Seniors these days - they have no manners

Many people complain about teenagers or kids these days having no respect, manners, work ethic, etc. What I would like to bring to the table is that many seniors have also lost it too. Possibly due to aging, maybe forgetfulness, or it's just their blatant way of saying "I've earned my right to do whatever the f*ck I want!"

I will set the scene for you. It's Saturday night, not too busy but we know we're gonna get hit soon. Then it happens. BOOM! Everyone walks through the door at once. Not a big deal because my self and the other server can handle it. Then something strange happens. A older couple comes in and with a smile on my face I ask them for how many and they say eight. This posed a problem because we were full and we only had a couple of single tables left. Then they spot a reserved table and say "Wait, that might be our reservation." Perfect what's the name on the reservation. They don't know because it's a reso for 12 people, not 8 and it is clearly not for them. They start to sit at the table as if it's theirs. I explain to them that it is someone else's table and they should be arriving shortly. In a packed restaurant, it is chaos. Organized chaos, but still chaos. During this time the rest of their friends come and decide that they are going to tell me what to do to get them a table, which included:

• Moving a table from the other end of the restaurant to put it next to a couple of other vacant ones. I declined this idea because it would pose a fire hazard and no one would be able to walk down the main aisle of the restaurant. Plus it would still not be enough for the table of 8 they are expecting.
• Suggesting I go get a table from the back. What? We don't have spare tables lying around. They were shocked to hear that.
• Disrupting a couple that was eating and ask them to move all of their belongings and food to another table so they can have it. I started getting angry. I absolutely refused this because it is straight up rude. I said we have policies here that ensure our customers get quality service. I was not about the go and disturb them during their meal.
• Permission to disrupt that same table because they 'didn't mind doing it.' Absolutely not! If I am not going to move them then you are not going to either!

I turn around for a moment and there the old lady is disrupting the couple and pushing them to the corner. Then they move all the tables together, literally barricading in the couple and another table. The nerve. I go up to them and explain that it will be a while before I can serve them since we were very busy. Part of the reason why I did not make a huge effort to move people around, aside from being respectful to others, was because we were unable to serve them. We were already overloaded. So they can sit and wait for all I care and so they did. Finally, I got to them and guess what? That's right they all had coupons. FML. FML. FML. They did the expected complaining during the meal just because they could and that was it. They paid a very little tip which I don't mind coming from seniors because of many of their financial situations. But they didn't leave when they were done, they just stood there blocking the server station for what seemed like an eternity.

They are on my top 5 list of most annoying, disrespectful people I have ever dealt with in the service industry. Old and sweet? My a$$ more like senile and rude. Seniors these days, they just have no respect!

Cheap piece of sh*t



Ring the bells! We have a winner! My girlfriend sent this image to me via Twitter and I laughed and laughed and laughed. Needless to say, if this was protocol and customers did in fact have to tell you prior to you serving them that they are a cheap piece of sh*t they would not get a menu. Actually, the only service they would get would be shown where the door is so they can get the heck out. Hahaha...

You can't win them all

There are a handful of people that no matter what you do you will never be able to satisfy. Customers like this actually make me feel better about myself because really who the heck is so unfulfilled in their life that they have to make a total stranger's temporarily aggravating?

It's not hard to identify these people. They are the ones that give you the cold shoulder the moment they walk in. You greet them, they ignore you, then they're offended that when they were ready to speak up that you may or may not have been intentionally not available to listen. These are also the people who don't make eye contact with you but will glare at you from across the restaurant. Take note that no matter what you do or say it will never be satisfactory for them. Do not go above and beyond for these people because it just adds insult to injury. Here's an example of a group of 4, one being a small child, that I dealt with not too long ago:

This group walked in, gave typical attitude when my cheery self asked them for how many and directed them to take a seat anywhere they like as I grabbed a highchair for the little one. I started off by attempting to make a connection with them. The one man was cool with it and seemed pleasant until his girlfriend wasn't impressed. I guess being nice is rude?? Confusing. I grabbed their drink orders and the lady did ask for Sprite and 99% of the time I verify that 7up is okay with them. They just happened to be the 1% that I didn't ask. So, I bring the drinks over and as I'm placing it in front of the lady I say " And here's your 7up." She asked why it was 7up I explained and I offered to get her another beverage if she preferred something else. Her response was no. Now, as I was walking away she starts talking trash to her girlfriend about "How rude it was for me not to tell her, blah, blah, blah, squawk, squawk. I turned around and went back and said, "I asked you if it was okay and offered something else, would you like something different?" She said no. She ordered a certain type of ribs that we were out of so I gave her the more expensive ones that the same price. Bonus! Most people would be happy, but not Negative Nancy. I brought them out and they were so big they were falling off of the plate. I would be thrilled that I had a snack for later on, but not Negative Nancy. No she actually complained that they were too big! Too Big? Seriously? I jokingly responded, "I can take some back if it's too much." Negative Nancy had nothing to say. I walk away and see her taking pictures of the ribs, yes like one of those people who Instagram every meal they eat. After waiting on them and smiling the entire time when all I wanted to do was choke her out I brought them the bill. Needless to say she never tipped and took home half a rack of ribs. Your welcome.

You can't win them all.



LISTEN UP! To This Day Project - Shane Koyczan

This video, titled "To This Day Project", moves mountains. It is not really related to my blog, but it is related to life. Please watch and listen with care. Pass it on!

