Servers and specials
- Thread starter medtran49
- Start date
How ghastly!
That's one thing we absolutely adore about the UK and Europe - the dining experience is so different. Apart from ordering food, putting it down my gullet, and paying for it at the end, it's a completely different experience.
Tipping is different. What passes as an "average" restaurant is different. The amount of time between courses is different. The waitstaff behave differently. The overall dining time is different (as long or as short as you want it to be). Even paying is different.
I'm sad to say, though it's not happening quickly, and hopefully I'll be dead or at least no longer traveling when it does happen, but every trip back to the UK, especially in the dining arena, there seem to be more and more Americanisms taking hold.
More "family" restaurants (meaning, more places full of screaming kids that serve food, plastic menus with gaudy photos and cartoon fonts), more places offer "fries" instead of chips, more American-style foods, etc.
It's still relatively easy to get away from, but here, not so much, and I hate the idea of Britain heading in that direction.
Way back in 2003, we'd gone back to London for the first time in seven years. We had wonderful meal after wonderful meal in little places here and there, topped off by a memorable Italian restaurant (family owned) where the host met us, said, "Oh, you're Americano! American! Follow me!" and wound us up and down and all around to the one other American couple, and sat us next to other other: "Now you're like home, no?!" Unnecessary, but sweet, and topped off with free birthday cake for everyone because the family was simultaneously having a private birthday party downstairs.
The following night, our last night there, we'd seen an advert for some kind of "real American steakhouse and barbecue" restaurant, and decided to try it, out of curiosity.
It was horribly hilarious - all the waitstaff dressed like square dancers, country music blaring over the sound system, the front end of an old pickup truck over the bar, and everything was, "Howdy, partner, whut can I getcha? Yee-haw!"
We ordered our food, endured the selection of crap American beer on offer, and laughed that god help us of this kind of thing ever caught on in the UK.
Well, it hasn't gotten that bad yet, but there are inklings of it every time we visit.
epicuric
Legendary Member
You'd be surprised how many people don't see retail signage. My wife runs a retail outlet, and is often asked stupid questions about things that are clearly displayed on wall signs.
Perhaps the best compromise would be for the server to point out the specials board, and ask if further help or information is required. I guess that things are different over there if servers make their money mainly from tips there is a clear incentive to up-sell specials.
epicuric
Legendary Member
I'm afraid you are quite correct. The fact that we (pretty much) share a language means that Americanisms are easily spread, unlike in the rest of Europe. Most I find amusing! Incidentally, I spend a fair bit of time in Cyprus, where it is not unusual in a traditional restaurant for the owner to come and sit at your table for a chat befoer taking your order. It is a sign of good hospitality and also respect.
I think I'm in a reflective mood today, as I'm about to share another story.
We had just moved to the UK, and we didn't know the ins and outs of how dining out differs between here and there. Some backstory:
In a lot of average, middle America sit-down restaurants, the goal of the owner or manager is turnover. Get 'em in, feed 'em, get 'em out. Turn that table over. That makes money. It's not even a hidden practice, it's openly acknowledged.
So, we'd decided, after about a month in-country, we were going to go out for a sit-down supper and then a movie at the local cinema. We checked the start time, say 8PM, then figured two hours was plenty for a meal and the short drive to the movie.
Wrong. Oh so wrong.
We got there just before our 6PM reservation, we were seated, then we ordered drinks, and those came reasonably fast, and then the slowdown. Tick-tock, tick-tock...
Finally, after a good while, the waiter came back, and when we placed our order, since we'd lost a little time, we placed the starter and entree at the same time. No dessert. We also got more drinks.
Drinks showed up...tick-tock, tick-tock...
Finally, after my hair had grown about a quarter inch and I'd aged enough to get some wrinkles, our starters. By this time, we knew we'd miss the 8PM showing, but we could still see something else at 8:30PM or even 9PM.
Oh, if only!
Starters long gone, drinks going...and here comes the entree. No sense of urgency anywhere in the place, but very efficient. Just what seemed like hours between courses. Looking around, everyone was being treated the same.
Wolfed down our meals Homer Simpson-style, then waited for the bill.
