Rules on Food Servic Etiquitte (STRONG Language) (Work In Progress)

[Broomjockey]

I stated at a sit down restaurant in the post.

I say "We" because I've been there, done that at some point.

Yes, but you keep saying "We make less than $4 an hour," and such, and as I do know that sit-down resturants do such, but fast food doesn't, and I've not seen a sit-down resturant with a drive-through, you were slightly less than clear in your post. Because if I'm expected to start tipping at McDonalds now, I've got issues, as they make almost what I do as a starting wage.

Remember, clarity in communications is your friend.

[powerboy]

After you get your food, GET THE FUCK OUT!! We have a timer tied to a pressure sensor that ticks until your car leaves. If our times are shit, we have to listen to some soulless corporate zombie bitch about being too slow. If you want to double check the order, fine, but park your ass out of the way.

I will always check at the window, just to make sure that the food is exactly how I wanted. And I will mention it at the window, if something is wrong. That is if no one is behind me at the time.

When it comes to tipping...

In ANY sit down restaurant, tipping is NOT optional. We make less than $4/hr and depend on tips to, you know, LIVE. The standard tip is 15% or more for better service.

Tipping IS optional. IF you have to rely on the generosity of the public to make a living then you're in the wrong line of work. I ALWAYS tip when i eat out BUT NOT because I have to but because I WANT TO.

Exactly, if I only tip, if it is exceptional service. I understand about wrong orders/drinks, shit happens. But if I have to return it for then once, then the tip is going to be smaller.


If you don't like how it is, then maybe you are in the wrong job.

[marasbaras]

Sounds to me that if you have a big order at a fast food place you're screwed. The staff is going to bitch if you go to the drive thru (and save them from the kids going inside) and they're going to bitch if you hold up the line inside (and save them from bad drive-thru numbers).

So, I guess as a customer I'll pick what's more convenient for me. I'll make sure we know everything possible when we arrive. But, don't bitch because we've bothered to spend a bunch of money where you work.

[Tuxian]

Sounds to me that if you have a big order at a fast food place you're screwed. The staff is going to bitch if you go to the drive thru (and save them from the kids going inside) and they're going to bitch if you hold up the line inside (and save them from bad drive-thru numbers).

So, I guess as a customer I'll pick what's more convenient for me. I'll make sure we know everything possible when we arrive. But, don't bitch because we've bothered to spend a bunch of money where you work.

Having worked for Jack in the Box in the past, I can say this: We much preferred it if people with large orders would come inside to make their orders.

Why? Because then we could get their order going at the same time as we work on stuff for drive-thru. It was much easier to drop a full basket of fries for a large order and several small orders then to have to drop several small batches over several minutes.

And I will agree with whoever said that the timer is an evil, evil device. At Jack, they expect that from the time you pull up to the speaker to the time you leave the window with your food is to be no more than 3 minutes. And if you go over that? Every 2 seconds the timer goes "BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!" and distracts us even more.

Please, if you're making a big order, go into the lobby. You'll make the workers much less stressed out if you do.

[Geek King]

You were working in a fast-food resturant, and you expected tips? Are we on the same page? McDonalds/Wendys/Burger King-style resturants? Something's a bit off about that to me.

I was thinking Sonic when the OP was talking about it. I still consider them fast food, but I tip for the carside service. After all, Most of the A&W park-and-eat joints I've been to recently now require you to go get your own food.

[Emrld]

I understand your frustration and am glad you got out of a job that made you so unhappy . . .but there are some factors that were not considered.

I have a small dog that goes to my full time job with me. This means that she is in my car on the way to and from the office. There are occassions when we need giftcards from Fast Food places. I am the lucky one who gets to take care of this. I am not going to leave my dog alone in a car in Texas (too hot in summer and can be too cold for hairless in winter) Let alone the risk of her being stolen. Therefore I use the drivethru to purchase the gift cards. I am however smart enough to not do this during a meal time rush.

As for the reading of the menu - vison problems run rampant and people don't have the time or the money to take care of the issue. Also, you can not tell by looking at a person if they have reading skills or not. Take it with a grain of salt and help the customer out.

For the calling pepople Honey, Sugar, Sweetie, etc. I have to beg to differ that is not sexual harrassment. You may see it as being dissrespectful. It does tend to be a thing from the South. Majority of the time (as in not all but, most often) it is just a way of addressing someone who's name you don't know with a little warmth thrown in. True, you may have a name tag on but that doesn't mean people will pay attention to it. - I will agree that there are some horn dogs out there that use those same terms and touch in ways that are not appropriate. That is not right. No one has the right to touch you without your permission. But, don't let them ruin it for everyone that uses Sugar, Sweetie, Honey.

For the checking of the food - I am doing that at the window. After way more than a handful of times of getting the wrong items and having to go back through the line . . . forget it. I am checking right there where it can be fixed before I drive off. If I am in the drive thru to begin with . . .either I have the dog with me, am in a hurry, or both. So why should I be put out because of corporate decissions? I am the one chosing that business and giving it money . . .I should have the right to check my order and not be made to feel bad for it.

