If you have to make that many adjustments to your order, you may as well just stay home and cook for yourself. Silly picky eaters.

Some restaurants, mostly fine dining establishments I've worked at, don't want the server to write down the order. If there are more than 5 people, then you can write. The reasoning, I was told is that it doesn't look elegant, of course neither does getting an order wrong. Usually with fine dining establishments, you don't get too much "subbing" or alterations to the order, well unless the person is a total a-hole (wink wink) Your gripe is valid, but commenting on the server's appearance was just mean. None ya business.

If the waiter's not writing down your order, he or she may be under instructions from management not to do so. Some misguided restaurant managers think it will impress diners more not to have waitstaff write down orders. She or he should, however, then repeat the order back to the table to make sure it's correct.

Since when does writing it down ensure you get the right thing?

Oh yeah, and the obvious: if you can't stand the most visible representative of an eating establishment, why the hell would you continue to eat there? A reasonable person would have moved on after the first meal.

Wow. I'd give anything to have this person's problems.

I used to wait tables and if you pull out your pad for a table with less than 5 people sitting at it you are failing. It's a peccadillo that comes with the job. Customers hate it, but Servers need some way of maintaining their self-respect on the job. Serving sucks.
But never give a full-tip to a Server that gets your order wrong. Getting the order wrong is failing too.

How often does this happen to you? Perhaps your beady creep eyes stare too intently at Skeletor the server.

I totally hate it when people fail to conform to my expectations of them. Like the barista who keeps coloring her hair that horrible reddish-brown, when she obviously should be going with a nice chestnut blonde. Total bitch.

Here, here, Anonymous! I salute you!

And clearly there are too many waitstaff in the comment corral. Jesus, can you all bridle.

I am done with style over substance when it comes to my order. Write the damn thing down. And if your managers won't let you, kindly alert me to that fact and I'll tell them myself to take the heat off you.

You don't know if I have a (doctor-tested and -documented and life-threatening) food allergy.

You don't know if I'm hankering for a particular taste that's haunted me since childhood.

You don't know if I just fucking hate onions.

And you know what? You're not going to. But you're going to write down my order anyway, and not judge, because it's why you're getting my 20% for bringing me water I could have poured myself and a beer I could have had from a bottle while I wait for a meal I could have heard my number called for. That's our social contract.

(And @2, hold the sauce and mushrooms isn't many—it's two. It's two holds I need to turn my order from food I am biologically forced to consume to a thing that pleases my soul.)

I didn't want to order from you anyway. I want every restaurant to operate like my favorite food truck or Chipotle and Chop't—to provide me with healthy, restaurant-quality meals without the restaurant bullshit. I order what I want, I get what I want, and I pay right there with no waiting for you to seat me, no waiting for you to take my order, no searching in vain for you to give me the check (just to have you walk away in the split second it takes me to get my wallet out when I'm trying to pay you with the credit card that you have to leave me yet again to swipe).

A decade ago I could only get that speed and convenience from fast food, but nowadays that's no longer the case. New restaurants and trucks are proving that every day.

So as far as I'm concerned, you, the server, are far more likely to be an impediment to my restaurant experience than the thing that makes it sparkle. But I'll still sigh and give you my order. Just like I sigh and go to the checkout clerk rather than the self-serve line at the grocery store, even when there's a line—because I don't want her to lose her job for my convenience—I'll keep going to your restaurant and tipping you to keep you afloat, too.

But I don't have to like it, and I don't have to eat something I didn't order just so you look classy doing a job I don't want you to be doing anyway.

I might feel for this, but something tells me he was at an Applebees or some crap.

that skeleton shit is funny. first i, anon that made me giggle in a long time.

You're posting an i, anonymous for that? Jesus, get the fuck over it. If you can't handle a server getting an order wrong, probably shouldn't dine out. I am a vegetarian with food allergies and people get my orders wrong occasionally (like every other customer in the world) and when I politely tell them, they make me happy and I usually get something free. My guess is that your asshole demeanor distracted your server.

