She must have asked to refill our drinks a dozen times. Call me cynical, but if you're a waitress and you look at someone's glass and its still 3/4 full, why would you ask if they want a refill already? Its still 3/4 full!
Seemingly 10 minutes after we began to eat she asked us if we needed a take-home box. Um, no, we're still eating. After the 2nd time she asked if we need a take-home box, Steve said to us after she left our table "Look at us. Do we look like we don't finish our meals?"
She must have asked if we were "doing okay" 2 dozen times. I wanted to say "Yes, we're still doing okay. If we need anything we'll get your attention during one of the 8,000 times you pass our table", but instead I just smiled and said "Yes, thanks." Then she said "Okay, I just wanted to make sure." Make sure??? As if maybe we really don't know if we're doing fine?
Granted the restaurant was less than 1/2 occupied so she didn't have a lot of customers requiring her services. But that doesn't give her the right to harass people who are trying to eat and talk. It seemed like every time we'd get into a conversation about something she was there to interrupt with questions about refills and take-home boxes. I felt as if I needed to talk really fast so I could finish my statement before she returned.
The clincher is when she came to our table while we were talking about Whitney Houston's new album and how she doesn't sound the same due to all that screaming "Bobbaaaaaaayyy!!". Uninvited, the 17-year old (or so) waitress says to me "Aw, you shouldn't talk that way about me" and smiled.
I had no idea what she was referring to. I just looked at her for a minute, puzzled, and said "What? I wasn't talking about you." What I really meant was "I wasn't talking TO you."
Then she had the gull to say to me "Oh, you really are a true blond. I was just joking with you!" and walked away. I cocked my head to the side, blinked a few times, and said to my dinner companions "Oh, no she betta di'nt!!!"
Obviously, there were multiple things wrong with that:
- I was having a conversation with my friends - NOT with you!
- We were talking about Whitney Houston. Your name is Reina, so why would you think I was talking about you?
- It is not funny when you interject a comment that is irrelevant into a conversation you were not invited to join.
- It is not a "joke" when you basically call a customer a dumb blond.
The crazy part about it is that I really don't think she was trying to be a smart ass. I don't think she meant to be offensive or overly familiar. I really do think she was just young and unable to determine the correct level of interaction with her customers.
One thing is for sure: if she is our waitress again some day, I will have to find a polite way to tell her to back off or else she's not getting a tip!
Crush du Jour: Ben Bilic
