Waiters, Waitresses: The Very Best

Wait staff and restauranteurs know that delivering the best service results in a generous gratuity, but also affects the bigger picture. Good service leads to repeat customers, higher profits, and ultimately higher salaries for such waiters and waitresses.

Writing from the diner’s own perspective, Norman W. Houston offers down-to-earth advice to wait staff, and the restaurant owners and managers who develop them, in Waiters, Waitresses: The Very Best. He reviews the tenets of good service throughout the entire dining experience, from the moment diners arrive and are seated through menu consultation and dining to table clearing and delivery of the bill. By spelling out diner preferences at each of these stages, Houston emphasizes that good tasting food alone doesn’t bring diners back to restaurants—mindful, empathetic service also leads to such improved business.