The waiter is there to serve you food, not meet your personal standards of beauty. It's okay to criticize them if they do the former incorrectly; get over yourself regarding the latter.

wow, i bet that skeleton of a server is just too weak to hold a pen or a writing pad. and i also bet that ole skeleton wouldn't even know how to write an order down- probably because it's never heard of food before. it probably lives off the fumes from your food. you know what would be good for you (and i'm sure your FABULOUS figure)? i think the golden corral is perfect for you. no skeletor waitresses, no botched orders, you just go and pile what you want on your plate. plenty of grub, no room for error and you can eat until your heart bursts. (hopefully)

Well, I was pretty much on board until the second-to-last sentence. Why do I get the feeling Anonymous would be offended at a similar letter that ended with "and I don't want to eat my meal while staring at your grotesque fatness"?

Oh, and @14... Why don't you just go eat at Chipotle if that's what you want? I'm sure the people who work there would also benefit from your patronage if that's what you're concerned about. Since it's apparently such a chore for you to go out to eat, you may as well enjoy it.

@14 If we're supposed to feel proud that you'd rather eat fast food, well... sorry. Also, could you possibly have whined any more? Jeeze. Just pick the onions and mushrooms off if it's so damned important to your precious indigo soul.

I was a server for 4 months. Wrote everything down, still got stuff wrong.
It's a shit job, prob never do it again. But I'll tell you one thing......
I COULD'VE GAVE A FLYING FUCK IF YOUR ORDER WAS WRONG!
Most servers, in the end feel the same. Your complaint is dumb.
Don't tell people how to do their job.

Come down to the gutter you work at and knock the diiiiiiiiiick outta yer mouth.

I've never been a server, but I was a cook for several years. Like morG funk says, your server is probably not allowed to write down your order. And, yeah, orders get fucked up all the time. Try working in a busy restaurant for one shift, and see how many orders you fuck up, with or without a notepad.

I used to hate customers like you - whiny bitches who seemingly make a hobby out of complaining about the service in restaurants because they don't have any real problems. Oh, and how terrible that the server's appearance wasn't up to your standards. (Hint: complaining that skinny people gross you out is no better than complaining that fat people gross you out. You come across as a grade-A d-bag when you do this.)

On behalf of myself and restaurant staff everywhere: lick me where I pee, bitch.

Brings me back to my miserable years as a hospitality worker. And occasionally you get some old school a-hole of a boss who thinks the more bored and miserable and utterly consumed you are by the details of your job, the better.

As a patron I'd much rather be served by someone who isn't wearing a straightjacket of "good etiquette"

use your brain for something more interesting indeed!

(fuck hospitality)

@21, very nice.

@24, because man cannot live on burritos alone. He must also have pad thai and fish tacos.

wow. really? what a lame complaint to bother writing into i, anon. happens to everybody, pal, whether your server wrote your order down or not. there are about five or six other people who handle your food besides the server, you know (two or three line cooks, depending on what you ordered, the expediter, maybe a manager, and another server could have brought it out to the table). any one of those people could have goofed something up. sheesh.

Great I anon. Loved it, no complaints.

You don't need to micromanage how someone else does their job. If the results are bad, fine, tip accordingly. I know servers who say they are faster and more efficient if they don't write everything down. And, they do care about getting your order right, partly because they care about getting your tips, asshole.

I was a busboy in my youth; it lasted as long as it took to find another job.

But I was the best damned busboy I could be. Today I am the best damned curmudgeon I can be. If my order isn't right the first time, I'll politely ask you to make it right.

The second time, I may very well harsh your mellow (unless its Princess' steak not being "well done" enough, I don't know how she can eat them that done".

The third time, and it has only happed twice in my life, I will dismiss you from my table like the officious ass I can be.

I AM THE CUSTOMER, AND MY ORDER SHALL BE RIGHT.

When the shoe is on the other foot, I will bend fairly far to exceed your expectations or I will excuse myself and get someone else to serve you in the manner you deserve. Yes, because you deserve value for your dollars.

