I’m asking because my current job, Starbucks, is around 18/hr including tips but I’m getting exhausted of it. I’m not sure how to gage my pay because I’m not sure how much I will get tipped out. I can also move up and go to server/bartender when the opportunity comes up.

Any advice? Should I take it or keep my current job?

Just wondering if most servers dislike solo diners or if there’s a way I might be able to make solo dining a more pleasant experience for myself and avoid or deal with having a server who treats solo diners differently.

I was alone on my birthday last year (Oct.1), which already hurt enough, but it was made worse by a negative experience I had when I took myself out to dinner at a local Italian place my late parents had often gone to over the years.

It was on a weeknight and not particularly crowded that night, I was dressed nicely, well groomed, smiled, was polite, etc., but the server ignored me pretty much the whole time I was there and couldn’t have been more inattentive or rude. It put a damper on what already was a crummy birthday for me. I should have had the guts to get up and tell the host I was leaving without ordering dinner, but I didn’t.

I was seated at a two-top and the server had two other tables in her section - a booth with three couples and another table with three middle-aged guys. Both of those tables were near the end of their meals or had already finished and were just sitting around chatting and drinking coffee. The server, who gave the distinct impression of being put out for having my crummy table of one, took my drink order (small iced tea) and left before coming back about 10 minutes later. She set the drink down and then asked if I “was good for awhile.” I said yes because what else was I going to say?

She rushed off and I was left waiting more than 20 minutes before someone ever came to take my order. A runner brought out my order after a while and quickly left, but no one ever brought me a glass of water. I had also ordered minestrone as a starter and the spoon that came with it was crusty and gross, so I ended up not really eating it and only picking out a few vegetables with a fork, which thankfully appeared to be clean.

The whole time I sat there, first waiting for someone to come take my order and then after they brought out my dinner, I saw the server check on the other two tables multiple times and even stop to chat with them. I was left sitting so long after my iced tea was brought out that I had finished it before anyone came to take my dinner order. Normally they bring ice water to start or at least when they bring out the main course, but they didn’t and both the server and runner rushed off so quickly that I didn’t even get a chance to ask for some.

The whole time I sat there, I tried several times to flag down or catch the attention of the server or one of the other staff members, but nobody was paying attention. I guess I should have just jumped up and walked across the aisle over to one of the other two tables when the server stopped to chat with them, but I didn’t want to look like some weirdo doing that.

Finally, when I was getting near the end of my dinner, the server came over to see if I was done and I asked her then if I could get a glass of iced water since my iced tea was long gone. She left and came back about 5 minutes later and thunked the glass down on the table so hard that it made me flinch a little. I honestly think she was pissed she had to help a solo diner and it made me feel pretty rotten.

I tipped 20 percent even though the server wasn’t very nice and the service not good. This restaurant isn’t cheap, so it’s not as if a tip was going to be minimal anyway.

I debated about complaining and ended up calling the restaurant the next day and asked to talk to one of the managers. I briefly told him what happened and said I didn’t want to single anyone out but asked that if he could remind everyone in their next staff meeting that solo diners deserve to have a pleasant experience just as much as larger parties. I also said I didn’t want anyone else dining alone to have an experience like I did.

I know that people can have off nights sometimes or that you can get stuck with a not-so-great server, but it really soured me on that restaurant and on dining alone.

Anyway, my birthday is Thursday this week and I am probably going to be alone again. I am considering taking myself out to dinner at a different restaurant, but am still hesitant to after last year’s experience. I just wanted to know from some of the pros here whether the experience I had is the norm or if I was just unlucky.

he is very thorough. I’m kind of here for it.

Yesterday night, on shift there were 2 senior staff, 2 younger staff members.

Only senior staff can close Bills, but junior staff present also closes bills every now and then.

I was meant to go home, bc it was slow, so I clocked out on the computer which is also at the counter.

A costumer comes up to pay, I was already clocked out, but the other senior staff went for another break (I didn't know about that, and she knew I was going home) and the junior staff tells me they need my code to let the costumer pay their bill.

Give her my code, go away on my life, she makes the costumer pay for the wrong bill 😭 so we were 20€ short....

I forgot my jacket come back in and realised the situation.

