100 Things diners shouldn't do

[SWGB]

Let's see if we can make it to 100. I'll start.

1. Snapping fingers - The waiter/waitress didn't tell you there name to be snapped at. Did it occur to you that perhaps they weren't ignoring you, but helping the other folks they was speaking to?

2. Cell phones - In the middle of anything that the waiter/waitress is doing if your cell phone rings, do not hold up your index finger and take the call.

3. Tipping - It's just the way it's done in America. If you want European style dining then go to Europe or prepare to pay a heck of a lot more and receive way worse service.

Have fun y'all.

[ameliaj]

4. If you are in a large party, attempt to combine requests of the waitstaff so that when they bring 1 extra salad dressing, another individual doesn't ask for some extra butter, thereby sending the poor server on a "one item relay". If they are only serving your table, no problem. But the poor 4-top right next to you hasn't seen a server all night.

[scooterbug44]

5. Eat the entire dish, then claim something was wrong with it and want it taken off the bill.

[DuneAHH]

6. Be insensitive to the service folks and fellow diners.

[Beach Runner]

5. Eat the entire dish, then claim something was wrong with it and want it taken off the bill.

Helllllz to the Yeah! Right on, sistah!

[fsuwonder]

7. If you have a large party and everyone sucks their drinks down and request immediate refills before the server has had a chance to put the last drink down, don't get mad at the server for your tummies grumbling.

[LuciferSam]

8. Order milk to drink. It's just wrong.

[scooterbug44]

8. Order milk to drink. It's just wrong.

It all depends - I have been places where you get asked which kind of milk you want and get free refills. I personally think drinking Coke at meals is just wrong.

Though after I got a mini carton plopped on the table at Bud & Alleys, I figured out not to try and drink milk w/ meals out around here.

[SWGB]

It all depends - I have been places where you get asked which kind of milk you want and get free refills. I personally think drinking Coke at meals is just wrong.

Though after I got a mini carton plopped on the table at Bud & Alleys, I figured out not to try and drink milk w/ meals out around here.

Those cartons are ultra pasteurized and last for months. You could have probably asked your server to go to the kitchen and ask for some milk. I wouldn't trust a kitchen that doesn't have a basic ingredient like milk.

[scooterbug44]

Those cartons are ultra pasteurized and last for months. You could have probably asked your server to go to the kitchen and ask for some milk. I wouldn't trust a kitchen that doesn't have a basic ingredient like milk.

I wasn't worried about the freshness, more the fact that I got a carton. Guess I thought for $30 an entree they could have actually put it in a glass.

[HelenM]

It all depends - I have been places where you get asked which kind of milk you want and get free refills. I personally think drinking Coke at meals is just wrong.

Though after I got a mini carton plopped on the table at Bud & Alleys, I figured out not to try and drink milk w/ meals out around here.

That reminds me of an awesome little restaurant that used to be in Grayton called The Corner Cafe...they cooked all their fish on a small grill behind the restaurant and were definitely no frills. My parents had coffee after their meal and Mom asked for some plain milk and had a half-gallon container just plunked down in front of her. Like I said, it was a no frills place, but the food was great!

[scooterbug44]

No frills place, I can handle it - carton at a place where the "napkins" are a roll of paper towels suits me fine. Slap on a tablecloth and adjust your prices upward and I'll want a pre-poured glass!

[jodiFL]

That reminds me of an awesome little restaurant that used to be in Grayton called The Corner Cafe...they cooked all their fish on a small grill behind the restaurant and were definitely no frills. My parents had coffee after their meal and Mom asked for some plain milk and had a half-gallon container just plunked down in front of her. Like I said, it was a no frills place, but the food was great!

That story doesnt surprise me at all. I worked there when it was still a small 1 story building (pre-Opal) and the sign by the door that said hours were dependent on surf conditions was really true. I have even seen them make people shuck their own oysters and get their own beer if they were really busy. An awesome bunch of guys and still one of the most enjoyable jobs I have ever had.

[jodiFL]

9.Ask the server what their favorite item on the menu is. Chances are they have eaten everything on the menu so many times that they would rather eat a Whopper.

[jodiFL]

10. Dont ask, when the check arrives, why there is an addition charge for a substitute item, when it is clearly stated on the menu the additional charges. Take time to read the menu...most servers are more than happy to give customers extra time to go over it.

[Lynnie]

11. Just plain rudeness! UGH Don't do it.

[grace]

linger at a table for hours on a weekend night when there is clearly a long wait.

[Will B]

13. Ask a server to split a huge check AFTER he / she has brought it to the table at the end of the meal. Do them a favor and ask before everybody orders.

[Desso]

Use a toothpick at the table.

