No love for Valentine's Day

Although I promised to update Monday night, the mental and physical state of exhaustion simply wouldn't allow it. After a 14 hour work day, I just wanted to:

1. Sit in silence.
2. Indulge in one, or four, bottles of pinot.
3. Soak in a bubble bath.
4. Sleep until next week.
5. Black out the entire day.

So let me begin...

The morning started off with a positive server meeting, followed by a wonderful cupcake breakfast! And cupcakes didn't end at breakfast. Whenever we had a  chance, we were eating pounds of candy, brownies, cupcakes, and our managers even made us pizzas for lunch. Also, whenever we seemed sluggish, our managers broke out cases of Monster energy drinks as a pick-me-upper. If all this junk isn't enough to make someone feel sick by the end of the night....the clientele did.

I get it. It's a dim-lighting, semi-dressy, nice restaurant. It's a tad bit pricey, romantic and an ideal choice for a special evening. It's no wonder why we were on a wait until 10:10...even though it is plastered on the door that we CLOSE at 10:00.

What I don't get is how so many people can lack so much COMMON SENSE. It's somewhat scary. Let me explain how something works. Believe it or not, server's don't work for free. Shocking, I know....sorry if I caught some of you off guard. Actually, 3% of your bill goes to hostesses or server assistants. Therefore, if you choose not to tip your server, we are actually paying for you to eat while working for less than nothing...literally.

This is how it works. We get paid $2.13 an hour....and the last time I saw a paycheck was...never. Since we have to claim tips for tax purposes, we leave with cash after every shift. It's hard to explain, but basically, the $2.13 an hour is like leverage...if you don't make what you should have based on your total sales...the $2.13 factors in to make up for it.

What my rant breaks down to is that fact that Valentine's Day sucks if you are in the service industry. The goal of every person on the floor that night was to make money. In order to make money, you have to deliver...from the service to the mood created at the table in order to make a special evening. I delivered. My co-workers delivered. The guests...did not. It became a joke. When people left the table, we would play a guessing game... "how much do you think you got?" Answers ranged from zero to around $4. You were considered lucky if you got anything over $5. I was grateful whenever I got anything. I did not treat any table different from the other...who am I to judge?

Unfortunately, around 9:00 p.m., my job just became comical. I was done. I was care-free about everything because it simply was not worth my time. I did my job to the minimum and attempted to make the evening special for people, but by then, I just didn't care...because this is what I was dealing with:

1. It's Valentine's Day. You are on a date. You are in a restaurant. You are going to talk on your phone during the entire meal. Not only are you on your phone, but you are talking on an ear piece...and you look good.
     *Classic. That's the way to make a woman feel special. Well my friend, you might be wondering why I haven't approached your table yet. Who am I to interrupt your conversation? You can just stay parched until your important conversations finishes.

2. It's Valentine's Day. You are on a date. You are so into your date. You think y'all should sit on the same side of the booth. You want to cuddle. Now, y'all  make-out. Ultimately, you want to make this super awkward for everyone around y'all.
     *Super uncomfortable. Get a room. Or here is an even better idea. Stay home. Order take-out. Cook a nice meal. Overall, I am going to end up boxing your food because you cannot keep your hands off of each other. Save your time and money...and spare me the awkward experience.

3. It's Valentine's Day. You order a tropical drink...at a restaurant with one of the biggest wine selections in the area. Man, the bartender forgot the umbrella for your drink. No festive umbrella, no tip for my server.
     *Sorry, mam. We must have ran out of umbrellas when we ran out of frozen drinks. Oh wait, we never had either.

4. It's Valentine's Day. You want two shots of Patron. Two more please. Twoooo more please. Now, you seem too drunk to order...and too broke to tip.
     *Didn't know people wanted to party hard on Valentine's Day. I have sympathy for your date. If I was her, I would be insulted. Obviously, he has to get hammered in order to enjoy the evening. Is the really that bad of company? Who does this?

5. It's Valentine's Day. You get drinks. You get appetizers. You get expensive entrees. Of course, you get dessert. Overall, you rack up a pretty high ticket. You "stiff" your server. How nice of you!
     *Theme of the night. My lowest ticket of the night was $57.63. Several tickets reached over $130. If I was tipped at all, it was about 4%. Great effort to make your Valentine feel special...your server, not so much.

Here is the final breakdown... (drum roll, please....)

Valentine's Day 2011 Stats:

Number of times I wanted to quit on the spot: 12
Number of times people wanted to quit on the spot: 23
Number of times people actually quit on the spot: 1

Hours worked: 14
My personal sales from 11:00 a.m.-11:00 p.m: $1600
Tip share (taken out of my sales): $48

State tax: 9%....do the math. Double the tax and that turns out to be 18%. Wow. Simple knowledge. Use it.
If every table tipped the standard 18%: $288
If every table tipped me 20% (which is the norm at this restaurant): $320

What I walked with that night: $180
*And I was one of the lucky ones...

It's ironic that a holiday based on love can fill people with so much anger! Now, with you as my witness, I vouch to not work in a restaurant by next Valentine's Day. So, hurry up internships!

Apologies for the preaching. venting, complaining, whining, math lessons, etc. I promise I DO enjoy my job... people can be great. I guess the reason why Valentine's Day was awful is because the great people have common sense..which makes them great.  :)

Enjoy this beautiful weather!

Always at your service,
86 sense