by J. Michael Wheeler
What's Your Gripe?
Sylvia Rector reports in the Detroit Free Press (Check it out, guys: The Top 5 restaurant gripes, 5/13/10) that it's not slow service, poorly cooked food, or even mixed up orders. In her survey of 100 diners who responded to questions about restaurant pet peeves, it's "the little things that drive people up the wall."
The Top Five Gripes
No. 1 by far, was a surprise: Significant numbers of diners of both sexes detest being addressed as "you guys" -- as in "How are you guys?" or "Are you guys ready to order?"No. 2 Servers might take home bigger tips if they didn't ask, "Do you need change?" when they pick up a guest's check with cash. Diners considered it presumptuous or thought it was an effort to get an extra-large tip -- so they left less in protest. Most servers will tell you they're only trying to avoid an unnecessary trip back to the table.
No. 3 Checks brought too soon irk many readers; most interpret it as a sign the restaurant wants them to leave quickly. The comments of Liz Simmons of Mt. Clemens were typical: "I truly hate when the server slaps the bill down on the table while I'm still eating. ... What if I decide I want dessert? What if I want a cup of coffee to wind down my evening? ... I don't very often have a night out in my budget anymore and would love to savor it a bit," she said.
No. 4 Wiping down tabletops and chair seats with the same dirty cloth all over the dining room is a serious turnoff -- and it must be common, because so many diners described the same scene: "They take a rag that sits on a counter or shelf and fling all the residue and crumbs off the edge (of the table). Naturally a large portion falls on the chairs. ... What do we do? Yes, we use the same rag to wipe the seats. We then put the rag back ... for its next table wipe. Yuck," wrote Gene and Sylvia Oakie of Warren. And Alan Schebil of Auburn Hills calls the practice "repulsive" and adds, "I've gotten so paranoid I refuse to allow my silverware to sit directly on the table."
No. 5 Dining room noise, especially loud music. "My No. 1 pet peeve in a restaurant is the music," wrote Sharon Rugh of Shelby Township. "It annoys me beyond reason when the music ceases to become background music." Said Lorelei Christy of Farmington Hills: "People ... going to a restaurant for a nice meal and conversation with friends ... should not have to shout to be heard."
Read the full article at Detroit Free Press online Freep.com