Working in a restaurant can be a thankless job. While some diners can be lovely and appreciative of the folks serving them their food, there are plenty of people who don’t realize the things they are doing are likely driving their servers crazy.
So, what are the things that patrons do that drive servers mad? Well, a bunch of them have shared their biggest pet peeves with Buzzfeed, and after reading them you may change your dining out habits for good.
Restaurant server pet peeves include:
“The worst thing a customer can do is not move their hands out of the way when I'm trying to put their plate in front of them. I once got third-degree burns on my hand because of this."
"One thing that never fails to be annoying is when a guest orders a steak rare and sends it back for being undercooked. Even worse, they’ll order it well-done and send it back because it’s too chewy. Know your meat, people!"
"It's annoying when people make their server take multiple trips back and forth because they don't order everything at the same time. If you know you like ketchup, ranch, hot sauce, and more ranch, please ask for it all at once."
"When customers ask for a ton of extra sides like extra cheese, guacamole, or rice, and then get the bill and are surprised we charged them for the extra sides! When you go out to eat, food isn't usually free."
“My biggest complaint is when people let their children run around as if the restaurant is their playground. It’s a huge safety problem, to be honest. If I try to remind parents that a lack of shoes is a safety issue, I am ignored or yelled at."
"My pet peeve is when people shake their glass at me for a refill, or insist that everyone at their table needs water, and then nobody ends up drinking it."
"Literally nothing irritates me more than when people snap at me. I’m not your dog or your servant. Do not snap at me."
"It's annoying when customers sit at my table for hours after they’ve finished eating. When you don’t leave my table, no one else can sit there, so I’m losing money."
“Please stop stacking your dirty dishes and silverware on top of one other. I have to use my fingers to fish out your dirty knife covered in used ketchup. I know you think you're helping, but you aren't.”
Source: Buzzfeed