I worked many jobs in my life, from the food industry, office job, customer service, and even at a recycling center or in other words a garbage man. I am not ashamed of any of my job history because of all the insight I gained from it. Im only 24 and I've already experience so many aspects of the human personality its almost sad to know to see so much. I say this because it's hard not for me to see through people. The empasis is on the food industry. I at one time did not know anything about it. I would go in and eat and not tip well or not at all. Hey, its their job right. They are getting paid no matter if I tip them or not. It's not my problem.

I talk about this because today in class there was an open discussion on the food industry and service. In most cases people had grounds for their arguments and in some cases they were lacking in empathy, or placing themselves in other peoples shoes. Someone was complaining that they were stereotyped on the clothes that they wear, or by the color of their skin while dining out. So being me, I started to add to the discussion and tried to explain what goes through the mind of the people serving you. Ive had a good experience in the food industry and one thing i noticed is that people usually overlook how intimate eating out gets. I explained to them the reasons some servers or waiters or waitresses that people outside the industry call them, make reads on their tables while beginning service. I'm not making this stuff up, this is true for almost every person who has worked in a restaurant or customer service. The reasons some tables get better service than other is because its hard not to use past experiences on the type of gratitude you receive, or the tip you get. Im not going to use specifics, but if you have work in the industry of food or generally customer service you can already fill in you own blanks. But I use the restaurant industry, because this in the industry where I learned a lot about how people treat each other.

The argument that its their job and they are getting paid to serve you. The thing that most people don't understand is that they no one becomes a server for minimum wage, they go in to make tips. If the a person was going in for minimum wage they would go work in the fast food industry where being judged by your service was not so critical. Most people don't see this when you sit down to eat at a restaurant, but there is extreme pressure that a server feels. There is so much going on at one time. Putting orders in, taking orders, trying to understand peoples specific orders, and answering questions. This is only half of what goes on. All at the same time some people come in with a bad attitude and look at you dismissively, while they sit on their high and mighty booth table. People speak rudely to you because you cant read their minds; as if you already suppose to know what they like and don't like. Tables ask you to memorize a hundred things, and get it right the first time. People ask you things one by one, which gives you added trips to the kitchen that is on the other side of the dining area. Everyone wants things in a certain amount of time. Your managers are yelling at you to go faster, do this and do that, while your trying to not to burn your hand on a heat lamp or on a hot plate. Cooks are under pressure, and they give you attitude also when you need something a table ask for. Tables wanting to close their checks with large bills, asking you for change that you dont have, so you have to scramble to find it  (Most Servers bring their own bank).  Your sweating inside and out, because you want to make sure that the time you spend putting all this effort in will pay off in the end. Then what happens, you don't get the gratitude or the tip you deserve. You get a small 3 to 4 bucks for all this effort. The so called "high and mighty" guest you just bust your ass for left you not even enough money to buy something to eat after work, much less to help pay your bills.

People ask, why is it some people get better service me and my table, they deserve the low tip they get. Think about it, an experience server can already tell in the first five minutes what kind of attitude the table will have. People come in all the time and share similar personalities. They already expect to be tipped low, so they dont wast too much time. Why waste time being extra friendly to a table that is already rude to you, and is likely to tip you bad. In some cases, making assumptions before hand will do more harm than good. The table could actually leave you a good tip. But in most cases an experience server will be right on their assumptions. The signs are not always clear but an experience server will know which road to take. What guest dont understand is that the person taking your order has a heart and mind just like you. The guest need to understand they are not robots, but people with free will. Why waste time on table that is 50/50. It is smarter to spend more energy on tables that will likely help you out, just like you help them.

Its not easy setting up. Why do you think your order gets to your table exactly the way you want it, your server. Why do you think your drinks are never empty, your server. Why do you think your server doesn't come back to check if you need anything, your attitude. Why do you think every time you come into this restaurant people dont pay attention to you, because of your last tip. I say this with simplicity but there is way more chaos involved in these statements. You may not understand this because you havent experienced the other side, which is understandable. Thats why I'm trying to give you insight.

DONT FUCK WITH THE PEOPLE THAT HANDLE YOUR FOOD. Ive seen so many instance where people were rude to their food server, or just ran them around to the point of exhaustion. Dont be ignorant to think that every food server will just take this shit from you. Ive seen people hawk Flem right into someones sandwich or ice tea, and bring it to their table with a smile. Ive seen servers eat right off someones eles' plate and serve what ever else was left. People in the kitchen sticking their dirty finger right into you mash potatoes. Where is the ethics right? How can someone do this? Well here's questions you dont hear from your server. How can someone be so rude to a perfect stranger? Why do they ignore me when I ask them if they need anything else? Why dont they look at me when i speak to them? Why is it they make me feel so small? I was not to them, why do make me feel so uncomfortable? This is how people do such bad things, because they are looking for a way to get even.

You think you have a hold on them, but you don't. If someone is already rude, the server will not give a fuck about the tip anymore. They will just do what every other server does, they'll try to spin the table. In other words rush them out. If you think that sitting at a table for hours and leaving a bad tip wont hurt anyone, it does. You didn't for much while eating, you already left a tip, and your just talking and dont need anything else, right?  Where do you think a server makes money to pay their bills. They make money on the three to seven tables that they are assigned during their shift. If a server has only a four table section and you sit there forever taking up space, you just killed 25% of that servers potential income. Thats 25% more worrying about how a mother will feed their children, 25% more worrying on how a student will pay for their school, and 25% more worrying on how an everyday Joe will survive just one more week till he receives his pay check. While you sit there, this is whats going on.


Today in class i was pretty much attacked from all angles. I'm sorry if this offends anyone, but I am just the messenger. This is all real and this all going on. You have to eat, if you don't you die, right? Well so do the people serving you, and most people want to live. I wrote this because I felt wast able to explain myself in class, because people were bombarding me from all corners of the room. How can someone tell me that I am wrong, when I've stood on both ends, I didn't understand it. I felt I was looked like I was ignorant and I stereotyped people, I don't this is just how it is. We breathe air, that is just how it is, and there always be unsaid things, that is just how it is. The only way to prove me wrong is to start proving the assumptions wrong. That's what I did after I learned from the inside.  I am just the messenger, this is how things are. I'm warning you, I'm giving you explanations to why you receive the type of service you get. Take it or leave it. It will continue as long as people feel cheated, there will be people who do something about it. I worked night where mothers servers were being tipped so bad that they didnt even know where they were going make ends neat for their children. But you dont know that, because your just a high and mighty guest, whos tip is worth everything to you poor server. Well it doesnt mean shit if your attitude reflects that. Even if the server has to take loss to the pocket, its not worth their self respect.


Use this information with everything. Its fucked up that people are rude to other people that are nice and trying to help them out. Its sad that people go in to restaurants and tip like shit when your server is depending on it. Thats why most people are stuck in the shit that they are in, because they hold too much. Also, some servers deserve a low tip, because some just aren't good servers, and that just how it is. With all that being said, The world is a reflection of you, if you smile it will smile back, if you need money, you give money, if you need help, help others.


Truth was here.