You Make Me Sick!

So I've been battling bronchitis and a mean cough for about a month now, so let's talk today about some restaurant health issues that arise in the fall when the weather changes, allergies are bad, and everybody's got the sniffles.  There are a few things people do in restaurants that every waiter despises, advances the spread of germs, and are considered against the rules of etiquette.

-You would be surprised how many restaurant guests leave crumpled up tissues on the table, and the elderly are notorious for this.  First of all, if you need to blow your nose during a meal, you should excuse yourself from the table to the restroom anyway; it's just good manners to not honk in a dining room.  So please simply dispose of the tissue there.  And next time you take grandma out to lunch and you notice she forgot to put her tissue back in her sleeve, just remind her to grab it so I don't need tongs to bus the table.

-Linen napkins are absolutely not for blowing one's nose.  You may not believe it, but it happens.  Again, you can't blow your nose with a linen napkin in the restroom.  Also, do not cast your linen napkin on top of your entree plate as a sign you are finished or for any other reason really.  That means I've got to touch it before I drop the plate oft to be washed, right after you've wiped your mouth with it.  And as much as I wash my hands during a shift, there just isn't time to do it after I clear each table.  Simply leave it in your lap and leave it on the table when you exit so it can be rolled up in a table cloth or cleared by a bus person who doesn't serve food.

-I had a couple in on a first date last weekend, and the lady went to the restroom after I cleared their dinners.  When I lifted her napkin from her chair to fold it and return it to her place setting (just a thing good servers do), chunks of chewed up steak were cast out of it onto the table and floor.  Enough said.

Throughout a shift, silverware, glasses, coffee cups, bread- you name it, pass through many server's hands, hands that share a touch screen, the phone, and objects that gather germs.  Just help us out a little to keep our paws clean so we can avoid getting you, other guests, and ourselves sick.  Thanks, and remember, 20% is always accepted.