Chefs and Waiters

Wow this is getting hot.
There are Chefs and there are chefs, just like there are Waiters and there are waiters.

Chefs Versus Waiters

This is a follow on from the post Chefs Versus Waiters by Hellraiser, I recommend that you read it first.

Please No Anonymous

I'm not going to address anyone anonymous, I would like you anonymous to give your self a name fake or real it doesn't matter, just so that we don't have to address everyone as anonymous.

Judgment Day

But who is best to pass judgment. A chef that has worked in 5 star hotels and Michelin star restaurants or a chef that has not. A waiter that has done fine gueridon silver service or a waiter that hands you a number to collect your food when ready?
Who would you listen to, to find information about building a successful business, Donald Trump or who's going broke next? You chose....... Exactly

If you can read the posts properly not all of the wait staff are or should be put in the same boat. But let it be known, after many years and eating houses that I have crossed paths with, the few with top class waiters are exactly that, a few.

The Trend

The trend is that you find the best waiters in the best houses. I guess you can also say that about us chefs. True or false? Well if you look at me I would have to say false. I would class myself as a talented chef with a big horse. Being a chef was and still is my chosen carer since the age of 15, now if you don't have a big horse at my age, then something is wrong. You should be proud of your achievements and not be afraid to say so.

Yes everybody can sort of cook, and yes everyone can serve food to a table, but to do it properly with passion and great presence of mind is something else.

Chefs Kitchen Screaming

Not all chefs have to scream at their wait staff, maybe because they are good at what they do...
How does anyone feel good about having to shout and scream at people to get things done, I don't think they can, but you do what you have to do. If a fireman screams at you to get the hell out, or move your ass now, are you going to sit and cry about it and after go and tell him next time please be a bit more polite about it. If it wasn't for him maybe there would not be a next time. People do what they do.

Maybe if I wanted to work with good wait staff I should have stayed in the top tier dinning rooms around the world. But no here I am doing my thing day in day out to a standard that customers are surprised to find in a small town like ours. So, now I ask myself, can it be that all the good competent wait staff are still in those great restaurants? can't be so.

Food Service Industry

Of course waiters are the eyes and ears for the chef and they should be able to deal with any situation that arises, just being pleasant wont do it. So is it fair to assume that the waiters should have some knowledge of the food service industry? Not a brick layer trying to serve a meal with wine thats going to cost someone dearly, when they fuck it up. First in their pocket then their experience. Maybe the food was good but service was poor, how many times have I heard that!! Also how does the waiter deal with the customer that gets his steak over cooked or something else for that matter.

Do you think that Donald Trump deals with his staff any different? He lets them have it big time if they mess up, do you think that the coach of 'whatever' losing team, at halftime pats them on the back and wishes them good luck, I don't think so. Thats just two scenarios that work to a time limit, deadline or whatever you want to call it. When the pressure is on they, you, and I have to produce the goods.

Training

So how are you going to get better at what you do?

Maybe if there was a place that trained floor staff to standards required by paying customers before they land in some restaurant were they are required to perform the duties of a waiter it would save all of us our sanities. But I did forget everyone can cook and serve....

Maybe we are trying for too high a standard.

Tips are a good indication of quality food and service, are you cashing in big?

The Law of Attraction

If we can attract the customer who wants good quality food and service, and who are willing to pay top dollar, then we might be able to all earn more as a result. Ever thought about that.

That customer will dine where he feels comfortable and thats no slop shop. He might end up leaving a big tip and not just a mess on the floor!!!

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Chefs Versus Waiters

I hate waitstaff. As far as I am concerned they are merely the carrier of my work to the intended recipient, and even then they still can't get it right! Waitstaff are the necessary evil I must put up with to fulfill my duties as a Chef, and I hate them just a little bit more than I hate the customers they serve, but I'll keep that for another blog!

I have worked my arse off to become a chef. I have travelled around the world, worked in many different countries and some of the best hotels and restaurants they have to offer. I have been cut and stitched, burned, bashed and broken, physically and mentally. I have had to learn two different languages, French and German. I have to understand mathematics, computers, menu composition, people management and, I still have to be a good cook. It seems to me that the only qualifications needed for a waiter these days is a heartbeat, and even then I find myself searching for that in them too.

They stroll into work at 5 or 6pm, on the dot, with no time to brief themselves of Chef's Specials, table plans, section allocations, and bang, curtain goes up! They are still pulling their pants up when the guests start to arrive, and the chaos begins. I find myself asking the Exec, "What the fuck's going on tonight, who's doing what?" "Fuck knows!" is his reply! :) It's a comedy show to us, and I really do find it amusing, I laugh out loud on a regular basis. It also amuses me to annoy these waiters, just to add to their mounting stress levels, then stand back and watch the show unfold. They're all out there now, panicing, stressing, taking orders for food and drinks. The kitchen suddenly goes from standstill to totally overwhelmed in 30 minutes. There's just not enough oven space, all gasses are full and there's simply not enough bodies in the kitchen to cope with all the orders coming at once. Then we cop the abuse, "How long for table 15?" "Table 3 are getting shitty." "The guy on 6 reckons he could cook better gratin himself!" FUCK OFF! We're working at top speed, as fast and as good as we can, give us a fucking break hey!

I've also been abused by waiters during service, which is like pulling the pin on a grenade, the shit's going to go flying! Years ago in Germany, I had a waiter try to stab me, until he was knocked out by the commis chef!

Why does this happen? Not one of these waiters has any skill in the profession, because that is what it is, a professional job, not a part time money making thing. If it's just for the extra cash, please, go somewhere else to earn it, supermarket checkouts always need staff.

When I was an apprentice, waiters were just like us. They were full time, working the same hours as the chefs, and often more. They had to learn the trade from the ground up, become qualified, and work their way through the ranks to get to the top. They had titles, Aboyeur, Maitre de Hotel, Commis debrasseur, Sommelier and Chef de Rang, to name just a few.

During service time it was a planned and carefully executed show that the guest was unaware of. These professionals had the ability to quote you the menu and take your order without looking at a menu or having a pen and order book, and they could personalise the service and make every table feel like they were the only one in the restaurant.

When they came to the kitchen to pick up food, they were carefully and quietly directed to stand in queue and wait for their table to come up. We were under no circumstances allowed to interact with the waiters, and that is how it was, quiet, organised and working well, with waiters taking their food to their table at the right time. I should mention that waiters were paid even less than chefs, they had to make up their earnings with tips, which could be very rewarding to a great waiter. No tips were shared in the kitchen then, and rightly so.

So what the fuck has happened? No kid is going to want to leave school and earn shit money for years doing shit jobs, just to maybe one day work in a world class restaurant as a chef or a waiter. It's a dying industry I find myself in, and I'm trying to maintain the standards that took so long to learn. So why should I have to put up with waitress cryalot or waiter dumb ass, who does 2 0r 3 hours a night, who wrecks my food when they yank it off the pass, who takes the wrong food to the wrong table or mixes up the well done and medium rare steak, who cant write a legible order, or who won't answer me when I speak? These fucking idiots are spoiling the night for the guest and they are ruining everything I've worked for and making me look incompetent as a chef. They reason the guest has been waiting an hour for their mains is because waiter dumb ass took their food to the wrong table 30 minutes ago and hasn't realised it yet.

Fucking waiters! Seriously, the only reason I put up with them is because it keeps me away from the customer!

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