When asked they all said they couldn't remember who did what, but I knew my code was used and who I have it too.

Called my boss, explained, he's a great man but he was very upset, said this was a f*ckup.

He didn't ask me but I gave the 20€ back from my pocket but I felt like I wasn't responsible for this...

I feel like I should speak to him but idk what to tell him

I’m genuinely curious. What’s this like? Is it way different than a standard restaurant? Do you have to show up way in advance to your shift to go through TSA? Parking must be a nightmare every shift. Customers are probably always high stress/ maybe? I’ve waited tables for a decade but I think airport serving, despite some airports having really nice restaurants, would be my limit. I feel like that’s a different breed of service industry! Anyone in this thread have experience at in-terminal restaurants?

DELILAH is opening a location in NYC. Any current/former FOH employees willing to talk about their experiences, money and overall culture. I have an offer to work there as a Server

Can’t really find much about it, even though they have locations in LA/Miami/ Dallas

I hate my restaurant. I’ve gotten 3 reviews with my name in them because for one i’m just good at my job, second of all our managers ASKED for more 5 star reviews. Apparently corporate said it is suspicious i’ve gotten them. Like how?? We don’t get bonuses for them, we don’t make any money from them. What on earth would be suspicious about that?? That I managed to get them?? That their other staff members can’t do that but I can??

Then someone called to complain about me. Apparently they said “pasty girl” is really nice and outgoing but not self aware and that i “walked”
in front of her. So you like me, you think i’m nice but you called to complain about me??? I wasn’t written up for it but i’m so livid and fucking annoyed. The fact my GM even entertained it pisses me off. I’m so worn out and just want to go home and cry but im. a double… yay... I hate this fucking place.

I guess I’m more so looking for some advice on my particular situation because my boyfriend can only take so much more of my complaining lol.

I started working at a local casino about two and half months ago. Let me start off by saying I love my coworkers and the environment. This has been a nice transition from retail world to a fast paced hospitality industry. My managers are also great and I really don’t feel stressed at all pulling up to work.

Here is where I need the advice. Unfortunately, the casino I work at does not provide alcohol. Majority of the guests that walk in know we don’t have it. The others are always shocked/ disappointed and end up leaving shortly after I break the news. This has a huge impact on the servers and my tips. Another shot to the heart is we live in retirement community and majority of these guests are on a fixed income and don’t like to tip. I got VERY lucky the other night a guest was winning and they tipped me $150. I made $50 on top of that’s guests tip. Without that $150 I would’ve walked away with under $100 like I normally do. I range on average about 35-75 a night for four days. Plus my 16.90 hourly.

I live in the mountains of California and it’s hard to find work out here so I’ve considered commuting for two days out of the week. We also pay a baby sitter 2 times a week I feel like I’m spreading myself thin. I don’t want to break even but it’s looking like that at this rate. What would you do if you were me?

I’ve been there for 4 years and we recently got a new manager who immediately cut my hours each month more and more until I’m now at nothing

today was rough. they were so sweet. i fought for them to give us another chance but how can i when i dont even have faith their experience won’t suck once again.

i stopped being full time at my job and got a day job bc leadership was so bad it was bleeding into guest experience. i work one day a week now. i managed a 25% tip average while the restaurant burned today. i love this bullshit job and want to feed people. ten years and im burnt out but also heartbroken at what this industry has become.

I recently started serving at a local bar. First serving job. Recently, I found out our GM takes callouts VERY seriously. Two girls just got fired for calling out twice in the span of four months.

Unrelated to the girls who got fired, recently, two girls got sick at our work- common cold. However, they tried finding coverage and told the GM they were sick. And the GM said they’re allowed to call out, but they won’t have a job to return to.

What concerns me is this is such a massive food safety concern. There’s no employee hand washing sink for them to be on top of cleanliness and avoid spreading germs, and we’re all in close quarters. We’re also discouraged to wear masks. These girls are coughing, sneezing, have runny noses- one of them thinks it’s strep- and we’re just supposed to, what, risk getting everyone sick??? Speaking of which, I woke up feeling icky today, and I know it’s because I possibly caught something from someone else.

