Fine Dining - how long would you wait for service

Tonight I had a fine dining shop where the server did not greet us at the table after being seated by the hostess. I waited for 12 minutes before asking another server nearby for assistance. She then got us our server who apologized for the long wait. As with most MSC's the instructions mention not making a problem or big issue. So how long would you have waited? I felt 12 minutes was more time than a reasonable customer would have waited for service but maybe I was being overly cautious.

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IMHO on fine dining your server should be all over you like flies on honey. 12 minutes is outrageous. It is certainly not a 'big issue' to start looking for assistance within a few minutes of being seated. If I have already perused the menu, it is time for somebody to BE THERE and an apology doesn't start to compensate for the time being ignored. Times like that it irks the heck out of me to be expected to leave an 18% or more tip. They deserve 2 pennies left under the plate they forgot to bus.

I agree and if this had not been a mystery shop I would have requested service after about 2 minutes. However I was concerned about not making an issue out of anything so kept silent for a lot longer than normal. There was obviously a mix up in table assignments but no one seemed to notice us. It will all be duly reported on my review.

They key in this case is to know the standards for the particular client you are evaluating, and not to apply your own standard for how long is too long. The restaurant have most likely given you their opinion on how soon you should have been greeted. I'm guessing it was one of the first questions in the service section of the report.

Some have a standard to greet the guest at the table within 1 minute. Other are 2 minutes and I have seen 5 minutes as well. Once you are well past the time allowed for the standard (I would double it to be safe), you are not impacting the scoring in any way by prompting for service.

Agreed. I recently did a casual dining restaurant where there were no menus available when we sat down. It took 20 minutes for us to get menus brought to us. I might have asked sooner, but I was curious how long it would take. I also didn't factor in how much longer it would make the whole evening take.

I would have whiplash from making eye contact with everyone that walked past the table. You can scream for service with a stare and solid eye contact with everyone that walks by without saying a word. As soon as I exceeded the maximum time they should greet the table, I would go into that mode. I think any normal customer would as well.

I once had someone seated at a table next to me that would raise their hand and start snapping fingers every time they wanted something and were completely demeaning to the server. When they left, I could not help but to turn around and glance at the bill to see what kind of tip they left as they left it open on the table. They tortured the waitress and left 10%. She was a trooper and did not allow that behavior to influence her upbeat and cheerful demeanor at her other three tables. She got a 20% tip from me and a great report.

I had to go back and read some of my online reviews from years ago. Five minutes appears to be my threshold. I've left restaurants after waiting five minutes at the host desk. If already seated, after five minutes I am looking for a manager, host, any staff member that recognizes me by eye contact. At that point, if I am ignored by anyone or can't find someone, I leave; unless I'm with someone that asks me to be more patient.

As for a mystery shop, after five minutes I'd think it normal to walk to the front and inquire about things, hoping to see a manager or host on the way.

I'm the kind of person that will grab place settings off of an empty table if my server isn't taking care of me, and of course I need either part of or the entire setting. I'll even walk to the setup area if the tables near by are empty. On rare occasions I will put my empty/dirty plates on a table near by if I need the room and the staff is ignoring the plates well into the next part of our service.

My posts are solely based on my opinions and for my entertainment, contact a professional if you need real advice.

When you get in debt you become a slave. - Andrew Jackson

@scanman1 wrote:

I would have whiplash from making eye contact with everyone that walked past the table. You can scream for service with a stare and solid eye contact with everyone that walks by without saying a word. As soon as I exceeded the maximum time they should greet the table, I would go into that mode. I think any normal customer would as .

We actually did that. We tried to make eye contact as the various employees, including the manager ,as they walked by. It was as if they had tunnel vision or were looking through us but not at us. We also held up our menus and waved them around a bit. Other than the lack of attention, I think it was the classic case of being seated in an area that was not assigned a server. We were in sort of a no man's land. They tried to make up for it later but the damage was done. Should be interesting reading for them when they get the report. It will be a while before we feel comfortable going back there for another shop. We will be memorable. I actually hope they review the video.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/15/2015 04:30PM by kenasch.

@scanman1 wrote:

As soon as I exceeded the maximum time they should greet the table, I would go into that mode. I think any normal customer would as well.

My advice of doubling the time set by the client is based on the fact that many have exceptions, based on a restaurant being busy or short a staff member. If you call someone over after exactly 2 minutes had passed and mark them down for not greeting you in time, you are not offering them the chance to greet you in 2.5 minutes, which might just be acceptable if the restaurant was over 50% capacity.

Normal customers would also not be keeping track of that time, or doing many of the things that shoppers do. There are rude customers and polite customers, but you are not a normal customer when you are on a shop. You are simply getting paid to act like a normal customer...a normal polite customer.

I agree with @SteveSoCal about doubling the expected time before taking the next step. If you asked for assistance you're interfering with what could be their natural timeline. You have to give them the opportunity to have an imperfect shop.

As for what an actual customer would do...One thing that surprised me when I first started timing things as a mystery shopper, was how short the time is before I start feeling neglected and impatient. I'm a pretty patient, laid back west coaster. If you'd asked me as a "normal" diner prior to mystery shopping, I would have estimated a long wait as about 8-10 minutes, but in reality they've got just over 4 minutes before I get in finger-tapping, "where is everyone?" mode. In a retail situation, if they're not with customers they've got less than a minute. In fast food, it's maybe 10 seconds. I think many a customer at an upscale restaurant would have gotten up and left if not acknowledged after 12 minutes.

In other words, I don't think that politely asking another server for assistance after 10 minutes counts as making a big problem or issue.

We are all here on earth to help others....What on earth the others are here for I don't know.

--W. H. Auden

@SteveSoCal wrote:

@scanman1 wrote:

As soon as I exceeded the maximum time they should greet the table, I would go into that mode. I think any normal customer would as well.

My advice of doubling the time set by the client is based on the fact that many have exceptions, based on a restaurant being busy or short a staff member. If you call someone over after exactly 2 minutes had passed and mark them down for not greeting you in time, you are not offering them the chance to greet you in 2.5 minutes, which might just be acceptable if the restaurant was over 50% capacity.

Normal customers would also not be keeping track of that time, or doing many of the things that shoppers do. There are rude customers and polite customers, but you are not a normal customer when you are on a shop. You are simply getting paid to act like a normal customer...a normal polite customer.

If the time restriction to greet was 2.5 minutes, I would not go into whiplash mode until at least 6 minutes.

A normal polite customer would be looking to see who the server is and staring them down OMHO by then.

I would not do any more then the eye contact and follow them with my head no matter how long it took.

As another laid back west coaster who was originally a laid back east coaster, i generally wait a really long time to get service. I do not go looking for people. I will flag down the server with eye contact if possible if I need them mid meal to refill a glass they have neglected or to bring a condiment I need but I generally will wait for the initial greeting as long as it takes...and then of course I would write that length of time up. In actuality I am usually perusing the menu and discussing options with my dining partner for a long time myself so I do not notice the time passing. Only my timing device knows the answer to that question when I get home.

Has anyone seen the movie Waiting? My wife and I would never make waves as a normal customer, but during a fine dining shop, it's a tad bit more difficult! I don't think the OP was unreasonable with her time frame. However, when you're paying $200 plus, wouldn't it be nice to sit back, relax and enjoy excellent service?!

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Fine Dining - how long would you wait for service

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