Gratuity Guaranteed
One of my most memorable serving experiences was when I served a man who had organized a large family gathering at our restaurant. They knew I was good at serving tables, so they gave me the entire party. It was about a dozen people. I was doing well, but when the host arrived he was drained and complaining about not having a drink.
He then noticed that I had sunglasses on my head. (It was an indoor/outdoor establishment and I also served the outside areas). Every time I went to the table for the rest of the meal, he would tell everyone how stupid I was. The other people at the table were so embarrassed by his behavior that they began to apologize for him.
We had a policy of adding a 20% tip to parties this large, so my tip was already included on the check. The check has a “additional” tip line that is clearly marked. This guy grabbed the check and looked at me. He then turned so I could see what he wrote, while he struck the line through the middle with such force he actually pierced it. He smiles at me and I tell him, “Have a nice night.”
He is not smart enough to know that he has already given me more than $100. We both laughed about it.
