20 things your restaurant server won’t tell you

There’s a reason why a lot of struggling actors and actresses take jobs as servers at restaurants: Being a waiter or waitress is very much a performance, one where they need to smile and nod and make it appear as if they’re having a good time, meanwhile showing that they’re working hard on your behalf and that the restaurant is doing everything in its power to accommodate you. But in reality, there are a whole lot of things that servers secretly wish they could tell you without running the risk of getting fired. Here are 20 things that your server really wishes you knew.

Things Your Restaurant Server Won’t Tell You, But Wishes You Knew Gallery

If you’ve ever spent any time as a waiter or waitress, you probably know that the actual experience of waiting tables is completely different from what customers generally think it is. It’s a stressful, high-energy job with very long hours, lots of time on their feet, and dozens of moving pieces. Occasionally, everything that can go wrong does go wrong, requiring real-time troubleshooting and damage control, and through it all they have to be completely composed and professional while in the dining room, even when a table that paid its bill an hour ago is still sitting there, preventing the next paying (and tipping) customers from sitting down.

In short, treat your server as you’d like to be treated, and realize that even though they’re smiling as they’re bringing you your fourth tea refill, they’re most likely not genuinely happy about it (especially because many servers make just two or three bucks an hour before tips). Click here to learn about 20 things your server wishes you knew.

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