Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Oh yeah. Mother's Day.

It was a bitch. I worked 14 hours straight without a break -- and not because it was busy. It was no busier than an average Sunday, but we naturally had twice the number of people on the floor as usual. And since HotPants and Lapdog were the opening/mid managers, nobody could sit down, EVER. I got there at 11:30 and finally got to sit down for more than 30 seconds at 9.

I foolishly swapped my Saturday night shift for a Sunday lunch, thinking with the holiday I'd make much better money. HA! Not only was it not busy, people were fucking douchehounds. 10% all goddamn day. Guess that's better than one of the other girls, who got stiffed about five times during lunch. During dinner I started to do better, got a fistful of $10 tips, one $20, generally twenty percent.

At the end of the day, I walked with $153 (that's after tipping out the night bartender, shit I just realized I didn't tip the day ones, and buying two meals). Not bad for a regular Sunday with a break, but for Mother's Day, working open to close? Fucking pathetic. (I miss my first restaurant, that had a big buffet on Mother's Day and Easter. $500 days there. Too bad it closed.)

After last year's fun folks (though that day started out AWESOME) and this year's, I'm putting a reminder in my phone calendar to request the day off next year.

8 comments:

theblonde said...

Isn't that weird? I worked the night shift on Sunday and made just as much as the day girls in less time with less customers.

Breakfast/lunch eaters need to step up their game.

Anonymous said...

I am wondering, at a "nice" restaurant" at a golf course, and it's a buffet, what is the appropriate tip for a gal who made sure our coffee and water were full, but didn't need to do much else besides seat us, take our drink orders, and drop off the check. I didn't know, so I left the full 20% (atually, a hair more, since I rounded up, total bill was 155 with tip). Yes, it was mother's day brunch, if that matters (does it?, are we supposed to leave more on "holidays"?).

G

DMT said...

I'm not surprised you got a poor showing in general people are being made work more on holidays so theres isnt many people around to rush you off your feet. Over here St Patrick's day is the equivalent of your 4th of July so those of us who were unlucky enough to be called in to work it served about 4 customers an hour and spent the rest of the time in the kitchen drinking Irish coffees minus the coffee and cream.

The real pay dirt is in bank holiday Mondays because 2/3 of most businesses close or run on a skeleton crew so you're going to get a flash flood of people who go out because its the only chance they will get to and out or morons who think "Its a holiday nobody would ever think to go out on a holiday I'm so smart!" then get pissed off at the poor staff in the shops and restaurants when they find them jam packed.

Anonymous said...

Request off on Mother's Day? Not in Banquets...who will run food on the buffets?

Anonymous said...

Our managers usually schedule those who have kids for lunches on Mother's Day. A few mothers even had the day off on Sunday. Mother's Day was so bad for us this year that I told my manager that I'm going to get knocked up in the next 3 months so that I won't have to work on Mother's Day next year. She laughed, but secretly, I was a little serious. Wish me luck!

purplegirl said...

TheBlonde, I agree. Lunch freaking sucks!

The Guy -- are you sure she didn't do anything else? Clear away your used plates, bring you new ones, bring you napkins, serve dessert, keep the buffet line full, bring you condiments or such that weren't already out, clean and reset tables, etc.? Obviously I don't know how that place was, but when I worked buffets all of that was my job. I think it's great you left her the twenty percent, I bet few people did that day.

DMT, I think it was more the place I work. Other restaurants were swamped from open to close. We're just not the kind of place that people go for holiday meals. Which I obviously knew before, but I thought we'd have SOMETHING more!

Banquet Manager, I don't care who works next year, but it won't be me! I'm requesting that shit off in January!

EducatedServer, I've said much the same before! :) Of course everybody knows how much I hate crotchspawn so they didn't take me seriously. :)

SkippyMom said...

Mother's Day seems to be the day all the amateurs come out to eat. Sorry the tips sucked on such a hellacious shift.

Anonymous said...

Don't worry honey, I have had WAAAAYYY worse. I USED to work as a waitress, but I got sick of serving cunts at mothers day... or any other day.lol. Mothers THINK they can rewrite the rules for one day! I have self-seaters- arseholes who think they are clever by moving table numbers around without me seeing, and other demand to move furniture where it shouldn't be because they want thier "wife to feel special" meanwhile, the furniture is moved to an area that is BLOCKING A FRIE EXIT.

Meanwhile, it is fucking chaos!!! It's tooooo busy! Literally! So busy, YOU can't even do your job! As a result, I have quit the industry and I have no intention on going back! Waiter don't give a hit about your family. They are there for a pay cheque, so DON'T get under thier feet!