Now's a good time to contrast that with a typical American place:
First, you'll be assaulted for your drinks order before your butt is fully in the seat and your coat off. Once you've got your drink, you're going to be expected to know your order, then place it when the drinks arrive.
While hurrying through your starter, your main will arrive while you've still got 1/4th of the starter left. No time for casual conversation, must eat!
Halfway through your main, the server will arrive and badger you about desserts. If you want one, you'll order it, and it'll arrive just about the moment you're chewing the last bite of your entree. As a bonus, they'll present you with the bill at the same time, and expect you to hand over your card right then, so they can run it while you get an ice cream headache from furiously shoveling in your dessert.
Back with your copy of the receipt and off you go, date night dinner completed in...50 minutes from start to finish.
Ok, back to our English dinner and a movie...food is consumed, no time for dessert, and now we start looking around for our waiter so we can pay.
There he is...and there he goes. Ok, he's back, he'll give us the bill now...and now he's gone again. Oh wait, is that him? Yes! Surely he sees us! Yes he does! He'll be back with our bill...right...now!...no, now!...Now!
At this point, it's obvious we're not going to the movies.
Finally, my impatience and fear of seeming rude gets the better of me and I quietly signal for the waiter: "Um, if it wouldn't be much trouble, could we possibly get our bill now."
"Certainly, sir. I trust everything was to your satisfaction?"
"Yes, very good, but we're ready to head home now."
He took our money and we left...three and a half hours later. I'd never taken so long to eat a meal in my life. It took so long, I was nearly ready for another meal.
The next workday, I was asking around (we had both Americans and Britons in our office), and that's when they they schooled me on eating out in the UK (and Europe as well). It can be summed up with these t rules:
1. Once you sit down, that table is yours until you relinquish it.
2. There will be plenty of time between drinks and courses to allow for good conversation with your partner and good digestion of each course. Otherwise, go to McD's!
3. Paying is a necessary evil; therefore we won't bother you with the bill until you specifically ask for it. Mustn't be impolite, you know!
That is so fundamentally contrary to an average dining experience in the US, the idea that you get to sit for as long as you want and actually, you know, enjoy your meal and your company and once we knew the ropes, we loved eating out there, because we planned just the meal, took our time, and reveled in the pace of it.
We had just moved to the UK, and we didn't know the ins and outs of how dining out differs between here and there. Some backstory:
In a lot of average, middle America sit-down restaurants, the goal of the owner or manager is turnover. Get 'em in, feed 'em, get 'em out. Turn that table over. That makes money. It's not even a hidden practice, it's openly acknowledged.
So, we'd decided, after about a month in-country, we were going to go out for a sit-down supper and then a movie at the local cinema. We checked the start time, say 8PM, then figured two hours was plenty for a meal and the short drive to the movie.
Wrong. Oh so wrong.
We got there just before our 6PM reservation, we were seated, then we ordered drinks, and those came reasonably fast, and then the slowdown. Tick-tock, tick-tock...
Finally, after a good while, the waiter came back, and when we placed our order, since we'd lost a little time, we placed the starter and entree at the same time. No dessert. We also got more drinks.
Drinks showed up...tick-tock, tick-tock...
Finally, after my hair had grown about a quarter inch and I'd aged enough to get some wrinkles, our starters. By this time, we knew we'd miss the 8PM showing, but we could still see something else at 8:30PM or even 9PM.
Oh, if only!
Starters long gone, drinks going...and here comes the entree. No sense of urgency anywhere in the place, but very efficient. Just what seemed like hours between courses. Looking around, everyone was being treated the same.
Wolfed down our meals Homer Simpson-style, then waited for the bill.
Now's a good time to contrast that with a typical American place:
First, you'll be assaulted for your drinks order before your butt is fully in the seat and your coat off. Once you've got your drink, you're going to be expected to know your order, then place it when the drinks arrive.
While hurrying through your starter, your main will arrive while you've still got 1/4th of the starter left. No time for casual conversation, must eat!
