Reply #14: I agree and disagree [View All]

[Susang]

I agree that you should write the letter, complain, etc.. Voice your opinions and complaints, it's what management is for.

However, I do not believe restaurant service has declined. I believe customer entitlement has skyrocketed. When I started my first restaurant job (J. Ross Browne's Whaling Station in Kalamazoo, Michigan 1984), customers were far more polite, friendly and understanding. They realized that humans actually had to make their drinks and food, therefore mistakes could and would happen. I had no experience when I was hired and although I tried my best, I was certainly not perfect. Most of the time people were kind and understanding of my rookie errors.

At my most recent job (an extremely high end boutique restaurant in Chicago) I was routinely abused by customers, insulted, berated, and humiliated, most often for things out of my control. This attitude is exacerbated by hunger and alcohol to an amazing extent. I have been physically assaulted, verbally abused and it actually seems that the nicer I tried to be to them, the ruder they were to me.

I've kept a journal of my experiences ever since college and upon re-reading them, I discovered that the service you feel is diminishing is actually a reflection of the entitlement that most Americans seem to feel when dealing with service employees. So I left the restaurant business and moved temporarily to an area of retail where I do not have to deal with customers face to face any longer. The customers are still demanding, but they no longer can claim control of my income.