Question for anyone who's been a server... - Page 2

KatieKate1244 · #1 05-02-2005, 09:29 AM

When I worked at BW-3s, we split the place up usually by the number of servers. Most nights, there were two, and we split the place in half. Sometimes we'd split it into three. On a two person night, you're looking at probably 10 tables, three person nights were about 5-6 tables.

Rudey · #2 05-02-2005, 11:34 AM

Say this: You get a tip when you learn some manners. Until then you depend on food stamps.

-Rudey

Quote:

Originally posted by AchtungBaby80
When you go to tip out your host/hostess, how much are you supposed to give them??

The reason I ask is, I recently got a job as a waitress because it was really the only thing that would fit with my upcoming school schedule and provide any sort of $$ whatsoever, but I've never done this before. The restaurant I work in does not require us to tip out the hostesses like most other places around here do, but we are strongly encouraged to (read: you'd better do it, or else you look really really cheap). However, I never know how much to give them--is there some sort of guideline to go by, as when customers tip waitresses? Another complication is that the daytime hostess is a real...well, she's not a very polite person, and I find it very hard to give her any of my hard-earned money when she's constantly hollering at me to get out of her way and shoving me when I have the nerve to be in front of her. The first shift I worked, she goes, "Where my tip?" as I was leaving. I was like, "Pardon me?" and she repeated, "Where my tip?!?!?" really loudly, and I felt like giving her a tip upside the head but I restrained myself.

So anyway, what's the protocol? Heaven forbid people think I'm cheap.

sageofages · #3 05-02-2005, 03:56 PM

Here all you waitstaff types go..

www.shockwave.com Go for the diner dash game!

Diner Dash game

It is so cute!

Xylochick216 · #4 05-02-2005, 04:35 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by PureGoldF2K1
Some other questions for servers...

How many tables on average would you be waiting on at a time? At my restaurant, its normal on a Friday night to have 10-12 tables, all sat at the same time. Upon talking to a friend who works at Olive Garden, I found out that this isnt normal (he would have 3-4 tables) and this is why I get so ridiculously stressed out. Oh, and yesterday I was double sat with 2 parties of 15...at the EXACT same time...thats not typical of most places I dont think!

How much sidework do you have to complete?? We basically have to clean the entire kitchen and our sections which takes HOURS. OliveGardenGuy, again, said this isnt normal...hmmm..Im thinking i want more than my $2.83/hr haha.

Any thoughts?

When the restaurant first opened, we'd have 3 tables on busy nights. We ended up after the first year with 4-5, depending on the section. We had to roll a tray (or more) of silver (30 rolls) and complete 2 side duty tasks (ie. take out trash, refill A1 bottles and ketchup, clean the server alleys) in addition to sweeping our area and refilling our salt/pepper shakers. All that for $2.13 an hour. I quit after 2 summers. The tips were decent, but I made more doing other jobs.

texas*princess · #5 05-02-2005, 08:31 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by PureGoldF2K1
At the restaurant where I serve (similar to a Friday's, but not a chain...ridiculously busy on the weekends), we dont give anything to the bartenders or hosts (bartenders make their own tips and the hostesses make a normal hourly wage, so they dont need tips). We are required, however, to give 3% of our total sales to the busboys at the end of the night, which I do gladly since those little Guatemalan dudes do basically all the table cleaning.

Some other questions for servers...

How many tables on average would you be waiting on at a time? At my restaurant, its normal on a Friday night to have 10-12 tables, all sat at the same time. Upon talking to a friend who works at Olive Garden, I found out that this isnt normal (he would have 3-4 tables) and this is why I get so ridiculously stressed out. Oh, and yesterday I was double sat with 2 parties of 15...at the EXACT same time...thats not typical of most places I dont think!

How much sidework do you have to complete?? We basically have to clean the entire kitchen and our sections which takes HOURS. OliveGardenGuy, again, said this isnt normal...hmmm..Im thinking i want more than my $2.83/hr haha.

Any thoughts?

Wouldn't this depend on the *type* of restaurant it is?

I've never been a server, but a lot of my sorority sisters were when I was active... some worked at Chili's (or Applebee's) where it was more of a sit-eat-go type place.. and they usually had way more tables a night than the people who were servers at places like Olive Garden which got less tables at a time or even the local country club, where they got even fewer tables, but it was b/c of the atmosphere of the restuarant (i.e. they didn't have that sit-eat-hurry-up-and-go atmosphere that gave them so much traffic that they had to have 10-15 tables at a time)

