The Last Page

"The service was not so good," an acquaintance told me of the highly rated restaurant for which she had made reservations six months in advance. A waitress myself, I asked what she meant. Pausing, she came up with only one example: "They had to cross their arms to set the dishes down in the right places."

Listening to her talk about food service was like hearing her review a play. She thought she was paying waitstaff respect by appreciating the dignity of their art. A waiter should be polite and attractive, efficiently providing the right things at the right times with the perfect words to make you feel that you are eating the best food in the world. It is a peculiar role that we servers play.