pimples on their chests, their job exists because of older married(divorced/widowed)men too cheap to frequent the [vulgar reference to female breasts] bar up the road. BTW, at Waffle House, sometimes the waitresses even cook, especially when the cook's too stoned to know which end of the waffle iron to pour the batter. At the Boom A Rang's in town, waitresses and cooks cover for each other, cause it's all in the family, which everyone knows only leads to disaster..... " 'Beware the Beast, Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, for lust, for greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death." |
December 17, 2010 - 10:19pm | As per previous post I work as a cook ans deal with alot of waiters/waitresses and TIP is just a slogan put forth after the custom started (gotta love advertisers) otherwise why would you TIP the maid at your hotel or the tattoo artist who did your sleeve or your real estate agent for the three months it took to sell your property or the gas station attendant (for those of us who are old enough to remember them) or as a paid tax preparer I've been tipped and there is nothing prompt about taxes? Think about why are you paying extra to your wait person to insure promptness when there job is to bring your order to you before it gets cold. Tipping is just a way for the owners to not pay the wait staff legal minimum. Don't be fooled by the slogan. Absolutely. The system's in place, because those in charge get off on seeing people degrade and humiliate themselves by begging for money like an organ grinder's monkey. Hell, some places require tip cups, which you basically shake around while saying "alms! Alms for the poor! Alms! Alms for the poor." But, until the millenium comes, when society learns to see food service workers(and other service workers) as workers, and not as servile, subhuman slave things who deserve to be the scrapings from the bottom of the barrel, I will tip my servers, because I've been there, and I know, first hand, how they're treated. And, because the system will never change, until the above-mentioned millenium comes. (@Shadow, how sweet it is not to work in a state with a right to work law....) " 'Beware the Beast, Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, for lust, for greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death." |
December 18, 2010 - 3:30am | There is no job in a restaraunt that is petty or meager or unimportant. Take one away and watch the business fall apart. Seriously. Take away the waiters, and it becomes self-serve. Why go to Denny's etc and shell out $6 for a burger (and make you wait 10-15 minutes) when you can do the same thing at McDonalds for a buck and a half (and have your food in a couple minutes)? Does any non-server even have a glimpse into how many people simply do not know how to order their own food? "How much is a cheeseburger?" (see those numbers next to the words on the menu?) "Excuse me, but I wanted my eggs (benedict) scrambled..." (without actually mentioning that they had no clue what eggs benedict was but ordering it anyways). "How would you like your steak cooked?" 1> "On the grill." 2> "Boiled." (which usually translates to "broiled") 3> "Like my mom makes it." 4> "Well done." (followed by the inevitable) "This meat is too tough/dark/not juicy/not red." 5> "What are my choices?" "Would you like that with soup or salad?" "What's a super salad?" "Would you like ranch, blue cheese, french, 1000, or italian on that salad?" "Do you have honey mustard?" "No, we have ranch, blue cheese, french, 1000, and italian." "Do you have brown derby? "Are you deaf, dumb, or both?" "I'd like an order of chili cheese fries." "Here you go, sir. One order of chili cheese fries." "What's all his brown stuff on top of my fries?" (pause) "Chili." "Oh, I don't like chili..." And my all time personal favorite: "How big is your 12" pizza?" Yeah, a lot of people in the industry joke about this stuff, but it really happens by people that simply don't have a clue. The cook doesn't deal with it. The busser doesn't deal with it. The hostess doesn't deal with it. The dishwasher doesn't deal with it. The server has to expose themself to this stupidity ona regular basis. And you don't dare laugh thinking that they're joking, because now you just comped them whatever they (think they might) want (but don't know for sure). The simple fact is taking a customer's order takes far more work and effort than bringing their food from the line to the table. Simple fact is with all these people that don't know how to order their own food causes the delays for everyone else that also doesn't know how to order their own food. Seriously, you can spend more time explaining the menu's offerings than the time it takes to cook the order. With a chipper attitude and a courteous smile. But without hanging