[Desso]

In response to the comment of paying more and receiving worse service in Europe. It has not been my experience at all. Perhaps in the tourist traps of the big cities( Paris, London, Madrid), but in general I found the service to be better. I prefer to have my tip be included in the bill and and my meal to be priced perhaps a little higher so the wait staff can earn a living, decent wage. I wouldn't like my livelihood based on the whim of diners and the skewed ideas of the restaurant lobby. Which are the people who actually maintain this archaic, exploitive system. And yes I have waited tables (right here on 30A and elsewhere), but not one day longer than I had to.

[Tupelo Honey]

In response to the comment of paying more and receiving worse service in Europe. It has not been my experience at all. Perhaps in the tourist traps of the big cities( Paris, London, Madrid), but in general I found the service to be better. I prefer to have my tip be included in the bill and and my meal to be priced perhaps a little higher so the wait staff can earn a living, decent wage. I wouldn't like my livelihood based on the whim of diners and the skewed ideas of the restaurant lobby. Which are the people who actually maintain this archaic, exploitive system. And yes I have waited tables (right here on 30A and elsewhere), but not one day longer than I had to.

Well-said.

[Beach Runner]

#15? See http://www.sowal.com/bb/dining-food/...tml#post656611

[SWGB]

#16. Have the dish drastically changed and then complain that it doesn't taste right.

[jamnolfin]

Dont blow your nose at the table. Im always seeing thee old men get thru with their meals and pull out a reusable snot rag and start honking down. Gross

[jodiFL]

Dont blow your nose at the table. Im always seeing thee old men get thru with their meals and pull out a reusable snot rag and start honking down. Gross

ewww... and a first for me last night.. child with nose bleed and the parent asked the server to take away the bloody napkins. Do I look like I want to touch THAT? And then look totally offended when latex gloves were worn back to the table. Do you get offended when you see an EMT or cop put on gloves when possibly having to come in contact with gross fluids?( I mean at least they were kinda flesh colored ones.. not those purple ones,lol)

[DuneAHH]

ewww... and a first for me last night.. child with nose bleed and the parent asked the server to take away the bloody napkins. Do I look like I want to touch THAT? And then look totally offended when latex gloves were worn back to the table. Do you get offended when you see an EMT or cop put on gloves when possibly having to come in contact with gross fluids?( I mean at least they were kinda flesh colored ones.. not those purple ones,lol)

inexplicable...

[scooterbug44]

ewww... and a first for me last night.. child with nose bleed and the parent asked the server to take away the bloody napkins. Do I look like I want to touch THAT? And then look totally offended when latex gloves were worn back to the table. Do you get offended when you see an EMT or cop put on gloves when possibly having to come in contact with gross fluids?( I mean at least they were kinda flesh colored ones.. not those purple ones,lol)

I am glad they put on gloves~! Screw those nasty rude people who questioned following BASIC precautions for dealing with BLOOD!

[DuneAHH]

I am glad they put on gloves~! Screw those nasty rude people who questioned following BASIC precautions for dealing with BLOOD!

ABSOLUTELY!
It's stunning that they would be offended by the gloves... in an eating establishment of all places.

[Lynnie]

A friend traveled with me overseas and started freaking out, overusing hand sanitzer. Really over-using that stuff. He is now addicted to it and catches almost every common cold that the wind blows......as well as bronchial bacterium, too.

[LuciferSam]

My milk comment was based on my own personal biases. I never drink milk anywhere except at home, and it's always a single quick chug straight from the jug while standing in front of the refrigerator. It tastes better to me that way, and the idea of using a glass for milk seems unthinkable, for no particular reason except force of habit. I happen to believe that everybody should have their own personal milk jug in their refrigerator, and especially in my refrigerator.

If restaurants would let me wander into their kitchen, the chance that I might drink their milk increases slightly, provided their milk: 1.) is sufficiently cold 2.)is in gallon jugs at least 75% full 3.)is no more than 3 days past the expiration date 4.) contains no visible foreign matter 5.) has a convenient easy to grip handle. The astute reader would rightly conclude that this particular practice actually contributes to the possibility of foreign matter in the in the cow juice (or goat juice as the case may be).

In addition to the above mentioned criteria, it would be desirable for a sink to be nearby if it should be necessary to spit out the above mentioned mammal secretions for any number of reasons. For example, there is nothing worse than the delicious taste of chocolate milk being ruined when you realize that it's really whole milk. Usually the coldness, fullness, and expiration date and foreign matter tests cover this situation, but you never know....

[SWGB]

Just show the straw-phobes this one:

[richard grodzicki]

#100
don't EVER go to a restaurant where the wait staff thinks they are doing you a favor serving you.

[Dave Rauschkolb]

I finally have a baby so I am now qualified to talk about crying babies. 15 seconds max is the allotted time to head for the door with your crying baby when in a restaurant.

[NunYa]

I finally have a baby so I am now qualified to talk about crying babies. 15 seconds max is the allotted time to head for the door with your crying baby when in a restaurant.

And I for one have see you in action headed for the door.