Today I was closing lunch at the restaurant, which means that I was the last person on until the dinner crew comes in at 4. Lunch started off pretty slow so they cut the rest of the servers and left it to me and the other closing server around 1:00. It ended up getting pretty busy with just the two of us and no more bussers or expo (the person at the window who preps and in some cases brings the food to the table) and the managers AWOL (probably hanging out in the office on their iPhones because it was "slow").
Anyway, one of my first tables of the day was extremely rude to me for no apparent reason. When I greeted them they were very unfriendly, and when I asked them clarifying questions about their order they were very short and dismissive with me. At this point in the day all the servers were on and I probably only had one other table at the time, so they were getting my FULL attention and were being well taken care of. I could tell right away that they just weren't very pleasant people. So I made a mental note to get them taken care of quickly and expediently with as little interference as possible. I printed off their check straight away and kept it on me so I could deliver it at precisely the right moment, which I did. I stood it up at the end of the table and told them it was ready whenever they were, to let me know if there was anything else I could do for them, and thanked them.
I had gotten sat another table in the booth next to them (separated by a small divider but you can still see over it) and was greeting these new ladies (who were very chatty and pleasant and fun) and showing them through the menu and answering their questions when I noticed my cranky table glaring at me over the median as I was doing my job at this other table. I quick glanced to where I had put their check presenter...it hadn't been touched. I wrapped up with my nice ladies and went over..all in all probably 5-10 minutes from when I first set the check down and after I had walked by at least three times to see if they had put a card in or even picked it up (we set the presenters upright so that when you look at your bill we can tell it's been moved. Usually people set it back down flat with the card sticking out or put their card in the little slot at the top so it's sticking out and then prop the presenter up. Either way, we can tell from a glance if it's been moved from across the restaurant. That's why we do it, so we can see when you have readied your payment without having to come bother you).
I walk over to them and the woman barks at me, "We need our bill??!?" I pointed to the check presenter and said, "It's right there". It's pretty obvious that when I dropped it off before and SPOKE to them they hadn't even acknowledged my presence. "Well, we need to pay NOW then," she commanded, all flustered and annoyed. The man was holding his credit card in his hand and the check still hadn't been touched. Yes, I can see how I should have gathered from that that they were ready to pay me. I grabbed their card and as I was processing it another server who had overheard that little exchange came up and commented on how incredibly rude my table was. Yes, indeed, and for no reason.
For some reason, it really shook me up and I had to take a second to calm down. I usually don't let rude people affect me (and by and large, you really don't see that many. The majority of customers are nice, decent people) but I was really insulted that she talked down to me like that. I can understand if you are short with a bad server, or if your food was wrong, or even if it is busy and you are not getting the service you expect because it is just not possible...but NONE of these applied. I have seen some pretty strange/cheap/ungrateful customers, but none like this. I had to come to the conclusion that some people are just kind of awful, which was depressing.
I dropped off their card and politely informed the woman of the little signal I mentioned above with putting your card in the slot so it is visible to us when we walk by (3 times!!!) I did not mention to her that I thought she was an asshole and thank her for ruining my day.
So from there, things got pretty busy and I felt like none of my customers were really very nice to deal with.
Later on in the day I had a table that was an Air Force serviceman in uniform with his girlfriend or wife. I was putting in their drinks and appetizers in the computer when the bartender came over and informed me that he had a customer at the bar that wanted to pay for my tables' meal. I told him I would give him the ticket when it was all rung in.
As I was running drinks and stuff, the customer at the bar flagged me down. She said she wanted to take care of their meal, to just bring her the tab. She made it clear that she didn't want to make a big deal of it or be recognized. So I thanked her on their behalf and mentioned that I really appreciated it personally as well as I have a fiancee who is training for the Marine Corps. She wished me the best of luck and I gave her the tab. It was around $25. She gave me three twenties and said, "the rest is for you", and left. I was close to tears, touched by her selfless kindness and generosity toward two different sets of strangers.
When the couple neared the end of their meal I noticed the gentleman had put his credit card on the table. I went over and informed them that another customer had noticed them and took care of their meal today. They asked where this person was so they could thank them but I told them she had left. They were so shocked and the girl said, "that just doesn't happen!" and I said, "people surprise you...." They asked if they could leave me a tip and I told them that had been taken care of as well.
I thanked the man myself for his service and wished them both the best. It's weird how I looked at this other girl with completely different eyes now...I know how strong she probably has to be inside. I hope I can get there someday.
A few minutes after they left I went to clear off their table and saw that they had left me a tip anyway.
I work the rest of my shift, thoughtful about the events of the day and thinking of my own serviceman who I have yet to hear from, and I'm feeling pretty heavy. As I take my half hour break before I begin the dinner shift, my fellow closer (who I hadn't actually seen much at all since we were so busy and she was on the other side of the restaurant) comes over and offers out of the blue to stay and work my night shift for me. She says I look like I could use the night off and she wasn't doing anything in particular anyway....she says to go home, get comfy and relax, and she gives me a big hug. Yes, people surprise you indeed.
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