xoheatherxo · #6 05-02-2005, 09:18 PM

i work at a chain restaurant, and how many tables we have depends on the night. on a saturday night, we have 11 servers on and each have about a 4 or 5 table section. on a monday or tuesday night there are 5 servers on and we have way bigger sections. our hostesses are supposed to rotate sections so noone gets triple sat, but on a busy night when you only have 4 tables in your section, if they all get up at the same time and theres a wait then we sometimes get triple sat.
as for sidework...we have front of house (foh) and back of house(boh) sidework that we have to do. front of house sidework isnt bad though. we have to make sure our section is clean at the beginning of our shift and the end of our shift and that its ready for the next shift. it gets checked out by the foh closer at the end of the shift and we get signed before we can leave. boh is harder though. we have a boh sidework chart and u have to make sure that every dressing by your name is done at the beginning of your shift with a backup in case we need it. and then theres running sidework which is like stocking glasses, or getting ice, or something else like that. then at the end of the shift we have closing sidework for boh. that would be like cleaning a side station, restocking the coffee station, closing the salad bin. of course its a lot of work if there arent a lot of servers on the floor, but the less sidework you have to do, the more servers are on and the less money you make.
we have to tipout the hostesses because our chain is cheap and wont pay the hostesses minimum wage so we have to tip them out.

sageofages · #7 05-02-2005, 09:19 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by sageofages
Here all you waitstaff types go..

www.shockwave.com Go for the diner dash game!

Diner Dash game

It is so cute!

Seriously, you guys gotta try this game

! I played the free trial and was thinking about you all!!!

NO way would I want to do that for a living!!! heheheheheh

PureGoldF2K1 · #8 05-03-2005, 02:05 AM

Oh man, that Diner Dash game was WAY too familiar. Its my night off, what am I doing playing that?? haha

sageofages · #9 05-03-2005, 11:16 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by PureGoldF2K1
Oh man, that Diner Dash game was WAY too familiar. Its my night off, what am I doing playing that?? haha

hehehe mind boggling eh?

hehehehehe

AOPIHottie · #10 05-03-2005, 01:24 PM

I am a restaurant manager-been in the business for 11 years. The concept I work at now, our servers have 3-5 tables on Fri/Sat/Sun depending on how good the server is. The servers tip out an automatic 1.5% to the bussers and 5% to the bartenders-if they sold any bar drinks. The bussers are responsible for bussing tables, and restocking the boh for the servers-ice, chips, salsa, cups, etc. The servers just wait their tables, roll silverware, usually 70-ish on weekends, turn in a cashout and go home. This is the first concept I have worked for where the servers didnt have running/closing duties and FOH cleaning to do. We pay people to do all that for the servers.

kddani · #11 05-03-2005, 01:27 PM

that game is so much fun! I want to buy it but have a hard time justifying paying money for a game that i could beat in one sitting probably

AchtungBaby80 · #12 05-03-2005, 04:58 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by AOPIHottie
The servers just wait their tables, roll silverware, usually 70-ish on weekends, turn in a cashout and go home. This is the first concept I have worked for where the servers didnt have running/closing duties and FOH cleaning to do. We pay people to do all that for the servers.

Oh my God, I wanna work for you!

Each server where I work has her duration, which she keeps an eye on during the entire shift, then each person has specific closing duties depending on seniority. I usually end up with the sucky ones that take the longest because I'm pretty new, so I'll be happy when the girls who are training now start working so I won't have the crappy jobs anymore. Closing duties could be as simple as restocking the cracker baskets (for those "old" people) or switching out all the salad dressings, restocking them, restocking salad plates, monkey bowls, and ramekins, emptying salad into containers to put in the fridge, wiping out the entire salad station, AND wiping it down and sweeping underneath it. Oh, yeah, and restocking and putting away all the lemons, tomatoes, etc. It just depends.

As far as tables go, servers will usually have 3-4 to a section early in the night. As the floor is cut, the sections get bigger so that at some points, if you're one of the last ones out, you could have about 8-10, but no more than one or two is usually ever being used, if that.

The place where I work is pretty old-fashioned in that we don't have a computer system, so when we ring in an order we have to write out the ticket by hand and turn it in at the kitchen window. Servers are also responsible for making the salads, dishing out the soup, coleslaw, and potato salad, and getting other side dishes/dressings. No wonder I'm so tired by the end of the night.

I talked to some of the other girls I work with and many of them had the same problem with the day hostess as I do until they called her out on it. Apparently, she treated them the same way until they let her know it wouldn't fly, so maybe I should've let loose on her the other day when she practically threw me across the room. Today I overheard Miss Thang The Hostess talking about how she's retiring soon and I got all excited...until I heard her say that she's only retiring from her other job.

Looks like we're stuck with her.

AOPIHottie · #13 05-04-2005, 08:46 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by AchtungBaby80
Oh my God, I wanna work for you!

I am always hiring!!

xoheatherxo · #14 05-05-2005, 12:39 AM

i wanna work for you too!!! wheres your restaurant?? and im interested in opening a restaurant someday...any words of wisdom???

AOPIHottie · #15 05-07-2005, 01:27 PM

Well, anyone in Texas is welcome to come apply!!
As for starting your own restaurant-My boyfriend, his dad, and a partner started a restaurant from scratch in Colorodo, and it is super hard. So much investment, time, etc. But my mom's boyfriend bought a restaurant and its doing so incredibly well. What I have seen so far is starting from scratch=hard, buying=hard, but easier.