 

 

 

 

Visit http://www.shanekoyczan.com/

Superbowl and the Morality of Tipping

Superbowl has come to an end with the Ravens beating the 49ers. Did you go out to your neighbourhood bar to watch the big game? If you did, did you second guess your tipping approach or did you tip like you normally would?

Superbowl is the biggest day for takeout for many bars and restaurants such as the one I work for. The bar did get full but it was not as exciting as a Hockey Night in Canada evening. Disappointing? Yes. The common misconception is that waitresses make a TON of money on Superbowl. There is very little truth to that. Once you take everything into consideration you will actually be able to understand that we sometimes end up making less money than we would on a typical evening.

Here are a few reasons why:

• Customers come in and sit for the entire 4-5 hours. This means no turnover. No turnover in the type of restaurant I work in means no money, unless they are drinking and eating heavily.
• People do not drink as much because cops are in full effect. I would much rather people be safe than make money at the end of the day, but this does affect the amount of consumption.
• Customers do not take into account that you have been serving them for the entire night, therefore do not compensate you for it. If I have been refilling your $2.99 pop or better yet your free water for 4 hours why do you still tip 10% at the end of the night. Haven't I done more than a normal night out where you only spend an hour at a restaurant?
• The customer demographic is different on these nights. Your regulars may have all gone to a Superbowl party. This makes a HUGE difference on how you will be compensated.

I worked a 12 hour shift yesterday and my partner in crime worked 14 hours! We decided at the beginning of the day that we would pool our tips together so our customers will get better service and it will be easier to close out at the end of the night. Some people even decided not to tip at all and when asked, in a polite manner, if anything was wrong with the service, they said no. Hmm... strange that people feel they can sit for 5 hours and get served somewhere and not tip at all. On top of it the woman was offended that she was asked and said it was "begging for tips." I say it was making sure everything was alright and bringing to your attention in the most tactful way that you were not compensated for your work that evening. At the end of it all we ended up making less than we would in a 5 hour shift. Was the juice worth the squeeze? Nope. Would I do it all over again? Now, where did I leave my shotgun? All kidding aside, I probably would only because I love what I do and you got to get through the bad to understand what the good really is.

Calling people out on their sh*t: Priceless

This is a quick one!

Four guys walk into the bar, order a bunch of wings and 2 pitchers of premium beer. They eat and drink everything. When the bill comes they say "Wow, why is it so much?" Just on a side note here: their bill was $65 this included, once again, 2 pitchers of beer which accounted for at least $35 of that and 4 and a 1/5 pounds of wings with fries. Personally, I think that's a good deal for four guys to go out and eat and drink. Their server just didn't understand the discrepancy and neither did I. I took it upon myself to actually find out what the issue was before discounting their bill. The conversation went something like this:

Me: Could you please tell me exactly what is wrong with your bill because we're having a hard time understanding what the discrepancy is?

Cheapo: Yeah, it's too expensive. We actually wanted the smaller pitcher for our second round.

Me: But you drank the large one, yes?

Cheapo: Yes.

Me: So, why didn't you tell your waitress that it was not what you wanted when she brought it over?

Cheapo: Well... umm.. studder studder... I don't know the difference in size between the big one and the small one.

Me: sigh. You got the large pitcher first so you knew when you saw the second one that it was clearly not the small one but you drank it anyway. Pause. Thanks just wanted to clarify that.

Their bill was discounted and they actually tipped her very well. I guess it was just to prove that they are not in fact the cheapos they painted themselves out to be.

This is a good example of "The Customer is Always Right" is wrong theory.

Pay it forward

It's Saturday night, the first Leafs hockey game of the season is about to come on and they're playing the Canadiens. We have quite a few reservations set up and people are pouring in. Now, one thing I dislike is turning customers away because we are full. One thing I dislike more than that is customers failing to understand that there is no room for them to sit and no guarantee, especially during the season opening games. A couple customers did not understand the concept of 'there is no room.' My recommendation: If you plan on going out to a smaller restaurant on a Saturday night and you have 8 other people with you, please do us and yourselves a favour and just call ahead.

So, in walks a lady with her two tween daughters, immediately I say "We're terribly sorry, but as you can see we are full right now and the game is about to start." Apparently she didn't comprehend what I was relaying to her. She simply refused and went on to tell me that she was invited by the owner and drove over 100 km to get there to eat. If you work in the industry you very well know that everyone knows the owner. People try to threaten you with it while others steer toward a discount. I don't buy it.

Three seats opened up at the bar so I had them sit there and have a drink while they wait for a table to clear, which wasn't going to happen for at least 2 hours. A few young guys sitting in the dining room heard what had happened at the front door and told me they would give their table to the lady and her two children. What nice guys! I find simple acts of kindness to be rewarding for all people involved. I tell the lady, who by the way at this time has been dubbed a b*tch by the staff because of her complete apathy to our situation, that there is a table and the guys were personally giving it to her. Turns out she gives them a $50 gift card for their kind gesture! The lady who we all thought was a witch was suddenly this really kind appreciative lady who may have had a bout of frustration upon arrival.

I was the lucky one who served her table and when I say lucky what I actually mean is unlucky. She was nothing short of picky, particular, meticulous, and the list goes on. But I knew I had to smile through it because deep down inside that cold outer shell she had a heart and she showed it by paying it forward to those nice guys who gave her place to sit.

Lesson of the day: You can simultaneously be a b*tch and a nice person.