There are many things you might encounter when you go to a restaurant. Noisy unruly kids throwing food around, inflated prices for just two pieces of toasted bread, and even unwittingly incriminating one of the guests in adultery right at the table. Well, the customers in the story we're going to tell you today were outraged because the waiter was eating at another table during their shift.
The user u/drakemangos told this story a few days ago, and people were very divided in the comments. Perhaps you will also have some mixed feelings... but first, let's describe the situation just in order.
More info: Reddit
The author of the post works as a server in a cafe and one day they arrived to work an hour early
Image credits: cottonbro studio (not the actual photo)
The author's colleague asked them to serve one table and the server agreed
Image credits: u/drakemangos
After the server took the order, they decided to have a snack before the start of the shift, so they sat at a distant table to eat
Image credits: cottonbro studio (not the actual photo)
Image credits: u/drakemangos
However, the customers got indignant over the server's behavior and reported them to the manager
Image credits: Andrea Piacquadio (not the actual photo)
Image credits: u/drakemangos
The manager didn't punish the author, taking into account it wasn't technically their shift yet, but the customers left no tips
So, the Original Poster (OP) works as a server at a small restaurant, and one Saturday afternoon they showed up to work an hour early. A colleague who was on shift asked them to serve one table, and the author agreed, despite the fact that there was still time left before the start of their own shift.
They were a middle-aged couple, they ordered an appetizer and their entrees in one go, and the OP, having accepted the order, passed it to the kitchen. According to the author, they had a food runner, and the OP had just cashed out the only other table they had, so they just decided to have a snack before starting their shift. The problem was that the restaurant didn't have a special designated area for servers to eat...
In order not to confuse the customers, the original poster went to the far end of the room and sat at an empty table with their back to the table that had just been served. However, after some time, the clients called the manager and complained about the OP, who allegedly “ostentatiously” ate at the table. The manager, having understood the situation, said that he wouldn't take any measures against the OP, but the server’s mood was already ruined.
When they approached that very table to get paid, the customers did not show their dissatisfaction with the situation in any way - except that they did not leave a tip. However, when leaving, the couple said that everything was fine, nevertheless leaving the original poster very upset.
Image credits: Tim Douglas (not the actual photo)
“From the point of view of the unspoken rules of restaurant work, the server, of course, made a mistake - because in most restaurants it is not allowed for servers to have food at the tables while working. I myself was taught this many years ago,” says Vlad Ostrometsky, the administrator of the UNIT Cafe in Odessa, Ukraine, to whom Bored Panda reached out for a comment on this case. “Moreover, this rule actually doesn't even depend on the status or prestige of the restaurant. It’s just the way it is, period.”
“For example, when my mother recently celebrated her birthday in our cafe, and invited me to sit with her at the table, I felt uncomfortable in front of other guests, and I sincerely tried to explain that it was my mom, that it was her party, and that she she called me herself. However, as far as I know, there is a special format of 'friendly-service' cafes and restaurants, where the waiter can sit at the table while taking the order, and even try the dish if the client asks."
“But this is rather a separate feature of such restaurants, and the generally accepted practice is exactly this - if you come to work, you either eat somewhere beyond the main room, or don’t eat at all,” Vlad summarizes.
Most commenters on the original post were also divided over this situation. Those who apparently had experience in the hospitality industry also noted that the author clearly violated an unspoken rule of their work, and it's actually good that it all ended with only no tips for them. "It's very unprofessional. They're our guests. It's in bad taste to eat on the floor while you have active tables. No way," someone wrote in the comments.
On the other hand, some commenters were outraged that this state of affairs per se appears to be a clear violation of the OP's rights. "I just don't get it. Why can't we just view each other as human beings, equals. I just can't wrap my head around the way some people think," another commenter responded. And what's your own opinion over this described case? Please feel free to express it in the comments below.
People in the comments were very divided over this situation - some of them think the author was being unprofessional, and others believe it was unhuman towards the server
