Attack of the table-lingerers
December 30th, 2008 by Besha Rodell in Food & Life, RestaurantsThere aren’t many restaurants in town lucky enough to have an hour and a half wait for a table, but there are a few that do. I’m not naming names, but last night I was at one such restaurant. I didn’t begrudge the restaurant their popularity (although I did begrudge the vastly under-estimated estimate they gave me about how long the wait would be), but I did begrudge the numerous tables of diners who were well past done with dinner, and who stayed at their tables, not eating or drinking, ignoring the legions of people waiting patiently only a few feet away. Seriously, if you’ve been done for an hour, and sitting and chatting for an hour, all the while seeing that people have been standing there waiting for over an hour, GET UP!!!!! I was genuinely appalled at the lack of consideration my fellow diners showed, not just to the waiting customers (who were clearly visible) but also to their servers who need to turn tables in order to make money. I understand not wanting to end the girl’s night out, or the date, or whatever, but if you need more than say, 15 minutes, move your powwow elsewhere — a bar, perhaps? Don’t want to spend any more money? GO HOME.
Sorry, that’s the ex-waiter in me getting all excited. But seriously, where are people’s manners?
December 30th, 2008 at 3:27 pm
Besha, dear, not to play devil’s advocate or anything but do long waits at restaurants ever have anything to do with servers mismanaging tables, restaurants overbooking, kitchens being underprepared, or other general front or back of the house ineptness? Certainly consumers can’t shoulder all the blame.
But to also answer your question: People rarely have consideration for others anymore. Manners are antique.
December 30th, 2008 at 4:22 pm
I hear you; both as a former server and a currently hungry diner; the inconsiderate lingerers are annoying! especially when they are bad tippers too…you’ve got to add a premium to your tip if you hold on to the table – it’s the nice thing to do for your server.
December 30th, 2008 at 5:24 pm
When I’ve been sitting with friends at a restaurant where people are waiting, I’ve usually suggested getting up and making room. It has surprised me how often my companions say things, with complete sincerity, like, “That’s a good idea; I never would have thought of it.” Sometimes people are willing to be polite, but simply don’t think of things until they are given an example. I hope your comments here will help.
I also hope that, since you’re venturing into the area of rudeness and propriety, that you will post your thoughts and invite comments on another issue that is a source of unending frustration for me: What should I do when a server asks if I need anything when my mouth is full? Sometimes I can actually wave them away if all is well, but if I actually DO need something, the dilemma is compounded. And while it may be the case that servers are trained (or should be trained) not to do this, the fact is that they (and their managers) do it A LOT.
December 30th, 2008 at 6:16 pm
An Atlantan on vacation here in Europe here. We understand how it is back home, but my fiancee and I chortled with delight tonight as we enjoyed our table, secure in the knowledge that when you make a reservation at a restaurant here, it is assumed that you are entitled to stay for the whole evening. No such thing as turning tables over. We loved it. I’m not making a statement, just an observation.
December 30th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
How about consideration not just for the server and the other patrons, but also for the restaurant owners who are losing money by not being able to turn that table?
I agree that manners are a thing of the past. Many people are downright rude when hanging on to a table during a wait, even if all they’ve had to eat is a split sandwich and water with lemon, and they finished that an hour ago. When you’re done, get out so someone else can eat, please.
December 31st, 2008 at 2:22 pm
I love the comment about Europe. I spend quite a bit of time overseas. It drives me crazy how slow the service is. In Europe people don’t care about service becuase the servers don’t get tips in general.
I agree with you that people linger a lot, and those of us who have an agenda (which I usually do) don’t appreciate it. The restaurant would be rude if they asked people to get up, so I guess its up to all of us to pay better attention in general. This doesn’t just include restaurants, but also when driving on the roads, walking in public, or pretty much doing anything outside of your four walls. People mostly live in la-la land, sad…
January 1st, 2009 at 8:41 pm
Sadly, I think we’re preaching to the choir here. People who enjoy food and restaurants enough to read food blogs know better. How to educate all those non-foodie folks out there who enjoy sitting at their table long after they’ve finished?
January 2nd, 2009 at 1:20 pm
I think it depends on the situation. Atlanta is a city that attracts business conventions and visitors. I know that from time to time, I have a friend coming in from out of town who will be staying at the convention site. We want to see each other, so many times, a restaurant is the only way to squeeze in a quick visit on such an occasion. While we tend to visit old standbys that wouldn’t have a wait, and I’d like to think that we’d be conscious that there were people waiting, I don’t think that we should feel pressured to move along in a situation where we’re not likely to see one another for a year. It would not be appropriate for us to move to a bar in the case of a recovering alcoholic, and sometimes the coffeehouses are already closed or on the verge of closing.
Also, as John points out, how is a popular restaurant’s refusal to take reservations, or mismanagement of said reservations, the customer’s fault? Consideration and thoughtfulness is important, absolutely, but sometimes the reality is that demand simply exceeds supply.
I remember waiting 2.5 hours one night to eat at Atlanta Fish Market. That was simply too long (especially since we had a diabetic in our group). Lesson learned: if it is going to be an hour or more, go somewhere else.
January 3rd, 2009 at 4:35 pm
Just to be clear: there are times when the restaurant mismanages reservations or is slow with service. There are waits that are unavoidable. There are people for whom moving to the bar is inappropriate. My experience this week would have included a wait no matter what. But the people who I’m speaking of had paid their bills and were sitting literally inches away from multiple groups of waiting parties, some of whom had been waiting for over an hour. Yes, it depends on the situation. In this situation, it was rude.