Dear Diary,
You may wonder why I’ve decided to put my work shenanigans down here in this little blog. Well, I guess this will be a way for me to vent, ridicule, educate the stupid, but mainly, to entertain those who choose to read it. (If any)
I’m a twenty something year old waiter in Southern California. Oh wait, the “politically correct” way to say this job position is “Server.” (I’ve really never been into politics) I’ve been a server for almost 10 years now. Wow. Ten years. What a loser. Well, I didn’t start in the restaurant biz that much is for sure. And believe me; I’ve tried a number of times to get the hell out of it too! But for some reason, I keep ending up getting drinks for some of the most idiotic people in the world.
It’s actually not that bad. The pay is great; well it’s okay for the immediate time, but no good for future planning. Also, it’s always nice to have cash on me (unless I get mugged on the way to my car after closing). Plus the schedule is great. I’ll never work more than 6 hours a day nor 6 days a week. More like 3 hours a day and 2 days a week. Also, if I wanted to leave the country for month, I could probably request some days off, and/or get another desperate server to cover my shifts.
That’s probably the best part of being a server. As mean and horrible as some managers are and can be (or at least how they are painted to be by the other staff members), bottom line is, they don’t give a rats ass who works as long as someone does.
Back to the 3 hours a day and 2 days a week thing… I love it how that’s all they schedule you for, yet expect you to be available ALL the time. I mean, really? What assholes. And since I have to be available for them all the time, there is hardly any chance to get hired at another restaurant. Because, you guessed it, in ordered to be hired at a restaurant, you need to have 100% availability to being with.
Well, I’ve managed to hop from restaurant to restaurant to try to find the best money making place. I’ve served in a huge chain corporate family restaurant with television commercials and everything, a fancy hotel as a bartender and server at weddings and business meetings; I’ve worked in a pizza joint/sports bar/family restaurant (may that place burn to the ground). Oh, I have also worked as a cocktail server in the local nightclub. Let’s see have I missed anything? I’m sure there have been other places here and there, but they are all pretty much the same. And if you are wondering about the tips….guess what? They are all the same too.
The only difference of making money is how busy the place is. The more tables you can serve in a shift, the more money you can make. It doesn’t matter how “Fancy” the place is or how expensive the food is. Cause let’s face it servers, its always $3 here, $4 there. Sometimes, with the large parties we’ll get $10 - $15. But even that is pushing it.
But I’ll go into that in another entry.
Well, I better get some shut eye, so I can get to work tomorrow afternoon. Maybe I’ll see you at one of my tables. If you’re lucky, you just might get service with a smile.