Halfway through your main, the server will arrive and badger you about desserts. If you want one, you'll order it, and it'll arrive just about the moment you're chewing the last bite of your entree. As a bonus, they'll present you with the bill at the same time, and expect you to hand over your card right then, so they can run it while you get an ice cream headache from furiously shoveling in your dessert.
Back with your copy of the receipt and off you go, date night dinner completed in...50 minutes from start to finish.
Ok, back to our English dinner and a movie...food is consumed, no time for dessert, and now we start looking around for our waiter so we can pay.
There he is...and there he goes. Ok, he's back, he'll give us the bill now...and now he's gone again. Oh wait, is that him? Yes! Surely he sees us! Yes he does! He'll be back with our bill...right...now!...no, now!...Now!
At this point, it's obvious we're not going to the movies.
Finally, my impatience and fear of seeming rude gets the better of me and I quietly signal for the waiter: "Um, if it wouldn't be much trouble, could we possibly get our bill now."
"Certainly, sir. I trust everything was to your satisfaction?"
"Yes, very good, but we're ready to head home now."
He took our money and we left...three and a half hours later. I'd never taken so long to eat a meal in my life. It took so long, I was nearly ready for another meal.
The next workday, I was asking around (we had both Americans and Britons in our office), and that's when they they schooled me on eating out in the UK (and Europe as well). It can be summed up with these t rules:
1. Once you sit down, that table is yours until you relinquish it.
2. There will be plenty of time between drinks and courses to allow for good conversation with your partner and good digestion of each course. Otherwise, go to McD's!
3. Paying is a necessary evil; therefore we won't bother you with the bill until you specifically ask for it. Mustn't be impolite, you know!
That is so fundamentally contrary to an average dining experience in the US, the idea that you get to sit for as long as you want and actually, you know, enjoy your meal and your company and once we knew the ropes, we loved eating out there, because we planned just the meal, took our time, and reveled in the pace of it.
epicuric
Legendary Member
That pretty much sums it up. Getting the bill can take a while. Maybe we have the opposite approach over here - the longer you stay, the more you eat and drink! I think we would be quite intolerant of a conveyor belt approach.I think I'm in a reflective mood today, as I'm about to share another story.
We had just moved to the UK, and we didn't know the ins and outs of how dining out differs between here and there. Some backstory:
In a lot of average, middle America sit-down restaurants, the goal of the owner or manager is turnover. Get 'em in, feed 'em, get 'em out. Turn that table over. That makes money. It's not even a hidden practice, it's openly acknowledged.
So, we'd decided, after about a month in-country, we were going to go out for a sit-down supper and then a movie at the local cinema. We checked the start time, say 8PM, then figured two hours was plenty for a meal and the short drive to the movie.
Wrong. Oh so wrong.
We got there just before our 6PM reservation, we were seated, then we ordered drinks, and those came reasonably fast, and then the slowdown. Tick-tock, tick-tock...
Finally, after a good while, the waiter came back, and when we placed our order, since we'd lost a little time, we placed the starter and entree at the same time. No dessert. We also got more drinks.
Drinks showed up...tick-tock, tick-tock...
Finally, after my hair had grown about a quarter inch and I'd aged enough to get some wrinkles, our starters. By this time, we knew we'd miss the 8PM showing, but we could still see something else at 8:30PM or even 9PM.
Oh, if only!
Starters long gone, drinks going...and here comes the entree. No sense of urgency anywhere in the place, but very efficient. Just what seemed like hours between courses. Looking around, everyone was being treated the same.
Wolfed down our meals Homer Simpson-style, then waited for the bill.
Now's a good time to contrast that with a typical American place:
First, you'll be assaulted for your drinks order before your butt is fully in the seat and your coat off. Once you've got your drink, you're going to be expected to know your order, then place it when the drinks arrive.
While hurrying through your starter, your main will arrive while you've still got 1/4th of the starter left. No time for casual conversation, must eat!
Halfway through your main, the server will arrive and badger you about desserts. If you want one, you'll order it, and it'll arrive just about the moment you're chewing the last bite of your entree. As a bonus, they'll present you with the bill at the same time, and expect you to hand over your card right then, so they can run it while you get an ice cream headache from furiously shoveling in your dessert.
