Note: Poll is for a waiter who provided good service (was polite/helpful, got you your food on time, kept your drinks filled, etc.)
Now for the rant: I am a waiter at a family steakhouse, so everything that follows is from the source.
Tips have been abysmal recently. It may be the economy, though where I live the economy really isn't that bad. Here is the breakdown: In many places across the country waiters are only paid a very small amount hourly (as low as 2.15 an hour in some places, 2.18 where I live). Because of this we waiters make most of our money off of our tips. Therefore when a customer stiffs us or gives us a very small tip, it's basically a big F*** YOU, especially after if we have done a good job. Not only this but in many places we waiters have to relegate some of our tips to hostesses, bussers, bartenders, etc. At my resteraunt this is 3% of our total sales. So if I get stiffed on a hundred dollar ticket I'm in the red for $3. This really adds up after a while.
I do not know if this is because people are uneducated, I have had customers ask me how much we get paid hourly and I have told them truthfully, though we can't say anything about our pay or tips unless we are asked. Now don't get me wrong, I have some customers who go beyond what is considered average in a tip. But it's severely outweighed by the bad tips on any given night. I guess it's not surprising that serving is listed as the number one job that is not considered satisfying work.
Now I will also state this: We as waiters control your food. I will always give good service no matter what, whether I believe you will tip me or not (especially since I like to be rightfully angry when I get stiffed, and I can't do that if I gave poor service). If you have seen the movie Waiting you have seen what some waiters do to unruly/rude customers. I will never do that, nor will anyone I know of who I work with (the resteraunt would frown upon someone spitting in a customers food, etc.) But whereas my resteraunt doesn't do that, I can't speak for every resteraunt. And whereas I will always give good service to you, even if you have stiffed me 4 times, I can't speak for every waiter. Waiters tend to have long memories, especially when it comes to being stiffed. And there are more ways than messing with your food to make your dining experience a bad one. Hope you learned something from this.
Now for the rant: I am a waiter at a family steakhouse, so everything that follows is from the source.
Tips have been abysmal recently. It may be the economy, though where I live the economy really isn't that bad. Here is the breakdown: In many places across the country waiters are only paid a very small amount hourly (as low as 2.15 an hour in some places, 2.18 where I live). Because of this we waiters make most of our money off of our tips. Therefore when a customer stiffs us or gives us a very small tip, it's basically a big F*** YOU, especially after if we have done a good job. Not only this but in many places we waiters have to relegate some of our tips to hostesses, bussers, bartenders, etc. At my resteraunt this is 3% of our total sales. So if I get stiffed on a hundred dollar ticket I'm in the red for $3. This really adds up after a while.
I do not know if this is because people are uneducated, I have had customers ask me how much we get paid hourly and I have told them truthfully, though we can't say anything about our pay or tips unless we are asked. Now don't get me wrong, I have some customers who go beyond what is considered average in a tip. But it's severely outweighed by the bad tips on any given night. I guess it's not surprising that serving is listed as the number one job that is not considered satisfying work.
Now I will also state this: We as waiters control your food. I will always give good service no matter what, whether I believe you will tip me or not (especially since I like to be rightfully angry when I get stiffed, and I can't do that if I gave poor service). If you have seen the movie Waiting you have seen what some waiters do to unruly/rude customers. I will never do that, nor will anyone I know of who I work with (the resteraunt would frown upon someone spitting in a customers food, etc.) But whereas my resteraunt doesn't do that, I can't speak for every resteraunt. And whereas I will always give good service to you, even if you have stiffed me 4 times, I can't speak for every waiter. Waiters tend to have long memories, especially when it comes to being stiffed. And there are more ways than messing with your food to make your dining experience a bad one. Hope you learned something from this.