[poofy_puff]

Because if I'm expected to start tipping at McDonalds now, I've got issues, as they make almost what I do as a starting wage.

I got the answer to that one - don't eat at McDonalds. It's yucky.

As for the reading of the menu - vison problems run rampant and people don't have the time or the money to take care of the issue. Also, you can not tell by looking at a person if they have reading skills or not. Take it with a grain of salt and help the customer out.

If you can't read the Drive-Thru menu, you shouldn't be driving. The RMV usually gives you a little test similar to the D-T menu when you go to have your license renewed.

Having said that, I will continue to wear my seatbelt ALWAYS - even when going through the D-T. (Even tho I don't eat at McD's, there are times when I use D-T's at other places, such ad DD's).

[Emrld]

Poofy-Puff - in the inital post it was mentioned that at a sit down establishment the server should not have to read the menu to the patron.

Every State and Country have different standards for getting a drivers license. Not all have a reading test. Even then some have a standard test that is used over and over and can be memorized by someone with literacy issues. - I used to do some volunteer work with an adult literacy group. It would suprise a lot of people how some of these adults have adjusted their lives to appear like everyone else.

[Broomjockey]

I got the answer to that one - don't eat at McDonalds. It's yucky.

Actually, I don't. That was just the archetypical example. If I do eat fast food, it's usually Wendy's. And even that's getting rare.

[Lace Neil Singer]

If I have a mega junk food craving, I will eat at McDonalds. I always go into the restaurant.

I used to work at a pizza place and the pet hate of everyone there pertaining to large orders were idiots who'd ring up and say, "Can you make me 20 pizzas for midday?" at 11:30 when we opened. -.- No idiot; we can't pull 20 pizzas out of thin air in half an hour.

[Jester]

IF you have to rely on the generosity of the public to make a living then you're in the wrong line of work.

I have to rely on the generosity of the public to make a living.
I also make a good living. Because I am a professional and am damn good at what I do and I am tipped accordingly far more often than not.
I am not in the wrong line of work.

Places that automatically add a tip to one's bill aren't doing anyone any favors.

I have no problem with places adding a gratuity to large parties. There is no reason why a server or servers should bust their ass for a group of 20 for two hours just to end up with one shiny new dollar each. Generally speaking, places that do this will have it posted right on the menu, i.e., "We will add a XX% gratuity to all parties of X or more."

IF you don't get a tip are you supposed to act all whiny cause you didn't get one?

Those people who act professional in this line of work don't act whiny when we don't get a tip. We go about our jobs and move on. We may curse the cheap bastard under our breath, but the professionals in this industry never let the public see them bitch.


All that aside, I had some issues with the OP. Specifically....

Know what you want. Don't just sit there for 3 fucking minutes saying, "Ummm... Duhhh..." If you don't know what you want, go the fuck inside, there is a line forming behind you and we have better things to do than deal with your indecisiveness.

READ. If you read, you don't have to ask stupid questions like, "What is on your Cheap Bastard menu?" It is right in front of you. You have the luxury of literacy unlike about 10% of the population, EXERCISE THE ABILITY!!

Okay, make up your mind. If we don't know what we want, of course we are going to read the lovely colorful outdoor menu that your establishment has provided. I'm sorry I don't have your entire menu memorized and my choices planned out before I got to your place, but frankly, fast food selection is not a high priority in my life (the few times I eat it) and I may need a moment or two to decide what I am going to get.

Don't ask to buy a gift certificate; come inside, you lazy ass bum.

Drive throughs ARE for people being lazy. They are for the customer's convenience. And I fail to see why someone who wants to get a gift certificate at the drive through should not be afforded this service. The only lazy bum I see in this instance is the person who is supposed to be doing their job who can't be bothered to do it. You are in customer service, so serve the damn customers. Don't bitch about normal customers....this place is supposed to be about truly sucky customers, and I do not see it as being sucky when customers expect staff to do their job. Sorry for the bluntness, but this is the way I see it. And yes, I AM in the customers service/food service industry, thank you very much.

In ANY sit down restaurant, tipping is NOT optional. We make less than $4/hr and depend on tips to, you know, LIVE. The standard tip is 15% or more for better service.

Sorry, tipping IS optional. It is the customer's option whether to tip, and how much. If you can't deal with this concept, you should not be in a tipping occupation. I know there are going to be people who don't tip me jack. I don't like it, and I don't like them, but I deal with it and move on. I am good enough at what I do that I make a good living from the vast majority of my customers where a few cheap bastards are not going to ruin my shift, my day, or my life.

If you say, "Keep the change," we will keep EVERYTHING, because $0.34 is NEVER a tip.

Well that really depends on what the order is, don't you think? If someone orders a soda from me at the bar, and pays $1.75, and throws a quarter or two down for it, frankly, that's fine with me. It's just a freakin' soda. Would I prefer more? Sure. Do I expect more from that small an order? No. And I don't get bent out of shape over it, either. In this case, to be honest, your example of $0.34 is actually a 20% tip on my example of a $1.75 soda. (That price IS the price for sodas at my bar, so not just pulling numbers out of my butt here.) So yes, there are times when $0.34 IS a tip. And frankly, on orders this small, I am not going to stress about the tip percentage anyways.

