The difference between waiting tables in L.A. and waiting tables in New York is that in New York, people let you do your job. They don't have time to mess with the waiter.

In L.A. you end up waiting on all these industry people [movies] who are assistants to people with power--directors, actors, producers. So they have to put up with the boss all day and at the end of the day, they just want to take all their frustrations out on the waiter.

It's big moments for small lives.

--Waiter at a Midtown Hotel

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I'm gonna' continue today with the interview with Mark. He was the very first waiter that I spoke with and he works at an Italian place down in the Village. For the interview, we pulled up some chairs at a comfortable corner table. Mark had just gotten off work and was having a shift drink while I fiddled with my recorder trying not to mess things up.

A couple sat a few tables away finishing up their meal, as the restaurant slowly shut down. It was the end of another Friday night.

It's not like he really reveals alot about the inside practices of the place, but he does give you an idea of what it's like to have a job where you have to deal with people all day. Including the worst possible customer...his mother.

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This is the job that I have. It's one I came to have. I wouldn't choose it for myself, really. Okay, just say that it's my job and what I don't like about it. What I like about it is...I like the restaurant. Oh, what I really like is working in tandem with the bus boys and my fellow waiters. There's a rapport going on. I like that. I like when everyone is working together. And then at the end of the night, when you've had a really big night, you feel good about your fellow workers. And you really have this wonderful feeling. It's a great feeling.

We did that together. We all did that together. It's like we're a team, you know. A sense of accomplishment. A sense of working together, helping each other. And if you do it nice, if you...A lot of times you work in places where people are not nice. You get the job done but they're angry people, you know. There's always a problem. You just don't get a good feeling.

But here, you know, the people are nice here. That's the best part of the job. But I've worked at places that are very impersonal. And here you can be personal with the customers. The owner wants you to talk and joke around with customers. And in other places you can't. You're just an automaton. So I would hate to do that.

The worst thing about it is that you are doing the same thing over and over again. It's just constant repetition. The same thing over and over. And you have to...you have to kind of really psyche yourself. I don't know how...somehow just get yourself into the state of mind to just enjoy and go with it, you know. But sometimes, if you have a bad day, if you're rebelling against it. It's just the constant repetition, and it's not something where...nothing's being built. You're not doing anything for yourself. You know how much money your going to make, more or less.

It's not...but then again, it could be worse. You do give nice little feelings for people. You can have nice little interactions with people to make yourself feel good. You can make people feel happy. Sometimes people give you a good tip because you made them happy, and you feel good about that. So there's a lot of good feeling s you can get from a job.

I try to treat all customers the same, but of course, when you have customers that want...that want something. That want to have a nice experience. That want it. Then you want to give it to them. Other customers don't want it. They just want to come and eat and they don't even want to have any type of interaction with the waiter.

I think most people come into a restaurant and they are paying their good money and they expect to be taken care of. They want their food to come out; they don't want it to be slow. They don't want any problems.

Like my mom. I would hate to wait on my mom. I know the way she is. The way she talks. I tell her, "Mom, jeez. I wouldn't want to wait on you." It's my mother.

She's picky. She's fussy. "I want this. I want this, this way. I want this, that way. When is the food going to come? You know I asked the waiter for the butter and the butter didn't come? I asked for more bread. My water is low." Because she always likes to have a lot of water. She would be just terrible, but she's my mom.

I love my mom but I know that she would be tough.
7:15:51 PM     comment []