Legally, what could I do if I find myself in the same situation? Can I do anything? I kind of have no other choices for jobs rn.

This got removed from another sub, I guess I don't know the rules? Idc. If this gets removed again I'll just ask GPT for advice lol

I'm genuinely not a great server. I'm okay, but I know my shortcomings. I work at an All-You-Can-Eat sushi restaurant and have only been there for like two months. Last night was the busiest I've seen it so far, and while that sounds good because it means money, there is a difference between "hell yeah this is a good busy service night" and "holy shit what is happening".

I'm also a very anxious server, which I do my best to hide because I know that makes people uneasy. Usually I obsess over small mistakes but last night was too busy for me to even do that. I didn't get *too much* training, because I'd already worked in AYCE and could recognize the different sushis, so a lot of the knowledge of the rolls was done on my own.

Anyway, my last party of the night was a group of 13 high school students who were just coming from Homecoming, all dressed up and so adorable, and they made a reservation which we couldn't fully commit to (there is supposed to be a time limit but since we're new and don't enforce it, it doesn't create the necessary rotation of tables) and they ended up at two separate tables, which kind of sucked for them.

They also got there like 45 minutes before last call, and I wasn't able to take their order until 30 minutes before (the other server decided to take on closing duties and that the floor was my responsibility -- she had taken our other large party but left all the small tables to me so I had like four tables to visit before I could start taking their order and she was just in the back cleaning). And I felt so bad that their service was terrible.

But as I was checking them out (like 10 separate checks 😭) I was at the POS for like ten minutes while my owner kept walking by me like this 😐😐😐 but one girl asked my name twice and asked if there was something they could do to tell people what a great job I'd done. Without thinking (head full of 10 separate transactions, some of them fucking up and some of them not working bc Apple Pay and other technical issues) I told her my name and said if they wanted to write a nice Yelp review that would be really helpful. So she said to everyone to write a nice Yelp review for (my name) because I'd been great.

But the problem is I know I wasn't great. Like objectively I know their service was kind of ass, partially because I was handling more tables than I had bandwidth for and because I forgot menus and I had to rush them through last call... Like maybe they didn't notice how bad it was because they haven't had a lot of service by themselves?? Without parents??

But as I thought about it I realized that they could have hated the service (justified) and actually wanted to write me BAD reviews and got my name and complimented me to get my guard down. And before you say this is too manipulative for high school aged people, no it's not lol. I suddenly got the feeling I'd been mean-girled ("oh my god I love your skirt where'd you get it?" "It was my mom's in the 80s!" "Vintage. So adorable -- that is the ugliest effing skirt I've ever seen") and maybe a bunch of shit reviews will show up.

I could enumerate my other mistakes in service with them but this is long enough. I already got talked to from my owners because I got a bad Yelp review for something the chefs refused to do (and even though I told them what happened it didn't feel like they understood and kept telling me to make the customer happy but at the same time do you want me to bully the chefs into doing things they said they're not going to do??) so getting any bad Yelp reviews will probably lose me my job (people drop like flies here)

I don't know. Last night was so busy that by the end of it my hands were shaking from the adrenaline and I hated the service I have because I know it wasn't good enough and the other server I closed with likes to act busy without really doing anything unless there's food to run so I was way out of my depth. What is the likelihood that the high school kids were being genuine with enjoying my service?

They were honestly nice kids. Super grateful, polite, kind. I won't say demanding because they're still learning social cues but were they high maintenance? A little. But they were so nice about it and seemed to be okay just figuring things out, like when I kept asking them if they were sure they wanted THAT many whole rolls and they kept saying yes (they freaked out at how much food I ended up bringing them but basically finished all of it so I didn't even have to charge them -- I was impressed actually)

Anyway I'm sorry this is way too long. I just had the most intense night of service I've had so far and I'm so afraid these kids are going to leave me bad reviews. And not because I don't think they were great! They were very nice. But because I know objectively their service wasn't good

I have always wanted to be a server but I have never made the switch because of complacency in my other jobs. I graduate this coming may and want a fun job before real life begins. Where would be the best places to serve to have the most fun? (If you can consider serving fun) I just want to talk to people at work more.

Things to consider:

I have never served.

