PickledCherub

I'm waiting for Chris to come home from work. Restaurant life is often unpredictable, and often frustrating. One never really knows what to expect. Will the Fourth of July be busy? Will Friday night be slow? A mean table: but maybe they will over-tip. Will we run out of sparkling wine?

Is my latte too cold?

These things are worries. Servers where I work often wish for fewer customers. It makes for better and faster service. Better tips. But sometimes, like last night, when it was one of those nights where we all forgot to drink water--didn't have the time, really--you go home with much more than you expected. Customers can be sympathetic to your plight. Or they might be simply annoyed. It's unpredictable.

So you think it's best to have rules. To be firm, but polite. "Sit down, please, and then I will take your order."

"But I'll forget what it is that I want."

"I'm sure that I can help you remember. I'll be right over."

Sometimes I break down and let them tell me right then. But that is a sign of weakness. They can sense it, my weakness. They pounce. And then, as soon as I set their dessert down, they want three cappucinos, one skim, one decaf soy, one dry single.

And they wait as I make their drinks, they wait before they eat. And since I care about they coffee, it takes a while. They wait, and they fume. And I am out of whack, and I fall behind.

The rules, the rules are so important.

Pleae listen to your server. Please do as they ask. You will be, I am sure, much happier in the end.