Many people turn to the restaurant industry for a career, a temporary job, or as a means to make some extra money on the side. But it can be an overwhelming and stressful job. You have to accommodate unruly guests, mistakes will inevitably be made, and the hustle and bustle of a dinner or brunch rush can be maddening, especially for those who are inexperienced.
This article will break down why brunch is the worst of all evils, from a server’s point of view. When you choose navy yard brunch, mimosas in Denver, or bloody mary’s on the ocean, keep this piece in mind as you’re being served next time.
It’s early. We’re tired, too
Brunch is always early, sometimes as early as 6 or 7 a.m. Servers are notoriously night people as well. Because of this, brunch is hell, especially if you closed the night before, which happens often in the business. Servers have to wake themselves up with coffee and food before they can function in bringing you those things. Be patient with servers in the morning, and they’ll likely take care of you better than they would otherwise.
Hands are always full
First of all, take a look around. How many tables is your server taking on at once? Five? Are they working the bar as well? Take note of his expressions and speed. If they are particularly flustered or have their hands full, take a beat and gather your patience, as their morning is likely going worse than yours. Many servers are responsible for making brunch drinks as well.
While bloody mary’s and mimosas aren’t the most complex cocktails in the world, when you add them to taking orders, placing orders, running food, checking the kitchen, bringing checks to tables, cashing them out, etc., it’s simply another thing on the never-ending list of things to do.
The line never ends
Also, how long is the wait? If you’ve been waiting for a long time and finally get to sit down, continue to practice patience. This is a good sign. It shows the restaurant is successful if people are waiting an hour or longer for a table. On the other hand, if you got a table right off the bat, and still haven’t been served after a long time, it could be a bad sign. But still continue to be patient; there could be an issue in the kitchen or another problem that is out of your server’s control. Too often a server is flamed for being the messenger of a kitchen issue or something they can’t control.
But spoiler alert: it’s best practice for servers to always blame the kitchen. They don’t see the customers, servers do. Kitchen workers may not like it, but that’s the nature of the business. When you’re constantly trying to please tables, and more and more keep rolling in the door, you have to make do, even if you made a mistake as the server.
Small checks
Compared to a dinner shift, where you might make a good deal of money off of higher check balances and therefore higher tips, brunch bills are very small. It makes sense because the ingredients are cheap. Eggs and bacon and toast and pancakes are easy to sell, but you can’t charge much for them. Many checks will be close to 10 or 15 dollars, leaving you with a relatively small tip for a relatively large amount of work and running around.
Restaurants have combated this with innovations like craft mimosas for more money, pancake flights, eggs benedict, and other items they can charge more for. But the money-making comes from the volume of guests, not the check prices. This means you often work harder for the same amount of money you’d get on another shift.
Grumpy guests
Considering people often have to wait a long time to get a table for brunch, and it’s generally their first meal of the day, they’re likely to get grumpy easily. Whether they’ve just repented at church or not is apparently irrelevant; now is time to eat, so bring me my eggs!
Plus, you’re often juggling multiple guests at once. In the restaurant business, mistakes are as common as getting something right. Something is bound to go wrong, upsetting a table and throwing off your flow as a server. It only takes one complicated table to mess up the whole operation, which is why servers have to walk on eggshells throughout their brunch shifts. Don’t get us wrong, we make more than our share of mistakes, but we generally make it up to you.
It makes you dread weekends
If you have a brunch shift Saturday or Sunday morning, your night before is shot. Now, that doesn’t mean servers don’t go out and still be degenerates. But we pay for it the next morning on the shift. You may say, “That’s your fault for going out so late when you know you have to work early.” To that, we respond, have you ever worked in a restaurant? You have to have fun somehow. There isn’t a shift that doesn’t get in the way of your social life, especially since weekends are where the money is.
While others are off work enjoying a nice brunch meal, servers are working for hours and watching you in your luxury. It’s something to think about
Conclusion
Brunch is largely considered the worst among restaurant shifts. The checks are small, the volume is high, the customers are difficult, and it’s early as hell out here. The next time you go out for brunch with your family and friends, simply treat your server with kindness and respect and understand that it’s a difficult time and shift to be working.
In business, it’s considered a necessary evil. It’s a dreadful shift, but it can make you lots of money considering the number of customers you’ll be seeing from early morning to mid-afternoon. But it’s certainly not fun. There are large parties, the notorious after-church crowd, plenty of children, and added responsibilities compared to other shifts, such as making breakfast cocktails.
On the other hand, servers love going to brunch on their days off. It’s a personal luxury when you can finally be on the other side. But we know the importance of praising the server, tipping them well, and treating them with patience, respect, and kindness while we’re there.