I spend the majority of my work shift face to face with the customer, thats what it takes when you are a bartender and waitress. It’s often the waitress’s that get the food complaints and the disappointment when guests are not happy. That’s exactly what happened last night; the food was sub-par and taking it to the tables was embarrassing.
It gave me a great appreciation for my boss, someone who does this job full time and without complaining (too much) and an amazing appreciation for my parents who work in this industry full time to. I struggle with events that go wrong mentally, often wanting to just curl up in a ball and pretend its not going this badly, because I am so obsessed with giving amazing service that when it fails to do so I become disappointed in myself.
There was nothing I or my manager could have to done to rectify the situation last night, yet it was us who fielded complaints and tried our hardest to keep the smiles on customers faces, whilst holding fake smiles on our faces. When you complain to your waiter about food; please remember they didn’t make it, they often have no control over what they give to you.
It’s the people that you work with that make a job worth doing in hospitality. Last night I would have undoubtably quit without the support of the rest of my colleagues, and my boss would have too.
I love my colleagues, they are a crazy bunch of people who make me smile at work, even when I am having the worst of days. They are good at what they do and have the largest personalities you will ever know. We go out for drinks together and we can band together to achieve amazing customer service in such a quick paced environment as a theatre pre-dining and interval service. Last nights service was a private dinner event, one I have worked many times before or similar to events I have worked since I was sixteen.
Hospitality is a hard career choice, so smile more at your staff, show them they are appreciated. You might just make their day…
Hospitality is almost impossible to teach. It’s all about hiring the right people.
– Danny Meyer
abigailgrows 