Restaurant Gripes #1 and #2
Jan 6, 2010 St. Louis, missouri, restaurants
Over at Winemag.com Erika Strum today posted a list of 10 Unspoken Rules of Restaurant Service Etiquette written up after a bad experience at New York’s, Michelin two star award winning, Gilt Restaurant. What she left off the list, however, is my number one service gripe: SERVE WOMEN FIRST!
From taking their orders to placing their dishes in front of them, women are always to be served first. It’s such a basic service rule that even at the most basic of diners a server ought to be capable of handling it. Still, amongst St. Louis’s finest restaurants, only two, in my recollection, have pulled this off on 100% of my visits with women: Sidney Street Café and Atlas. And that includes all of the usual suspects where one would assume such a basic service rule would be followed easily.
Of course that’s not my only restaurant gripe and, in an attempt to post a little more this year—a task at which I will undoubtedly fail—I’ll start writing, occasionally, about restaurant gripes that I feel could (and should) easily be avoided.
Now that you know my #1 gripe, rather then heading straight into #2 and picking on service staffs alone, let’s turn things to the back-of-the-house shall we?
GRIPE #2: BUTTER SHOULD BE SPREADABLE
If you’re going to the effort of having bread service, and you’re warming the bread slightly (which is actually a point of much debate because some feel it ruins the crumb), serve me butter that I can spread onto my bread without tearing it apart.
I’m aware that in many restaurants the servers are the ones that scoop the butter, slice it, or portion it in whatever way your particular restaurant does things but, unless the butter got delivered straight from the distributer into a fridge only the servers have access to, it came from the kitchen. It’s the kitchen’s responsibility to monitor the temperature of the butter. It’s food. If it needs to be pulled from a walk-in early in the evening, or even pulled periodically throughout the night based upon usage, please make it happen. It’s not that big a deal and if you fancy yourself–well–a fancy restaurant, it’s something you should be handling with ease.
Tags: Atlas Restaurant, butter, gilt restaurant, restaurant gripes, service etiquette, Sidney Street Cafe
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January 6th, 2010 at 3:45 pm
Thanks so much for the shout-out to my posts! Serving women first is a great addition to the list.
January 6th, 2010 at 4:04 pm
In reference to ladies first, I thought that kind of chivalry went out long ago. I would much prefer that all guests, whether male or female, be treated with equal professional courtesy…could be just me, but I don’t expect that the door be held open for me just because I’m a woman, but simply because it’s the right thing to do for another person. I agree with you on #2, though – butter tastes so much better when it’s not ice cold, kind of like a great Riesling does.
January 6th, 2010 at 4:17 pm
I definitely see your point, Karen, and I argue with Ellie all the time about similar topics. I’d be curious to know what the general consensus is amongst women, however?
Speaking for myself, having been raised in a particularly proper family when it came to matters like this, I can’t help but like to see my wife served first. It irritates me immensely when she is not, and especially so when I find that they are catering specifically to me because they know me.
It is for this reason I prefer to dine at the bar in a lot of restaurant situations because there is a certain lack of service that comes with sitting at a bar which keeps me from being as nit picky about my squabbles.
January 6th, 2010 at 4:33 pm
I’m curious too…and I admit that it’s nice to hear that you look after your sweetheart like that.
January 6th, 2010 at 5:03 pm
I completely agree with both; but have the butter issue stands out more times then not…
A neighborhood, rustic Italian restaurant in Brooklyn comes to my mind, where I’ve always had great service and amazing food, but for some reason the butter is served as a brick… it’s almost as if they don’t want you to use it…
I’ve emailed them about the issue and never heard back :-/
A smaller gripe i have sometimes (depending on the venue…) is having the dessert menu shoved at me, rather then politely being asked whether i would care to see it or not… but thats probably me just being nitpicky…
January 6th, 2010 at 7:23 pm
Hard butter is extremely unnerving.
January 7th, 2010 at 3:54 pm
I guess it comes from living in The South for so many years but I don’t mind being treated and pampered like a lady. In return, I always sincerely offer my thanks and a warm smile. My favorite nun always said, “If we call them ladies and treat them as such; they shall act like ladies.”
February 2nd, 2010 at 5:38 pm
Love this topic!! Agree on both parts, though as a woman if I have room temp butter I can wait to be served 2nd
looking forward to #3