Restaurant Pet Peeves

As a restaurant owner for 12 of the last 20 years.... I understand that she was trained that way and that some people really get annoyed when an empty plate just sits there or when they have to wait for a to - go box. Being a good waiter is an art and takes talent. Yes, anyone can go through the motions but a select few are actually good at it.

Sorry, that really didn't answer your question did it? No, you are not wrong and sometimes the server needs more than a gentle hint.

I would be upset also! They have no right to touch your plate unless you have set it aside for them to take them. I would have left her a note stating how she messed her way out of getting a tip at all.

I had a waitress walk by the table and take my milk I was drinking. She dumped it, asked her why she took my milk, said she thought I was done with it. A full glass or milk.., she brought me another one. I left one a penny tip once, really rotten service, waited for ever for her to take our order. After she brought it she never came back to the table to see how we were doing or wanted anything else.

I would have stabbed her with my fork then asked for a new fork. Just kidding.

I like that Brenda.

Well at least she didn't make off with your plate before you had a chance to say you weren't finished. I had that happen once because I'd just taken a bite and had food in my mouth and the server wisked my plate away and disappeared fast. There wasn't much left true but still, how offensive! I feel that if I am done with my plate, I will push it to the side of the table but if it is still in front of me, then I am not done yet!

You weren't wrong. A tip should be a reflection of good service.

This "standard" of a 15%-18% tip no matter what the service is the reason service is going downhill!

not wrong in my eyes....

I would have been annoyed as well.

that would annoy me to know end....she needs to be able to read your activity not try to annoy you continuously.....you are right and perhaps you should call the restraunt and tell them that perhaps they need to retrain the staff on how to approach a customer and the thing about not washing her hands too...

I would have spoke up the first time she touched my plate. I wouldn't be rude, but I would make it clear I wasn't done and I'll set it aside when I am. Servers aren't mind readers and don't always know when the customer is annoyed. Just speak up. It doesn't have to be a testy situation.

I would have talked to the manager... but hey that's me.

I will not have it happen again. I will make the announce at "What would you like to drink?"
Answer: "Your hot blood if you touch my plate."
Too strong?

I still would have left the tip. Not as much of one but some tip. Waitresses get paid well below the minimum wage and often rely on tips as part of the pay. She should not have touched your plate but not sure that would have cost her a tip in my eyes. I also would have told her that I felt her behavior was bothersome. How else will she learn to change her actions.

My opinion on tips should be that a tip is above and beyond the call of duty. I don't find it right that I'm expected to tip...and expected to tip a certain percent....

I don't think you're wrong at all. I'm a tad OCD nobody touches my plate! I wouldn't have left her a thing..I've never had any trouble with a waitress though..I honestly do not know how I'd react if someone touched my plate.

i tip according to the service, but I always leave a tip

This is great Carol, where do I start...

Is it me, or does it seem like everytime a waitress decides to ask me if everything is alright, it's a half second after I just stuffed a bite of food in my mouth.

Another peeve is my coffee. I use cream and sugar and know just how much to put in a full cup to suit my taste. But inveriably the waitress will ambush me and top off my half empty cup. Now I have to try and guess how much to add and it always ends up too sweet and I hate that!!!!

But my biggest peeve is eggs. I like my eggs cooked medium. That means the white is done and the yoke is soft. Why is it so hard for cooks to get that right? Once I was in Cottonwood Arizona on business. The only cafe in the tiny town was a mom and pop joint next to the highway. When I walked in the place went silent as the only customers (about 6 old men drinking coffee) all stopped to look and stare at me in unison. Finally after they watched me sit down they slowly returned to their coffee and conversation. I ordered my usual eggs and sausage, but when my food was delivered my eggs were runny as hell. Completely inedible for me. It was several minutes before the waitress finally emerged from the kitchen and was quite insulted when I asked if my eggs could be cooked a little more. She took my plate and with a huge sigh of disgust took it back to the kitchen. After several minutes she returned a actually dropped my plate in front of me and like a flash whirled around and practically ran back to the kitchen. I looked down and saw that my eggs were cooked beyond recognition. This time I ended up going to the counter and called for the waitress because she just wouldn't come out. This time she was visibly livid with me and acting like a spoiled 2 year old took my plate back to the kitchen. This final time she returned and the eggs were just as runny as the first time. I just stood up and said, "ok, I give up. You folks obviously don't want outsiders in your joint and started to walk out. That's when the waitress ran to block my exit demanding I pay for my breakfast or she would call the cops. I just pointed to my white Dodge Diplomat with an amber light bar mounted across the top and a State of Arizona DOT decal on the door and said "go ahead." She stepped out of the way and I left. It really sucked to because for the next 2 weeks I had to drive to a town nearly 30 miles away for breakfast each morning. The moral of the story is "beware of cafe's in tiny towns.

I will heed you warning, Devin.

Devin.. that is too funny!!! ( and yet sad)... BUT, the "cook" is not the "waitress". I agree with Teresa A. above, it is probably "how she/he is trained".... HOWEVER one important comment to Carol (poster) and I don't even know you...

Do you know that the Owner/Manager of the restaurant would "probably" love you input? There are hundreds of companies in the US that "pay" for your meal etc. for you to do "shops" for them. Sometimes the really good ones are "Hard As Heck" to find. But, if it is a place you enjoy going to, or that is near by that you would frequent again, why not just do your own thing, call and talk to the manager. If it is a "chain", also call the head office.

USUALLY, they really do want us to come back, and they are REALLY interested in people that CARE ENOUGH to voice their opionions. However, you have to be sure and tell them when things are good/excellent to; otherwise, they may just think you are a sniveller and do not really care about making the restaurant/establishment better.

I feel that there is generally no need to leave restaurants a tip. However I do give discretionary tips for good or excellent service. If the food arrives later than I anticipate or the waiter seems unfriendly or miserable I would not give a dime

I absolutely hate that restaurants consider tips part of a server's pay... it leaves us customers feeling guilty if we wish to express our displeasure with the service by not leaving a tip. If restaurants wanted workers with good customer-service skills, they'd pay them better; then when the customer left a small tip or none at all, it would be a better measure of the quality of service they received (factoring in the possibility that the customer was a stingy jerk). But I am damned if I'm going to give someone 10% of the price of my meal (the minimum suggested tip) if it's delivered cold, if the wrong thing is delivered, if the server is too intrusive or incommunicado, etc., etc., etc.! As has been said above, losing that tip is the price the server must pay for providing poor customer service!