So I am sitting in the waiting area of my favorite restaurant. Waiting rooms are great places to observe people. Do you ever wonder if people are studying your every move? Are you aware of how you behave when you land yourself at a restaurant at dinner time and are in line for the first available table? Reservation or not, the best of your personality surfaces and you may not be aware of it!
When it comes to expectations we all have them when the dining experience in question is ours. We all want the best table, the best service and the best food. We want immediate attention and our rights supersede everyone else’s. Having said that, this is what I am observing.
People enter the restaurant and make their way to the maître d’. Honestly the host has to have the hardest job. He or she makes or breaks the face of the restaurant. Like all good hosts he/she greets the customers with a friendly and smiling welcome. Sadly, the majority of the people I observed didn’t bother to reply to that friendly greeting. As far as I remember, if someone says hello to you, the proper etiquette is to reply and ask the same. “Hello, how are you?,” is not supposed to be ignored or replied with “I have a reservation for 4 at 7pm.” The maître d’, however, is forced to continue in their friendly manner and checks the roster.
Someone else comes in with a reservation for 6 and casually states that an additional 3 people will be joining. The host calmly takes a deep breath in and nods as he/she’s mind is already mapping out the floor plan. This change in reservation causes all kinds of issues. It’s not a simple add 3 chairs. Seating charts have to be rearranged.
As the host is trying to figure things out, he/she is calling out to those customers whose tables are ready. Some spring to it and acknowledge the call, but some names get called out multiple times with no shows. How many of you have made reservations and something comes up or you change your mind and don’t bother to inform the restaurant? I bet there are enough people out there who have done that because the maître d’ is clearly controlling all the negative thoughts and still putting on a good face.
When you are asking for the best table and service do you ever consider that the people at the next table have also come out for a good dining experience and are wanting the same thing you do? Any misbehavior or scene you create is ruining their dining experience. Sadly though some people have a chip on their shoulder and would rather show off their ability to command attention.
Just then a new customer walks in and asks for a table and the friendly host says there is a long wait. Forty-five to sixty minutes. Ignoring the hosts comments the new customer inconsiderately proclaims, “what about that table? It’s empty.” By now I am shockingly surprised at all the behavior I am getting to observe. I feel like yelling out empty tables aren’t left empty for the likes of you! Thankfully, as if on cue, a group fills up that empty table and saves the maître d’ from having to respond to that ridiculous inquiry.
The maître d’s are human. Yes, they are getting paid to do their job but hospitality works when the people receiving the hospitality act human as well. The next time you go out to eat, watch what you say and how you behave. There just might be someone like me watching you and judging your behavior. If you want five stars then earn it!
it is astonishing to see how ill mannered people can be
And usually to those who are not in a position to voice their grievances
Sometimes one gets a shock when even the people one thinks are good mannered react in weird and stupid ways
Social manners are taught from a very early age in schools and yet they are thrown out of the window !