SilverTray
Ottawa, ON
Female, 21
I have been a server and bartender for over 3 years now and I have had plenty of experience in the sector. I've seen the good and the bad and everything in between. Against what most people think, it is not an easy job. Imagine working in an environment where every minute counts, where you get yelled at daily and come home with feet swollen to twice the size of Minnesota. But despite all the downfalls, it is a good paying job, if you're good at what you do.
Believe me when I say that I am not tryin to be racist, but asians are definitly the worst tippers. During tourism season however (summertime) Europeans are the worst. Many countries in Europe such as France include the gratuity automaticly into the bill and alot of tourists believe it is the same in Canada so they end up not tipping.
They both have their ups and downs. Bartending is very low stress and high paying. I was a bartender in a club, a golf course and a lounge so i've seen it all. Serving is high stress but also high payout. I've served for chain restaurants, small town diners and downtown classy restaurants.
All in all, I prefer serving to bartending simply because of the higher standards in serving. As a woman, I feel I am much more respected as a server than as a bartender.
I would say it is about equal. Female servers will obviously get tipped higher on tables where the customers are all men and Male servers will ge tipped more on tables with all women. During your shift, you will get a mix of men and women. At the end of the day it balances out. If you have high charisma skills and product knowledge, combined with a friendly smile, you will most likely hit it off with your customers regardless of their gender. Being a male or female server dosen't necessarily affect your tips, your skills and personality do!
Any server would get irritated at the kind of customer who snaps their fingers to get their attention. I am not your slave, I am not your Butler. I make a point of introducing myself BY NAME to every single customer and I expect them to use it.
In terms if the most disrespectful thing EVER, it's really hard to say since this is the kind of business where being disrespected daily is part of the job.
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In many chain restaurants (kelsey's, montana's, est side Mario's) yes! Since in those establishments tips per table are usually significantly lower, even though you worked your booty off for that 4$ on a 80$ bill. In higher class restaurants, no. In the establishment I'm working for presently, we pride ourselves on building an experience for every single customer. This includes great drinks, excellent food and of course top of the line service from the staff. No matter who you are or what you are spending you will get the same amazing service.
The only thing that would influence whether you get more attention from your server is your attitude. I am much more inclined to give my all to a chatty table full of friendly people that one that barely acknowledges my existence.
Point being, if you want better service, be a good customer.
The best tip I ever recieved was from a regular at the restaurant. The man comes at least once a week and always has a nice entourage with him. Of course he always orders the best food, the best wine, the top shelf liquor, anything for him and his guests. His favourite? A 600$ bottle of champagne. Every server in the restaurant always wants him to sit in their section. One day, he sat in mine. I was so excited. As I started chatting to him and his guests, I got to know him a little more. Turns out, he is the son of the former president of the United Arab Emirates! I couldn't believe it, he seemed like such a normal guy (aside from the insanely high bill at the end of the night,which he had no problem takin care of). I ended up with a 500$ tip. This man basicy paid my rent!
I think it depends on the establishment. In the kind of restaurants I have worked in (higher class establishments) it would be completly unacceptable. I am a strong believer in making a connection with my guests and vulgarity or offensive language is not part of them. Such behaviour is completly innapropriate and I prefer to leave kind or funny messages on my bills
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