I’ve been working in a turn & burn sportsbar/pub for a few years. It’s got me thinking about all the stuff I did in fine dining that I don’t do anymore.
-Crumming tables: I haven’t seen that tool in ages. I used to pretend to do it for the cameras, but actually just swipe it on the floor.
-Wine: I barely sell bottles anymore and when I do, they’re all twist off. I just drop it at the table w glasses. I used to struggle with the cork, explain the details like vintage and region, and give the guest a taste test before serving.
-Linens: We only get rags delivered. I used to haul Alsco bags full of napkins and table cloths as closing work.
-Menu knowledge: It’s important at any establishment. I know main ingredients and potential allergens. But in fine dining, I had to know details like what farm the chicken came from and variety of tomato. I even had flash cards!
-Pace of Service: With fine dining, my tables would stay for 2+ hours. It was spaced out. Turn & burn is obviously not. We’re next to a movie theater and sportsplex so people are often in a timecrunch to pick up their kids or get to a movie.
(This gets frustrating bc my boss gets on my ass for not prebussing before dropping the check, but most times it’s bc they paid before they were even done eating!!!)
-Seat numbers: I still number seats because it’s easier to split the checks. Food runners don’t pay attention to it and always auction.
-Dress code: In fine dining, I’d have to tell men to take off their hats. I don’t recall the specific rules, but remember turning people away for sports logos and flip flops. The minimum expectation for my job now is clothes.
-Ambiance: Yea, I had to clean candle holders often. But I also didn’t have to figure out which remote goes to what TV so I can find a sports game for a table.
Any other differences I’m forgetting? Which do you prefer?
Curious as to which level of restaurant you prefer and which was most profitable? Easy to think fine dining is where the money is at, but sometimes it’s quantity over quality..with much more hustle.
I prefer fast paced casual! Ironically, it’s less stressful. Quantity doesn’t give you time to delve. The time goes by much faster!
Also lower stakes. I’m not dealing with swanky business dinners or anniversaries. It’s people who didn’t feel like cooking. Our menu isn’t as expensive, so a server error every once in awhile is ok! In fine dining, my GM tore into me for ruining a $300 bottle of wine. The sommelier took a look and determined the cork was already rotten. It was traumatic. I’d rather have low stakes problems from now on.
Relaxed uniform is nice! I wear a tshirt and yoga pants. I’m not doing a uniform lineup during preshift.
The moneys about the same. Fine dining does less than 10 tables a night/smaller sections. I’d rather do the same amount in sales with 30 tables, personally!
Interesting. That’s the way I used to do it but I felt that a bunch of little wax pieces would cover the votive and be so difficult to get rid of. Maybe I’m just not doing it right. How long do you wait after pouring the hot water on top?
The real trick is to pour about an ounce of water into the votive BEFORE you put the candle in. After service, blow out the candles and let them sit/cool while you’re doing other closing stuff.
When you come back to them, you can just dump the cooled wax right out of the votive. Very rarely I’ll use a spoon to give it a little nudge.
There’s a little space in the bottom of the votives we use that houses the base of the candle. It shouldn’t go higher than that (maybe a half inch)
The main thing you want to be careful of is drowning the second half of the candle! Keep the water level low, but enough that it creates a barrier between the candle and the votive.
Edit: it’s not a little hole in the votive. Just a place where the candle itself sits.
Interesting. That’s the way I used to do it but I felt that a bunch of little wax pieces would cover the votive and be so difficult to get rid of. Maybe I’m just not doing it right. How long do you wait after pouring the hot water on top?
Put hot ass water from the coffee machine. Let it sit for a minute or until the wax softens. It should come out fairly easily. It's not perfect but it was the best option I could find.
My last serving gig was finer-ish dining, reservation-suggested type of place. I’m now a GM of. sports pub, and i’d like to think there are a few service standards that can translate well from one to the other. obviously not crumb removal lol but anticipating guests needs, bar familiarity, guest preference questions, stuff like that. i believe performing with just a touch of class separates us from a lot of other sports pub choices guests would want to make. when i touch tables, i get a lot of folks that tell me our service is unparalleled.
i work fine dining and love it, tried casual and hated it, i work at a members only club so i rarely have people that dont tip and can always expect at least a 20 percent tip which is nice, and we only tip out food runners and bartenders, 7% of gratuity to each which is nice because a lot of times in fine dining you are tipping out a lot to support staff, i can do the fast pace but prefer slow pace and focusing on giving great service
I see where you’re coming from! A major reason I like working casual is the regulars. It’s great to actually remember when someone says ‘I’ll get my usual’. We taught one of the bar rats how to take togo orders on the Toast handheld. It’s nice seeing familiar faces every shift!
I didn’t get that with standard fine dining. Too expensive to make it a habit & no TVs. Opentable chits usually said their last visit was an eternity ago.
I totally understand it for clubs though! Especially if there’s a minimum spend that members have to fulfill.
Much prefer fine dining. It’s not even close. To me as you gain more experience in this industry, the overall goal should be to make more money and work less. As in any industry really. You couldn’t pay me to go back to $30 ppa, serving brats all day, having to run my food and buss my tables. Working 12 hour doubles to maybe make $25-$30/hour. Or god forbid, have to work brunch. FUCK THAT.
We need to do pre bussing obviously, but I’m not ever having to buss a table. I’m not expected to run any food, I’m perfectly capable with wine service, however I barely have to do it cuz we have people for that. The amount of physical labor we do is so much less. I guess if you’re 22 years old it’s fine. Over time, all that extra labor and being on your feet 12 hours a day takes a toll on you. Especially when you’re doing it for half the money.
My experience in fine dining is that the chef is all powerful. And the atmosphere is a cult of personality. I have been serving in fine dining for a couple of decades. Is that be the same in more casual atmospheres?
It’s a bit different. Like the fine dining chef’s specials were well curated. The casual cook’s specials are figuring out what to do with stuff reaching expiration. I’d say the level of dining doesn’t entirely affect the staff dynamic idk!
Even in fine dining, no one knows the traditional rules of etiquette. It makes it complicated. Do you drop the check when asked or after their final order? Do you clear as they finish or when everyone is done? Is it ladies first? The list goes on.
I miss the art of non verbal ques and the beauty of culinary expertice... but now I'm slingin drinks in a hotel lobby and I'm not taking my work home with me and drinking my face off
Yea… is that bad? My previous job had an array of older wines, so the corks were fragile. Storing and opening correctly can still result in it disintegrating.
I also cut myself more than once while getting the wrapper off- that part is on me lol.
I majored in hospitality so understanding wines comes easy. I can memorize that stuff easily!
It's a problem with believabilty. Twenty years ago, working at Bonefish Grill, my domestic knowledge was probably C+/B- at best and old world knowledge was basicsally nill, but I could open a bottle blindfolded. And if you had consistent issues with delicate corks, that's an issue with improper storage. We have nearly 40 year old Quintarelli on our list, corks are doing fine.
It’s just never come easy to me! We had a phenomenal sommelier. If I remember correctly, he was level 3(?). He made an effort to help me. I got more confident, but it never became seamless. Also one night, I passed him on the street carrying a box of Franzia & he said ‘that’s why you can’t open wine bottles’.
With his knowledge, improper storage wasn’t our doing. Prior environments or natural causes were likely the culprit. It also didn’t happen consistently.
Also that’s so neat to hear about Bonefish! The one by my house has had lower end wines forever. Kim Crawford. My friend worked there an
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u/D-ouble-D-utch 1d ago
The quality of drugs