up on just one aspect of the operation--- Take away the bussers and you end up with a full compliment of dirty tables, because after paying $6 for a self-serve burger, who in their right mind is going to bring their soiled tableware to the dishroom? McDonald's can't even get people to toss their wax papers away for a quarter of that price. Take away the dishwashers and now you have to serve your food on soiled plates, taken directly from those tables stacked to the ceiling. Or at the very least, someone has to sweep all the wax paper off the floor as it spills/gets brushed off the tables. And that tile floor gets pretty sticky after a bit of that, shoot --- it gets pretty sticky with a full & proper compliment of workers. Take away the cooks and you must rely ont eh customers' ability to prep their own meal after not knowing how to order it. There goes your food costs after a few tries per customer. Not to mention risking health department issues by allowing customers to make their own. How does that statistic go? "One in four women don't wash their hands after using the restroom. One in four men do." Which averages out to half the people aren't washing their hands after wiping (coincidentally, this is one reason why I avoid buffets. Watch a catered function and you'll see all sorts of reasons not to frequent buffets). Long story made short, anyone that honestly thinks that one job is more/less important than another surely better not plan on opening their own restaraunt. Give me the money from the loan instead, I'll bet the long shots and as such can offer you better returns on the investment. Anyone that needs proof of this look no further than Pizza Hut. Ten years ago they nixxed servers and dishwashers and instead opted for paper plates/cups etc for their dining room customers. And then dropped the quality of their food. And raised prices. And then tried every possible combination of dough, sauce, and cheese imaginable. Ten years later and they're forced to lower their prices just to stay open (after spending eight pre-recession years screwing everyone twice). On pizza that is only marginally better than microwaved Little Caesar's and/or (extra cheese/light sauce but you can still see more sauce than cheese) Domino's, but is still worse than "we use fresh canned sauce" Papa John's. If they didn't have nationwide recognition (i.e. if they were a privately owned one store restaraunt) they would have folded up eight years ago. And that's a generous estimate. |
December 18, 2010 - 4:57am | Ah back to SF there was a time and in alot of places still is a place where a restaraunt did not have any servers. They were called Automats and pretty simple. Preparers put the food in vending style machines like the one you press the button to turn around and see what is available and then insert proper coins and slide the little glass doors around to take your order. Popular in the 1950's, mostly replaced by microwave capable vending machines these days. Now SF could have more robotic/computer enhanced ones. I think the Human-Yazarian hotdog/Vrusk treat on a stick/Dralasite scent emitter robot is workable. Scan your ID card and get what you want anytime on the street. Why else would your ID card also be a debit card. Sounds like a great job but where did you say we had to go? |
December 18, 2010 - 11:18am | @Shadow In a single post, you have covered all the pitfalls and pratfalls of the food service industry. I'll just add that some places(Waffle House, for example) have their wait—excuse me, sales associates, wait tables, do dishes, work the cash register, and bus tables...as well as assist the grill operator too tweaked on meth to do anything useful. Sometimes, waitresses are also pressed into service as hostesses/door corps as well. Like any other food service employee, it's an absolutely thankless job, but far from the insignificant one that the customers who look down their noses at you seem to think it is. With a chipper attitude and a courteous smile. And your teeth bearing down on your tongue. @rattraveller I agree. One of the images that inspired me when playing SF was the cover of the Referee's Screen, where members of the core four were being served by a bot with a propeller stuck at a jaunty angle in the front of its body. Given a high enough robot level, such a server can even listen to you, as you talk at it(people tell their waiters things they'd never tell their bartenders....), and even make the appropriate noises in reply. " 'Beware the Beast, Man, for he is the Devil's pawn. Alone among God's primates, he kills for sport, for lust, for greed. Yea, he will murder his brother to possess his brother's land. Let him not breed in great numbers, for he will make a desert of his home and yours. Shun him; drive him back into his jungle lair, for he is the harbinger of death." |
