MANHATTAN WAITER : rules of conduct

Home | What's on the Menu? | Rules of Conduct | ready to order?

rules of conduct

"You don't want to interview me. You don't want to hear what I have to say. People don't know how to act when they eat out."

--Waiter at Delmonico's

--------------------------------------

It's true. Most of us don't know how to act when we eat out. And judging from the actions of many reporters at the New York Times and Jack Kelley at USA Today, many journalists don't know how to behave either. Because of this, I want to explain how I go about gathering these interviews.

All these interviews are done with a mini disc and a professional microphone. I want to capture the small nuances of language that will be missed trying to scribble down notes. I later transcribe the talks, trying to preserve much of the language without letting all the...ya' know?...pauses and...ya' know?...other distracting bits of...ya' know?...spoken language that serve as mental bookmarks during conversation, but are a little obnoxious when seen in print.

Ya' know???

Finally, I'm trying to maintain a light editing touch, enough to maintain the integrity of people's stories without making them look stupid or inarticulate. None of these people have ever been interviewed before, and I'm asking very probing questions. A number of people did not want their names to be used, while some didn't want me to mention the name of the restaurant.

I meet most of my waiters either eating out or just catching a few drinks. Many are friends of people I know. A lot of times I get passed a number and then call the person to set up an interview. Most interviews take place in diners or coffee shops close to where the person works. There are more Starbucks in Manhattan than McDonald's and I really hate them. Except for the one at Christopher and 7th Ave.

Sometimes we meet after work and head out to a favorite bar and down a few drinks. And in a few rare instances, we hang out in the waiter's own restaurant, after hours when the front doors are locked, the house lights are down, and one of the regulars allowed to stay after closing sparks up a cigarette to mock the smoking ban. No customers.

It's my favorite time to be in a restaurant. You and a few close people, sharing stories in a well-lighted place...and sucking down the owner's alcohol. For free.