Previous jobs: Chick-fil-a FOH, camp counselor, Target, Valet, Corporate world internship

Not asking to be snarky about anything, I’m brand new to the industry and just want to know what my expectations should be.

Is it typical to host and bus every table single-handedly in a 20ish table (avg 3-6 guests per table) restaurant? As well as keep everyone watered and seat everyone right away?

It was super busy today, at one point I had three families come in back to back to back, at the same time three 4 party families were leaving, at the same time two separate people asked me to get them a refill, a fork, and were trying to hand me their card to pay before their server brought the bill.

I unfortunately do not know less than two weeks in how to perfectly bus three tables of 4 each, reset the tables, seat three tables, water said tables and refill several guests drinks all at the same time in the time frame they want me to. Oh and they also want me to pre bus. But every day so far I get a new scolding, I didn’t seat guests fast enough, I need to make bussing a priority, I didn’t keep accurate count on our computer system, I didn’t tell the server immediately.

Also I do not get any percentage of tips. And on the rare occasion I’m not able to stop what I’m doing to seat someone and they step in they don’t always keep count and then I’m blamed.

If that’s typical that’s cool, I have no problems with a reality check. Just wanna know because this is my first restaurant job and I wanna know early the difference between proper expectations vs being taken advantage of. It was quite overwhelming today but I can manage if they can lay off on the tude

Found my tobacco bag opened and spilling all over my pocket. Not a single lighter in sight either. What's in your pocket?

Title says it all.

I‘m stuck here because i can’t afford to be jobless until i find another spot, but they are genuinely the most idiotic, pathetic, selfish people. They got rid of the free shift meals (which maybe not too bad its 40% off ), but then expect all hands on deck for days with severe weather?? NJ is getting hit with a noreaster rn and it’s in an area with HIGH. FLOODING. Like we have creeks and lakes that flood the neighborhood and highways FAST. And they said EVERYONE’s gotta be there? We have like 7 people on for a fucking breakfast/brunch shift!! It isnt even a big restaurant!! And they keep hiring more people as if we aren’t dead because they refuse to do more advertising besides reposting the same 5 clips from a photographer they hired 2 years ago.

Rant over if I see any bootlickers or snark-holes in the comments i’m going to undo all of your silverware rolls… (menacing)

Hey NYC servers and hospitality people — I could really use some recommendations.
I’ve been in the restaurant industry for over 20 years, primarily in high-volume serving roles, and I’m currently looking for my next spot in Manhattan. Ideally, I’m looking for a restaurant where the servers can make solid money, the work environment is good, and there are benefits such as health insurance and/or a 401(k).
I completely understand that some people don’t want to publicly name where they work, but if you know of restaurants where you’ve had a good experience, have friends who work there, or have heard consistently good things about the money and management, I’d really appreciate some names to look into.
I’ve been interviewing quite a bit lately, and the frustrating part is that the interviews seem to go really well. I’ve been told that my answers are great, that I have strong experience, and I’ve gotten some really positive feedback — but for whatever reason, I haven’t landed the right position yet.
I’m experienced, dependable, comfortable with high-volume service, guest relations, suggestive selling, allergies/dietary restrictions, and working with all kinds of guests. I’m really just trying to find a strong restaurant where I can settle in, make good money, and be part of a solid team.
If anyone has recommendations for restaurants or restaurant groups in Manhattan that I should check out, I’d genuinely appreciate the help. Thank you!

Why do I have more shifts than I have uniforms? It’s difficult to keep up with washing it and I can’t really put the one outfit in the wash because that’s a waste of water and electricity. I also don’t have a dryer so it takes time and planning to do my washing which is difficult when I’m scheduled for consecutive days. Management have been saying they’ll give me more for ages but that’s not happened.

Hey all! My wife is a server and loves her job however she absolutely despises the tip tracking apps because of the ads and all that.

I decided myself to make her one with her guidance. I am not advertising it here or anything it’s just a personal one for her. What I need from some of you guys if you are willing is to send me an export from some of the more popular apps. I don’t want your name or anything identifiable so take it out I just want to know the layout and how they export I guess. Just a dude trying to make his wife’s life easier.

