So ever have those days when all you would like to do is walk out of your job? As a server, I have had a few. However, at times like these I have always known that eventually someone will come along that restores my faith in waiting tables and makes my day complete.
I have already ranted about the needy folks that I have had to take care of and their antics in asking for a split burger cooked at two opposite ends of the spectrum, now I would like to compliment those that help in making a servers shift a little more managable.
This past Monday as I was waiting tables at Old Bag of Nails in Westerville, I encountered a group of people that did not much care about my name, or that we had Pepsi products and iced tea, but that promptly informed me that they were on their lunch break. Ironic since I serve lunch there! Regardless, at the same time that this party of six was sat in my section, so was a woman by herself. With a sympathetic look she ordered a glass of wine and told me to take my time. This is like a breath of fresh air when you can tell that a person sincerely means what they are saying.
After the table received their food, ran me around, paid and left, the woman who had patiently waited while her food was prepared revealed to me that she too used to be a server. She told me that she could overhear the table discussing their time schedule and wondered to herself why they hadn’t chosen to go for fast food if they were in such a hurry. We also talked about being students and working our way through school by taking care of those looking to refuel. It was very nice to see someone who truly understood what was going on in that scenario. It was also quite nice seeing someone who had at one time waited tables and was now a successful businesswoman. I aspire to fulfill her role to another young server in our same position someday.
This woman and several other customers that day were more than understanding that our kitchen was on the second floor and that I was taking care of about eight tables at one time. It is days like these that although walking out would be easy, staying through can be so rewarding. Not to get all Hallmark warm and fuzzy about serving fish and chips, however having someone understanding in your corner at the height of your frustration allows for keeping the faith.
2 responses so far ↓
Micheal Purdum // April 30, 2008 at 11:44 pm
Sometimes taking care of the public is a daunting task. They save up most of what they have the littlest of is time and patience. We are all in a hurry to get behind, get ahead, stuck in traffic, honk the horn, hurry hurry hurry. we take it out on the very people that are trying really hard to make all the other problems go away for just a minute- even if it is only a 45 minute lunch. So you ask why are they so hard on me? It is just the way it goes, take it or leave it. As long as you understand the other stuff then the attitude is just for the moment and not really what those cool folks are all about- then it makes it a whole lot easier to realize that it isn’t you but all the other stuff-
amandatroy // May 1, 2008 at 4:26 am
I agree that you have to take the good with the bad. That is why I am thankful for those like the woman that I took care of.
Don’t get me wrong, I like what I do, and above all else I have been taught how to deal with several different people from various walks of life.
I agree with you on the fact that by the time you are catching heat on anything it is usually not your fault. I do believe that people in general are polite, but much like the way that someone will tell 10 people of a poor experience and maybe 3 of a good one, I shared a negative experience. But, in seeing the glass half full, I like to compliment those positive experiences and share them with others!