Back with your copy of the receipt and off you go, date night dinner completed in...50 minutes from start to finish.
Ok, back to our English dinner and a movie...food is consumed, no time for dessert, and now we start looking around for our waiter so we can pay.
There he is...and there he goes. Ok, he's back, he'll give us the bill now...and now he's gone again. Oh wait, is that him? Yes! Surely he sees us! Yes he does! He'll be back with our bill...right...now!...no, now!...Now!
At this point, it's obvious we're not going to the movies.
Finally, my impatience and fear of seeming rude gets the better of me and I quietly signal for the waiter: "Um, if it wouldn't be much trouble, could we possibly get our bill now."
"Certainly, sir. I trust everything was to your satisfaction?"
"Yes, very good, but we're ready to head home now."
He took our money and we left...three and a half hours later. I'd never taken so long to eat a meal in my life. It took so long, I was nearly ready for another meal.
The next workday, I was asking around (we had both Americans and Britons in our office), and that's when they they schooled me on eating out in the UK (and Europe as well). It can be summed up with these t rules:
1. Once you sit down, that table is yours until you relinquish it.
2. There will be plenty of time between drinks and courses to allow for good conversation with your partner and good digestion of each course. Otherwise, go to McD's!
3. Paying is a necessary evil; therefore we won't bother you with the bill until you specifically ask for it. Mustn't be impolite, you know!
That is so fundamentally contrary to an average dining experience in the US, the idea that you get to sit for as long as you want and actually, you know, enjoy your meal and your company and once we knew the ropes, we loved eating out there, because we planned just the meal, took our time, and reveled in the pace of it.
rascal
Forum GOD!
I love talking so I often have a conversation with waiter/waitress. Specials are on a board or on the wall so it's no biggy here. I'm easily pleased so no drama. They're just doing their job. It's not common here to tip, but a young happy bouncy waitress will always get a tip from me.
Russ
Russ
medtran49
Forum GOD!
We only went a few times, mainly because they were convenient if we didn't want to drive very far.
Your Olive Gardens must be better than the ones down here, barely above cafeteria food. Macaroni Grill was a step up.
Maybe it was our Macaroni Grills were worse than yours!
Yes, but they are absolutely horrible now. I was there about a year ago with a neighbor, and we both had to send our meals back to the kitchen. They weren't completely cooked. They even got my beer order wrong.
CD
When we first went to Macaroni Grill, it was 1990, and I remember it being the first restaurant I'd ever been to that was decked out in the now-wildly popular and completely overdone industrial chic - poured concrete floors, 50-ft ceilings, exposed ducts, all that.
As is common knowledge now, those places get loud, and we were sitting there asking ourselves how anybody could be so stupid as to design a restaurant like that, and predicted they'd have remodelers in there to straighten it out inside of a month.
As is common knowledge now, those places get loud, and we were sitting there asking ourselves how anybody could be so stupid as to design a restaurant like that, and predicted they'd have remodelers in there to straighten it out inside of a month.
medtran49
Forum GOD!
The last time I went to Olive Garden was lunch with DD and DGDs, not my choice, theirs, I wasn't very hungry and nothing really looked appetizing so I decided to order calamari, figuring at worst it would be chewy and I knew DD would help me eat it regardless. WRONG!! There was this huge clump stuck together with some loose rings around the outside. I broke into the clump and it was still freezing cold inside! Needless to say, it got sent back and I decided I didn't want anything to eat there at all. They know now that Olive Garden is off the list if grandma is with them.
The very, very rare occasions we go to OG, I get pizza, or just soup, salad, and bread.
- Joined
- 30 Mar 2017
- Local time
- 7:20 PM
- Messages
- 5,568
- Location
- Detroit, USA
- Website
- absolute0cooking.com
We had a Macaroni Grill near us that had consistently excellent food, but consistently terrible service. Here's my review:
Rob P.'s review of Romano's Macaroni Grill
But, after reading what TastyReuben posted above, maybe the management team were from Europe?
No surprise, that location is closed now.
Rob P.'s review of Romano's Macaroni Grill
But, after reading what TastyReuben posted above, maybe the management team were from Europe?
No surprise, that location is closed now.