Is $0.34 a good tip on a dinner order? Of course not. You might want to check my above comments about tipping not being optional.

If you are a notorious no tipper, you WILL get bad service. You see, we depend on tips, so if we know we won't get one, we have NO motivation to help you.

Speak for yourself. I pride myself on giving good service to everyone. Because I am professional. I do not give bad service. I may throw someone out of my bar for being an asshole, and they may feel that that is bad service, but that is a whole different scenario.

Please, do not make such blanket statements about the "proper" etiquette at food service establishments. Many of us who work in the industry would not agree with many of those blanket statements, and some of them are downright offensive to us, and make us look to others as greedy, whiney, lazy entitlement whores--precisely the type of people that constitute Sucky Customers.

I know you were just ranting and did not mean to come off like this, but the sad truth is, at least in my eyes, you did.

If working in the industry is this stressful to you though, you might want to consider finding another line of work.

[poofy_puff]

Poofy-Puff - in the inital post it was mentioned that at a sit down establishment the server should not have to read the menu to the patron.

Every State and Country have different standards for getting a drivers license. Not all have a reading test. Even then some have a standard test that is used over and over and can be memorized by someone with literacy issues. - I used to do some volunteer work with an adult literacy group. It would suprise a lot of people how some of these adults have adjusted their lives to appear like everyone else.

I am sorry, I thought it was talking about the Drive-Thru menu.

In Massachusetts, they make you look into a box and read off rows of letters. There is no literacy test, other than assuming you are the one who had to fill out any paperwork, and therefore you must know how to read, but I have never heard of anyone being denied a DL for that reason. But it does make sense to most people that in order to drive (safely) the first thing you need is to be able to see where you are going. If you can't see something very close up, how are you supposed to read signs or avoid hitting things? Although I know there is a difference btwn near and farsightedness, that was supposed to be a rhetorical question.

[drunkenwildmage]

If you are going to order the store and blow $30, GET YOUR LAZY ASS INSIDE. It takes a while to make and pack big orders and it slows down the flow of the line.

Been nailed on that one myself... ended up waiting 20 mins in a drive thru because the person in front of me decided to order enough food to feed the Ohio National Guard.

When it comes to tipping...

In ANY sit down restaurant, tipping is NOT optional. We make less than $4/hr and depend on tips to, you know, LIVE. The standard tip is 15% or more for better service.

Dude.. I hate to say it, but tipping is optional....In theory it's suppose to be a reward for "good service", but ended up getting prostituted by both Company's and Employees into thinking it needs to be mandatory. As far as places that automatically ad a tip to my bill.. that's all they are getting.. even if I do normally tip more.

If you say, "Keep the change," we will keep EVERYTHING, because $0.34 is NEVER a tip. If you are too cheap to tip, WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU EATING OUT?!? Cooking at home is significantly cheaper.

That did always piss me off when I delivered pizza..but I learned to expect it from some area's we delivered to.

If you are a notorious no tipper, you WILL get bad service. You see, we depend on tips, so if we know we won't get one, we have NO motivation to help you. Instead, we will skip you to care for generous customers so we can pay our rent.

This, I always thought was a self fulfilling prophecy. In our case, when we left with mutable deliveries, the non-tippers went to the bottom of the stack.

Most people think about it like this

"I don't tip because me Pizza is late"

then they need to think about it like this.

"My Pizza is late, because I don't tip"

If you leave only a few coins, it is an INSULT, so you can just go to Hell and fuck youself.

Dude..You live in a Collage town.. give over it.. A dollar is a dollar, if it comes in paper form, or coin form.. it all spends the same... Chances are you have alot of college students that only have coins to tip... If I really wanted to insult the wait staff, I would let a penny (Face down)

READ. If you read, you don't have to ask stupid questions like, "What is on your Cheap Bastard menu?" It is right in front of you. You have the luxury of literacy unlike about 10% of the population, EXERCISE THE ABILITY!!

You are a college town..it's not the "cheap bastard menu" as it's the more "Poor college Student" Menu or in the case of Bowling Green "the Pool College Student, and Cheap Redneck Menu"

[blas]

Come on guys, let's take a step back and a deep breath. It's just some venting.....I'm sure the OP is probably not a sucky employee. I used to spew venom and miscellaneous threats and promises when I worked at the gas station, and I may have went back to work and actually did it once or twice. We say some stuff we don't mean when we vent.

I have made blanket statements when venting. I have said some awful stuff when I was angry. Maybe we should calm down a bit before we vent on here.....or maybe we should just agree to disagree that tipping is always going to be a hot topic and we'll always be a hung jury on this site when threads like this come up.

[Tria]

In general...

If a female employee is taking your order DON'T call her Sweety, Honey, or any other pet name, this is sexual harassment. She is only talking to you because she has no other choice, you creepy, horny, old bastard.

Okay, I'm a 26 year old female.... And I have dropped a "Hun" on occassion, blame my country upbringing.

Got a guy I know originally from Texas, anyone younger than him in "Dahlin" or "hun" and anyone older than him is "ma'am". I apologize for this.