March 19, 2007

When Restaurant Service Reaches the Tipping Point

While stuck in traffic last week I noticed a bumper sticker that read, “Tip 20 percent or eat at home!” Slogans demanding rights for undocumented workers, women and even animals have by now become standard and in many instances cliché. But rights of restaurant workers? That’s definitely new.

Yet it makes sense. Every day millions of caterers, hosts, delivery boys and servers come to work hoping that today’s customers will help supplement their meager base pay. Unfortunately, that is not always the case.

On the other hand, customers are also in an uncomfortable situation. The cost of eating out has risen as it is, the “20 percent is the new 15 percent” rule is adding to the financial burden.

It is doubtful that those who do not tip 20 percent are doing so because of Scrooge-like greediness. The truth is that, in many cases, coming up with money that could have potentially fed another person is difficult.

It seems only logical to partake in this unspoken agreement of tipping if certain conditions are met. It appears that too many restaurant workers depend heavily on the societal pressure to tip. Earning that money is not a priority.

There are those who go out of their way to accommodate their guests, whether by finding an extra booster chair or splitting a check eight ways. However, for every one of those good souls there seem to be several that simply bring the food, check on you once to make sure that there are enough soft drinks at the table and then have to be flagged down so that you can finally get your check.

Tipping is really a phenomenon. It is not practiced virtually anywhere else in the world. It is not uncommon for a waiter in another country to pursue you after you left the table to give you the “correct” change. And it goes without saying that restaurant workers in other countries are not exactly overpaid.

Is it unreasonable to ask that restaurant workers earn their money? The rest of us have to sing for our supper. Restaurant workers should too.

Ironically, many go overboard. We have all seen it - the fake enthusiastic greeting, the attempts to play with your child, the extra attention as your meal comes to a close.

It is hard to determine where to draw the line. What does “good service” actually entail? The answer to that is subjective. It depends on the size of your party, the nature of the restaurant and other similar circumstances.

Nevertheless, in all situations, the guest ought to feel comfortable and at ease in his or her surroundings. The waiter or waitress should be available to assist the guest, but not be overbearing or disturb the meal by overzealous “check ups.”

It is undeniable that this takes quite a bit of skill; getting the timing right while covering six tables is quite a feat.

So next time that you and five of your closest friends are having dinner on a Friday night, make sure to take it easy on the new kid. Even if it’s just to make sure nothing unusual ends up in your food.

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