Be Kind to Waitstaff!
May 21 is National Waitstaff Day. With so many waitstaff who have been without jobs during the pandemic, I think it’s all the more important to celebrate them and their service to others.
One of my pet peeves is people who are ungrateful to waitstaff. I’m not talking about people being downright mean to waitstaff. (I don’t like that either, but that’s a whole other conversation.) I’m talking about those that are indifferent, grumpy, curt, and do not show genuine care, gratefulness, or respect to those who are serving them. So this is also a good day to remind ourselves to be thankful and KIND to everyone, all the time.
I hope you’ll find a way to show appreciation to these women and men in the next few days (and make some habits that will last):
- Make a habit of making eye contact with your waitstaff, speaking loud and clear so they can hear you, acknowledging their efforts, and saying thank you for their hard work. (It’s just not that hard!)
- If you’re no longer in a quarantined area and restaurants are open or if you’re doing pick-up from restaurants, tip your waitstaff a bit more than normal and tell them that you appreciate them.
- If you have a friend or family member who is a server, show them some extra love with a gift card, an encouraging note, or a special meal where you serve them instead.
- If you have a place that you frequent often and know a particular waitstaff well, take a small gift or gift card to them next time you dine.
- Write a short note on the bill or receipt, even just a simple “Thank you for all you do!”.
- Don’t forget to tip! And tip a nice rate if the service is good; if you have the means to do so, tip more than the normal rate. And if you forget, go back and make it right!
- If it’s a restaurant that has a feedback/survey program or if you receive a questionnaire with the bill, take the time to complete it and let the managers and owners know how much you appreciate the waitstaff in general and/or a particular person. (Some of these surveys are part of incentive programs for staff that often include extra gifts or cash for waitstaff .)
- And, again, because I just can’t emphasize this enough, please be kind to those in the service industry who make their living by serving others, and most of them do it with smiles and joy even when we don’t reciprocate it. Let’s do better and be better!