Working as a waitress is every little girl’s dream, right? Not exactly. But in a college town, many students end up taking jobs as part of a wait staff.
For the first three years of my college life, I evaded the wonderful world of waiting tables. Now in my senior year, I have broken down and joined the ranks of the waitresses.
On my first day, with pen and ticket book in hand, I was prepared for the horrors that might await me inside the restaurant doors. But what I wasn’t prepared for was the way the college customers acted and treated us.
Some say that people simply don’t realize when they are being tacky or rude. How will they ever learn if someone does not tell them, they say. OK then, here are just a few little pearls of wisdom.
When I started waiting tables, I had heard all the terrible stories of dealing with customers. What I didn’t hear was that college students can be so much worse than any other customer you may ever have.
Now that’s not to say all college students make horrible customers, just that the bad ones are truly heinous.
First, you will never be looked down on more than by someone your own age. Some students come in, see that the wait staff is made up of their peers and decide that we are beneath them.
If you go out to eat and the kid waiting on you just happens to be in your college algebra class, at least acknowledge his existence. You have to be a truly horrible person to let someone you know serve you while you pretend that you don’t know them.
Maybe working in a restaurant has made me a little cynical, but it seems that people no longer have the concept of common courtesy. Seriously, would it hurt anyone to say “please” or “thank you?”
There is no need for the amount of nastiness that goes on between customer and server. It doesn’t kill anyone to be polite or patient. Actually, I will tell you a secret. The patient customer is quite likely to get his food before the one that causes a scene and makes the waiter’s life a living hell.
And last but not least, there is always the subject of tipping. Yes, tipping is optional. However, most times tipping is the absolute last thing to cross a student customer’s mind. Some claim they are students, so they don’t have money and therefore don’t tip. Funny how they had money to go out and eat.
Waiters and waitresses give up sleep, weekends and holidays so others can go out and enjoy themselves. We miss football games and concerts because those are busy days. So next time you go out to eat, just remember, being a waitress is not fun. We don’t do it because we have nothing better to do with our time. All in all, be patient with us. We’re trying.