Apr

Tips for Buffet Waiters/Waitresses (Why?)

admin on April 28th, 2008

I am anti-buffet, but my kids like it so from time to time we visit the local casino (Isle of Capri) to devour as much food as possible and feel terrible afterwards. We have visited this specific buffet about 4 or 5 times in the last year and every time leave disappointed but still full. My last 4 tips were less than a quarter (25 cents), just to let them know I didn’t forget, but honestly they didn’t deserve my quarter.

I wanted to provide the waiters/waitresses a few tips to garner more changes and maybe even some dollar bills from my pocket the next time I arrive.

Beverages Before I Eat - Seems silly, but while eating I enjoy a beverage. You see some food is hot, salty, and requires liquid of some form. Your only real job at a buffet is to bring me drinks and clear my dirty plates, so make it a priority to get me an ice cold Coca-Cola and keep it full.

Take my Plates - I eat, I return to the long line of patrons looking for more food, and when I return my dirty plates should be gone. If they stack up and I have no place to sit my fresh plate of food, I am going to get frustrated!

These are the two basic concepts you could drive your earnings through the roof, however each time I visit you have failed me. I keep coming back, but trust me it’s not for the service, it’s simply because my children think it’s cool to pick their own food out.

For the record, I am a 20-25% tipper when it comes to service and when things start going south I deduct about 5% off the top of your tip until we hit zero. It’s a little scoring system I keep in my head and if we dip too far into the red, I will probably complain to your manager. The last trip to the Isle of Capri resulted in again no tip, instead the $10.00 bill (that had your name on it) was passed to my wife at the end of the meal and she stuck it in a slot machine. Here are some additional tips for you if you want to make even more money.

Tip 1: Act like you care. You don’t have to really care, but fake it with some cheezy smiles and greetings. You might even get risky and ask me how the food is.

Tip 2: Be available. While I love playing hide and go seek, it’s not my favorite activity while dining out. Even though it’s a buffet, such items as extra napkins, salt, and creamer shouldn’t require me to use my GPS to locate you.

I am pretty sure the next time I visit I will receive the same type of service and I expect it, however if you are a buffet waiter or waitress and require more than $3.00 an hour to survive, take your job seriously and provide your customers the basics.