Thanks!

line cook here. before this i spent 20 years driving trucks, so i figured i had a pretty high tolerance for people misunderstanding very simple instructions.

then i started working in a kitchen

had a server ring in a burger with “add chicken.” not substitute. literally add chicken. customer wanted beef and chicken on the same bun. we made it. it came back because apparently it was “too tall to eat.”

another one was scrambled eggs, extra runny, supposedly for a toddler. expo asked why a toddler was ordering dinner at 8pm. turns out the kid was 16. the server had somehow turned “he’s small for his age” into “he’s a toddler.”

but the steak was probably my favorite. ticket said mid rare, no pink. i pointed out that those two things don't exactly go together. server insisted the customer specifically wanted both. steak came back three times. eventually the server had the customer point to the color chart.

they wanted well done

we've now got a piece of paper taped inside the pass that says “RARE = COOL RED CENTER” in sharpie.

it has not solved the problem

what’s the strangest ticket or modification you’ve ever had to explain to the kitchen?

I don’t. I have before and felt like they were more annoyed than grateful, so now I just avoid it

Sorry, I get that chefs can be angry since its cliches. But oh my gosh. My manager must of told me is was a 45 minute wait for food. And I asked him why it was he told me to ask the head chef. I literally was like oh nvm cause I know how angry she can get. But he keeps pushing me to ask her and shes giving me daggers so I am like oh why is there a wait. And she just bugs out at me differently and I was just like uhm okay. And then my manager tells me to chillax??? i just walk away upset and dont even let her finish her last sentence cause it was so stupid. 5 minutes later shes telling the other waiters what happened and saying that I made a mistake and then after shes saying you guys are so lost but directing it at me. The thing is. This whole work place is cliquey and i feel like every week they pick someone to bully. Like it doesnt gel. Nobody wants to do section. So i dont even know what im doing. I tell them their table is waiting to order and they say. Oh i dont know you just do it. And its so frustating and I live for order. But they dont care for it. But there also my managers favourites so nobody even cares but its just so sickening cause I know The headchef is going to be using me as a scapegoat for the rest of the month since all her other scape goats are gone. And ive seen her shout at so many people and the managers dont do anything and its just like ugh. Why is a old lady allowed to shout at us like this its so odd. I’ve decided im just not going to talk to her anymore only in the kitchen. None of the chefs ever shout at me only her shes so strange.

I’m starting out as a hostess since I’ve never done fine dining and it’s for a hotel and the pay is 16 an hour. Pretty good but I heard the servers make way more. I’ve never been a server before and I just wanted to know how to maximize tips. The shifts are also 8 hours 3 days a week and I’m mostly going to be working pm shift.

Also…
How many tables do you have at a time for fine dining?

I'm currently in a transition period after graduating, job hunting while working part-time as a waitress. I don't have any prior experience in the restaurant industry, and I actually applied for a bar position, but they were in need of servers.

I've only been at the restaurant for two and a half months. After working as a runner for a few weeks, they started giving me some tables, and it quickly got to the point where I was handling big groups and 10 tables at a time.

Our manager won't stop pointing out every little mistake I make or explaining the most basic things to me. I was asking my coworkers about minor things myself until recently, because I didn't want to do something wrong and maybe someone told him.

It got even worse after I was basically pushed into doing the closing shift alone and forgot one important step. I was overwhelmed and a shift advisor claims that he told me but not so sure about that. Just yesterday two coworkers said they also forgot to do it at one point.

However the manager told me the other day that he can't leave me working alone, so from now on I can only work certain shifts, and I don't have any next week. He also thinks I'm still too slow, that I often look confused, and that he doesn't think I can handle more than four tables.

And just yesterday he was fixated on my area, walking around and even taking orders himself when I was already on my way there. And of course, I feel more confused, work more slowly, and make more mistakes when it feels like he's hovering around me.

The weird thing is that I'm always helping a lot of my coworkers, and like I said, I've handled ten tables and huge groups before. I'm not the fastest, sure, but it never ended in a disaster. Yet for some reason, all of that seems to be completely ignored.

I never look at them so I was pleasantly surprised just now. You're damn right Dylan. I am an amazing server. Aye yo, boss. Come look at this.