7 Things Guests Do That Hospitality Staff Find Extremely Annoying
Anyone who has worked in hospitality can probably pull out a whole stack of stories about rude or irritating guest behavior. Inevitably, guests then comment on how inhospitable and unkind these staff revelations are, and so the wheels keep turning forever…
So this time, the microphone goes back to hospitality workers who sometimes find guests’ behavior unbearable—and there will surely be plenty to draw from guests’ responses for a follow-up article written ‘the other way around’… But for now, here are the answers from hospitality workers and colleagues to the question: what behavior from hospitality guests do you find super annoying?
Talking over everyone
Josh: “When you say you’re going to start taking orders at one side of the table and everyone starts shouting at you at the same time about what they want to eat.”
I can see your mouth moving, but I can’t hear you
Jordan: “When I say I’m going to get a carafe of water for them and they immediately ask for water.”
Woof woof
Elizabeth: “Being barked at by guests. I’m not a dog.”
And so there followed a whole string of guest actions that simply hurt these unfortunate staff members a little:
Free isn’t good enough
“When people complain about the free bread.”
Could you clean this up?
“When guests sit down at a table I haven’t cleaned yet of their own accord, and then complain that the table is dirty.”
Look, there’s a spot
“When people put their empty, dirty plates on a clean table next to theirs.”
The whole species
“What do I find worst as a waitress? People. That says enough.”
Put your best foot forward
It seems that now hospitality venues are fully reopening (until late), everyone has to get used to one another again. How did that go again? Of course, not all experiences with guests are unpleasant—quite the opposite; many people work in hospitality because interacting with guests can be so enjoyable and rewarding, and because you can genuinely give guests a great evening.
But of course, it’s difficult to remain friendly when someone crosses your boundaries. As one waiter puts it: “when you just have to keep smiling at every kind of rude behavior, it feels as though, in this profession, you’re not allowed to expect to be treated in a human way.”
Also read:
- Don’t be a jerk: 10 things you shouldn’t do or say in hospitality
- Eddie’s dining pet peeves: that stuck-up waiter at the table
- 11 ridiculous restaurant orders
Source: Bored Panda