Too many foodservice workers think they are above their jobs, just do it, do it as well as you can, and move on to your dream job.

@21 Dude, in almost every conceivable situation my piece-of-mind is totally more important than your order. We're talking about waiting tables, not curing cancer. Like I said, if the service is bad have the tip reflect that. I hated making mistakes because good-bye 20%. If an "unobtrusive" experience is what it takes to get 20% out of you, I'd try my best to give it to you but not at the expense of my well-being.

@8: Once again, I'm with TV Dinner!

This is such a minor gripe... and the body policing is just off limits --- you don't know the server, what if they are on Chemo and have lost weight and is just starting to get back on his or her feet?

Many servers are not permitted to write down orders, and I've yet to dine at an establishment in Seattle where the server was angry/upset when a mistake was made. The only time I've had issues is when the server was uncomfortable with serving two men on a date--- and House Management in Seattle doesn't stand for that, let me tell you!

Going out to eat should be a fun and relaxed experience, and my goal is to make the server's job as least annoying as possible while they are waiting on us. Here's hoping that trend continues.

So do you people all think that each waiter is an independent contractor who gets to set up all of his own protocols?

Besides, as someone who worked a couple different service jobs during college, I feel compelled to inform you that restaurants typically have more than one customer each. For every customer who wanted me to do things [this] way, there was a customer who wanted me to do things [that] way. While forgetting your order was a fuck-up, this waiter can't predict which customers will get pissed off that he IS writing things down and which ones will get pissed off that he isn't. And then there are customers who will get pissed off (or treat him like a moron) if he asks ahead of time.

And while forgetting your order was a genuine fuck-up, it's worth mentioning: in customer service, you are constantly being watched by SOMEONE. Unlike other jobs, every single fuck-up is witnessed by a customer. If you had a shit-ton of bosses, and so there was constantly one or another of them looking over your shoulder, you would realize that you fuck up at work all the time also. Be glad that there isn't guaranteed to be someone there to bitch at you for it each and every time, and quit assuming that a single fuck-up means that the waiter must be an absolute moron.

How do you know the kitchen didn't fuck up your order? In my experience, at least two thirds of orders are kitchen fuck ups, not server fuckups.

44: "Waiters should be treated with dignity and minor fuck-ups shouldn't be blown out of proportion" =/= "waiting tables is too fucking hard." If I thought the job was impossible I would have said so.

But going by your username, you're a right-winger, so I wouldn't expect you to have the best reading comprehension skills.

The skeleton comment is stupid, but the no-writing-order comment is spot-on. What the fuck, write it down.

@43 I know this is a personal quirk, but I hate it when the server is there every other minute refilling my glass. I would never say anything about it, though. I know they're doing their job. Also it does tend to keep me more hydrated than I would be otherwise.

Wait a sec -- you can go somewhere, tell them what you want to eat, they cook it for you and then they bring it to where you're sitting? At a table?

That'd be awesome!

But I'd hate to have to wash my dishes at a stranger's place -- especially if the woman who cooked my food dirtyed up a whole shitpotfull. Paper plates and Microwavable Meals only, for me!

Who's the skinny chick?

It may be a small complaint for I Anonymous, but I (and a more than a few others, it seems) learned something new in the comments. Managers forcing waitstaff to not write down orders is fucking stupid.

As for not caring about customers. I'm sure that serving sucks as a job. I've done my best (and luckily succeeded) to stay out of food service for just that reason. Because I assume it sucks, I try to treat the waitstaff really nicely. When I am picky about something like "no onions" (which isn't too often) I try ask really politely. I know I'm making someone else's life a little bit harder. It would be nice if my consideration were met with consideration in return and, if the order is wrong, the server showed a small amount of concern over the mistake.

I suppose concern over a job is generally proportionate to the rewards for a job well done, and the rewards for most waitstaff jobs are probably not too high. But the fiction that you care about my evening being nice will get you a better tip.

