Hot weather means cranky people means you need to be extra nice to your server, who is already having to work their ass off due to the fact that they work in a damn restaurant. I asked an expert waiter what exactly people do specifically in the summertime that’s extra annoying, so you can be a more mindful summertime patron the next time you go out to dinner.
Just don’t do anything on this list of customer’s summer specific tendencies that not only annoy servers, but, along with the heat, drive them mad, and you’ll be fine. Your server will be oh so grateful, too. Remember, what goes around, comes around.
1. Asking “how is it outside?” after just coming in from outside
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One too many times has a customer come in from outside and asked for a table, to which the hostess responds by asking if they would like to sit outside on the patio/deck/whatever outside, to which the customer proceeds to ask “how is it outside?” You literally were just there, use common sense, c’mon.
2. Deciding to sit on the patio/deck/outside area and then complaining that it’s too hot
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Similar to the first pet peeve, if you make the active decision to sit outside, then you must suffer the consequences. You could have sat inside, you know. But no, you wanted to be in the sun. Did you not think you’d get hot in the sun? I have no idea, but you’ve made your bed, now lay in it and stop complaining.
3. Misunderstanding the distinction between restaurant and beach wear
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Usually, waiters and waitresses don’t give a damn what you wear, because, y’know, you do you; however, it’s still nice to be respectful and be wearing actual clothing when inside an establishment that, first of all, has to follow health codes, and second of all, is filled with people other than you and your party. We’re talking about you weird revealing tank top man or bikini-top only lady.
4. Complaining about it being too hot inside
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I assure you, if you notice it’s hot in the restaurant, so do the servers. And I also assure you that the restaurant and the workers within the restaurant are trying their best to keep the place as cool as possible, because they don’t want to work in such heat just like you don’t want to sit around and eat in such high heat.
5. Asking the server to close the window while you’re sitting outside because the inside is too loud
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Doing this effectively cuts off the restaurant’s source of a cool breeze, making it hellishly hot inside for the workers and the patrons. Just because you can’t hear what the person next to you is saying, doesn’t mean you have to f*ck everyone else over. Be kind and just move closer to each other or something. Don’t make everyone else melt for your sake.
6. Not understanding that while summer doesn’t necessarily stop once they enter the restaurant, the party does
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Yes, summertime is awesome and we’re partying all the time and going crazy. But not everyone has the freedom to do so, because, well, they’re working. So don’t come barging into a restaurant on a hot summer day acting like you’re still partying on the beach. Of course, you can still have fun and sh*t, but don’t go crazy inside as if normal restaurant rules no longer apply simply because of the season.