The World of Waiters Book Review Jacob Jenkins The Ohio State University Abstract This book begins with the author examining why he chose the hotel industry, narrowing down the ethical dilemma in gathering the information needed to conduct the research. The author describes what service is and gives the reader a chance to understand the various relationships involved in a dining experience, whether it be behind the scenes or merely out in the dining area. Narrowing further, the author examines the service given to customers; looking at the serving style of whether to treat the customer as a friend or as a professional, and observing who gets the upper hand, the waiter or customer. Finally, the book wraps up the …show more content…
In this review, we will look at the strengths and weaknesses of the book, the overall opinion of what the book tells the reader, and discuss the relation to class concepts. Strengths and Weaknesses The author makes clear his ethical dilemma in the research process. For example, when they first started their research, they struggled to evaluate the discretion level given to those they were researching. Either Nicod could tell the truth about why he was there or he could not say anything in order to record honest behavior. If Nicod decided to pursue the former, then he could have recorded bias behavior because they did research and found that management and staff showed “hostility to outsiders, and particularly to researchers (Mars & Nicod, 1984, p. 14). Given the type of research and how it would affect the behavior and be limited to only the coworkers who had nothing to hide or limited loss to exposure. Ultimately, they concluded that they would proceed with undercover research. They further explain that they “have done little or nothing to damage our subjects’ personal reputations, because every effort has been made to mitigate the ethical offence. In the first place, we have omitted names and changed other irrelevant facts to protect the identity, and therefore the privacy, of those involved” (p. 14). Another strength was that the examination really let the reader dive into this world and can process what the waiter is thinking, how they control
Spradley and Mann chose to do their research at Brady’s bar because it is an ordinary setting where they could study interactions between male and female. First, Brady’s Bar provided a setting to define the female role. Secondly, it is a place where both male and female interactions are important and reflect traditional aspects of larger society. Lastly, the traditional aspects of Brady’s signified the traditional view of how women should present themselves as passive sex objects whose status is of lower hierarchy than men.
In relation to hospitality and catering, the non-commercial or “public” sector exists in the form of hospitals and institutes of education. Organisations in the commercial sector are privately owned and exist solely to find a niche to exploit to make money. While money-making is still a factor in the private sector, it is not the main goal. With the primary goal, demographic and expectations of the target audience, along with location and budget, all taken into account, different areas of the hospitality and catering industry begin to differ widely.
Overall the book was a good read and touched on some various topics that are discussed in our class.
This book is divided into four main sections, and I’ll be talking about the most important sections and the most important chapters in it.
Hotels and Restaurants,. (1992). retrieved September 10 2015, from Cornell University Law School Web Site: https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/hotels_and_restaurants
Overall I do not recommend this book for you to read, or for a class to read, because of it’s poor details, poor writing in my opinion, very boring, and it’s very
So what is the most important thing in a restaurant? You’d think it would be food. In a talk given by Thomas Keller, a restaurant owner, about what excellent food does to a restaurant, Mr. Keller talks a lot about the quality of food, and a customers experience. The experience that one has in a restaurant is something that should be completely about the consumer. If the consumer does not have a good experience at a restaurant, there is a good chance that he or she will not come back. The quality of the food at a restaurant can depend a lot on the quality of ingredients. It’s important to always have the
A. This part of the report will cover an overview of the books strengths, weaknesses, and recommendations.
At almost all sit-down restaurants in the United States, tipping is the well-known practice learned at an early age by young Americans. However, recently a bit of controversy over the subject has arisen. For some reasons, many people that enjoy the environment and service at sit down restaurants want to abolish the custom of leaving a tip for the individuals whom provide the experience, servers. As a server, I completely disagree and can adequately counter argue their “reasoning” for abolishing the tradition. As a result, tipping a server for their service naturally makes for a satisfied customer, a successful restaurant business, and a happy server.
Waiters usually get more of their income through tips (Brickley, Smith & Zimmerman pg., 378). Since many restaurants require a minimum of 15 percent tip for parties or more, why the practice of tipping has emerged as a major method of compensating the wait staff, and why customers typically decide on the amount of tip, and why restaurants require tips from larger parties (Brickley, Smith & Zimmerman pg., 378).
There’s a fine line between an obnoxious, superfluous server, and a thoughtful, attentive one. Furthermore, a dining experience shouldn’t be impersonal or terribly intimate. The Spaghetti Warehouse offers a haimish environment that is good for large parties and small dinners out. The unique restaurant features a train car running through the middle of the dining room where guests can eat their food. The Spaghetti Warehouse also features two unique party rooms upstairs, and an entire downstairs area fit for parties and live music. The eatery is equipped with the latest technology but uses it wisely and in good taste. Olive Garden’s environment is family friendly, however, the visit can easily become boring and impersonal. When the guest is seated at their table, they are given the option to use a small computer sitting on their table. This small computer enables the guest to order all of their food without even making contact with the server. This misuse of technology can easily make the dining experience flop, and quickly puts Olive Garden in second place for good, humble
The Portman Hotel executives were committed to keeping both their guest and employees happy. The vision that would separate The Portman from the competition was “personal valets” (PVs). These PVs were responsible to every need of a guest. This included everything from cleaning and restocking the rooms, to more personalized services like pressing the guest’s clothes, preparing the guest’s drinks, or drawing a guest’s bath. As long the requests from the guests were legal and moral it was the PVs
I decided to conduct my field observation in the great state of Louisiana. I had a business trip to the party capital of the world, New Orleans. The bar scene was the perfect setting to observe a diverse group of people for a long period of time without bringing attention or suspicion to myself.
“Hello, my name is Stephanie and I will be taking care of you tonight.” This is my routine that sounds rather scripted. Waitressing is just one of the many roles in my life. Wait staff almost have a script for how to handle customers. Being a waitress is a positive role in my life. It is something I can enjoy while doing and work with people who appreciate working with me. This is one of my favorite roles that I have had in my life. Waitressing has made me a more open person. I have learned many different things in these two years of waitressing. There are certain expectations that all customers have upon entering a restaurant. Within waitressing, my role consists of serving customers, working with other wait staff, cooperating with
Customer service is very important element in hospitality industry. A good restaurant or a good hotel always have an excellent service first. Hotels and restaurants put added value in their products and service make guest love it. Some hotels give guest drink when they arrived or prepare small birthday gifts to their loyalty guests. But sometimes hotels spend lots of money to added value of customers’ experience but customers still don’t like their service. So, what’s happening? Hotels gave service and improved service are not customers needed or most needed. That’s the gap between you and your customer. “You know your hotel inside out, but do you ever see it through your guests' eyes? In many cases, there is a disconnect between what hoteliers think