Waitress Tips

I have become very sympathetic to those who wait tables and serve in restaurants. They have a very hard job and get very little pay. Not only that, customers- that's you and I- are too often jerks. They are inconsiderate, demanding and rude. As a Christian and a pastor, one of the most embarrassing indictments on the church is the number of waiters who will not work on Sundays. They do not want to work then because the Christian, after-church lunch crowd is terrible. As a general rule we are more rude and demanding than others and we tip a lot less. (Raise your hand if you know someone who leaves gospel tracts instead of money for a tip.)

So I have determined that I will be a sort-of missionary to waiters and waitresses wherever I go and whenever I eat out. Generally speaking, the response I get is overwhelmingly positive. Wait staff appreciate the attention and the pleasantness.

Being kind to waiters is not hard. In fact, there are only a few things that I make sure to do.

1. Converse with your waitress. Be interested in her thoughts, her life, her work.
2. Call her by her name. She is wearing a name tag, after all. Besides that, she began the evening by saying, "My name is Amber and I'll be your server tonight."
3. Be extremely polite. Wear out your pleases and thank yous. You cannot be too polite.
4. Listen and pay attention to your server. You will be surprised how much they are willing to share with strangers who are interested in them. Ask questions about what she wants to do with her life. (Most waiters and waitresses are working through school or saving money until they can follow their dream.)
5. Pray for your waitress. Before I say grace over my dinner, I often ask my server if there is something that I can pray for him/her about. I am always amazed at how receptive and willing people are to share concerns and to be prayed for.
6. Leave a good tip. Tip more than the standard 15-20%. Show your server that you are not just interested in being entertained or served, but that you are interested in them.
7. Build a relationship with your favorite waiter. Ask for that waiter the next time you are in the same restaurant. He will remember you and you will get better service than ever. But more importantly, He will believe that you really do care about him.