If you actually had a life, none of this would bother you.

agree with everything in the letter up to the point where he goes off on the servers for being skinny. They're on their feet constantly for their job - that takes the pounds off like crazy. I would occasionally do retail work at a large bookstore back in the day - within a couple months of starting the job each time, I would lose about 15 pounds. And that was just a part-time gig and much more low-key than being part of a waitstaff.

Sounds like anonymous is a fat chick with a grudge against regular sized girls. hee hee.

To all the waitstaff out there. I will never ever think less of you if you write down my order. I will think much less of you if you frak up the order though. (I'm talking to YOU, girl waitress at Octo Sushi who screws up our order every time! Wrong food, wrong beer, stuff we didn't order).

You're doing a difficult job, not the remembering and bringing food part, but the dealing with the myriad of people part. 95% of people these days are self-entitled egotistical pricks. I can't imagine being in a customer service job. UG.

What @TVDinner said.

This sounds like the type of person who goes to a nice restaurant and orders something, but changes the dish by removing an ingredient. Then they complain it tasted bland.

There are professionals who take time to construct a dish and when you remove the sauce, the lemon, the whatever it changes said dish completely.

If there's not salt on the table (or A1, or hot sauce) don't ask for it because it's not there for a reason. If you allergic to peanuts, don't order the peanut chicken for fucks sake.

Just a pet peeve of mine.

If your server's appearance makes you lose your appetite, maybe you should stay home.

I used to not write shit down until I got busy and completely forgot to put this couple's order in at all. About an hour later I figured out what happened and couldn't even put their order in because I didn't remember what they ordered. Had to tell them what happened. Now I write shit down. None of my customers care.

The Stranger just trolled all of us.

I'm having a hard time understanding how all the former & current servers here think that screwing up an order is no big deal. It's the only thing that truly matters in food service! Do gas station attendants in Oregon routinely put the wrong gas in vehicles and think, "Well, they should be happy they got any gas at all?". Just basic business - give the customer what they paid for! No, that doesn't mean that "the customer is always right", it's that bringing them the wrong order wastes time & money. (It's also a form of fraud.) That will end a business faster than anything else.

Servers : Be skinny, fat, high, horny, bitchy, ugly, cute .... doesn't matter. Just bring the correct food to the correct table. It really isn't that difficult.

(Now for the asshole customer who insists on modifying every dish in their order, implicitly stating that the chef doesn't know how to cook, feel free to grind some dirt into that shit. Those are the assholes who ruin dining for everyone, creating confusion and delays.)

A lot of posters seem to be comparing this letter with their brief and apparently remarkable tenure in the service industry rather than their with current job they fuck up at all the time.

@44 no one said the job was hard. It can suck balls. There is a difference. And I still don't give a fuck about you.
@60 what?

I love how EVERY restaurant-related letter turns into a catfight in the comments section between bitchy food service workers and bitchy customers. I've been on both sides and none of it is rocket science. Every customer out there will run across servers who fuck up their order at times. They're human, it happens. Every server out there will run across entitled, picky customers at times. They're human, it happens.

Anyone on either side who's too sensitive to handle a fucked up order or a rude customer should avoid restaurants, and human social interactions in general, and should probably think of investing in a nice hermetically-sealed bubble. Come on people.

The skeleton comment was just out of line though.

Wow! excellent site.Marketing Research

@33 Exactly the reason I make it a point to check out any restaurant that "Yelpers" rant against. Self-absorbed pseudo critics who are either trailer trash who don't understand the food they're being served, or passive aggressive wankers with an entitlement complex who wouldn't be satisfied if the restaurant served them thousand dollar bills with ambrosia and nectar of the gods. WTF, why would a website name itself after the sound an injured animal makes anyway?

No shit about the skeleton. Notice all the tweaker servers at Denny's? I avoid eating at shitty restaurants for that very reason. I don't need meth sweat and scabs being put in my hamburger by some hateful addict.

They have to write it down eventually to give it to the kitchen expediter. If a server came to my service window and started repeating food orders back to me verbally, I'd let them finish, hand them a pen and tell them to write it the fuck down.