Tips from a waitress on how to be a good customer

By Camille Blake

May 5, 2005 | Food serving is the quintessential college student job; just the right job off campus where you can depend on other students to pay your tuition through tips.

Amy Bateman, 23, has worked full time at Firehouse Pizzeria for two years, while going to school full time. She got promoted from server to assistant manager/head server about a week ago. She greets her customers with an immense smile as she introduces herself. Utensils are placed in front of each customer as the specials are offered. Drinks are ordered.

"I like customers that take the time to talk to me besides just placing an order," said Bateman. "It was the transition between lunch and dinner and a couple in their late 20s came in and was seated in my section. I promptly greeted them. Right after I had gotten their drink order, the guy started asking me questions about where I was from, what I was going to school for and so forth. He actually seemed interested in how I was. I found out he was going through Weber's nursing school. I told them I was going to Taiwan in January to teach English. They didn't order much, but left a nice tip and a note that said "Have fun in Taiwan." The note more than the tip let me know they really appreciated my service.

Bateman said her favorite types of customer to serve are those that are happy to be there and just laid back, the customers who are "unbelievably polite."

She has gotten thank you notes from customers before. The notes don't say much more than, "Thanks for the great service." She also likes to leave the comment cards with the receipt.

"I like to know how I am doing as a server and feedback from comment cards are one of the best ways to judge that, not the tip," said Bateman.

Servers do run across nice customers and mean customers, said Bateman. She remembers a woman that came in with her two children. Right off the bat, she complained about the water, saying it tasted like it came from the sewer.

Bateman apologized and offered another drink at no cost. The woman declined, but proceeded to order. She had made it perfectly clear she didn't want cheese on her pizza because the cheese tasted like rubber. But she then ordered extra cheese on her salad, which was the same cheese on the pizza. Bateman said she tried to be as polite as she could despite the woman's constant difficult requests. At the end of the meal the woman had nothing but negative things to say about the food and the service. She requested a to-go box and to speak with the manager. As a gist of good customer service Bateman's manager gave the meal to her free. And as the woman left she gave the food back saying she was going to feed it to the chickens, but didn't think that even they wouldn't eat it. After the woman left, Bateman's manager assured her that she had done everything right and that woman had been in before trying to get free meals.

"As far as bad customers go, it's all about how you handle them. You need to make the point that you are there for them, to make them happy. You have to have a positive attitude," said Bateman. "You have to be sincere, they can see through your fake smile.

Sometimes the customer has a reason to complain. Bateman expects the customer to be honest with her if the food is not to their satisfaction and likewise she will be honest with them if there is a wait on the food, or the order was not correct.

"I have to be honest with my customers if something went wrong. I will tell them and offer bread or salad for them to eat while they wait for the correct order. For example, if they ordered no onions on their pizza and the cook put onions on, I will bring out the mistake and apologize. They can eat if they want while the other pizza is cooking. I don't usually charge them when mistakes like that happen," said Bateman.

Bateman said customers also need to understand that serving takes a lot of work. Servers are on their feet all the time, rushing everywhere to get the food to the customers in a timely manner. It has been this way since food serving began according to Dishing It Out: Waitresses and Their Unions in the Twentieth Century, by Dorothy Sue Cobble. "Verbal and mental agility as well as emotional and physical stamina were demanded of waitresses, who often worked long hours at a frantic pace.

Bateman remembers one time, after a long day, she asked her customer if they wanted salad or ham. They looked at her and said, "Mmm, ham that sounds good. I'll have some of that." She meant to offer salad or foccia bread. Both Bateman and the customer laughed about it.

Anne Gardner, 24, is a server at Café Sabor. She works there nights and works at a veterinarian office during the day. Gardner knows what is like to have a long day. Friday nights are always busy with the wait being 20 minutes or more and people in a line out the door. Her section had the most people sitting in it this particular night. Gardner was getting some take home plastic foam boxes down from a shelf and she couldn't quite reach them. Jumping while pushing herself up off the counter, she grabbed the bag they were in and it all fell down on top of her. She stood there in the middle of foam boxes while the customers who could see into the serving area just looked at her. She laughed, shrugged her shoulders and starting picking up the boxes. Gardner said you just have to laugh when stupid stuff happens or you'll just be in a bad mood and it will affect how you treat your customers.

Gardner's favorite types of customer are those who come in regularly to try something new.

"For me it's boring to order the same thing for a customer who I know comes in all the time. I usually try to encourage them in trying a different entrée, " said Gardner. "They usually find a new favorite after I suggest a particular dish.

Gardner likes it when customers surprise her with certain requests. Once a customer ordered the tequila lime pasta without the sauce, chicken or vegetables on it, which is all that makes it a popular dish. Basically all they wanted was a bowl of "sticky noodles," said Gardner. She walked away chuckling, but placed the order anyways. The customer receiver her order with exactness and was satisfied. Gardner got a note back with her tip thanking her for the great service.

Both Bateman and Gardner agree that customers are what make the job so interesting, even the angry customers. They said when a customer has a bad experience with the restaurant it spreads quicker than when they have a good experience.

"Whether you like the food is up to you," said Gardner. "But you can't be disagreeable just to be disagreeable. [Servers] are people just like you and they make mistakes. We will try and fix it as best as we can, but getting mad over it doesn't help the situation. It's just food.

Do servers make the best customers then? Bateman said not always. "If someone comes in and I know they are a server at another restaurant and leave a crappy tip, are way picky about their food and are rude, it just makes it that much harder to serve them," said Bateman.

Customers are (usually) perfect. The servers aren't. Bateman said it is best if both parties have a good attitude and just relax. After all, you are out to eat.

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