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Nah, it's more of a cultural thing. In the US, waitstaff is expected to be attentive and stop by constantly. In other countries, they're expected to leave you a

Nah, it's more of a cultural thing. In the US, waitstaff is expected to be attentive and stop by constantly. In other countries, they're expected to leave you alone unless you need them, so you can enjoy your meal without being annoyed. For example, in many countries, they'll never approach you or bring you a check until you flag them down to ask. I think it's less about tipping, and more about customs.

GordonS 10y ago
Totally agree with this; customers in different countries have different expectations. Personally, when I've eaten in the US I've found the waiting staff to be annoying - I just want to be left alone to eat, not pestered with fake smiles and boring pleasantries because they want a tip.
concerned_user 10y ago
That actually might explain the problem. I live in EU, at my local cafe place which is quite large ~40 tables I usually see 2 cooks, 1 barista and 3 servers even when its 90% full in the evening (1-2 servers in the morning or during day when its 50% full). Yes, wait times are quite long, usually takes good 20 minutes and you only interact with a server 3 times at most, when you make an order, they bring you food and when they bring you receipt. I can see that to provide the level of service described, frequent checking in on tables etc you would need probably 5-6 servers so the costs would go up significantly. Regarding customs, yes I definitely prefer servers to get me my food and get out of the way, and it is considered normal. I mainly go out to eat to spend time with friends/colleagues and no to eat, so I guess in Europe cafe is mostly seen as a place to have a chat rather than eat. I never saw waiters actually try and turn tables even when the place is full and there are some tables where people finished eating, paid for the food and just sit there chatting for a good hour. Yes it is considered rude to do that when place is full but it is more of cultural thing.
- jaclaz 10y ago
  Italy here. Speaking of restaurants (not "cafe's") i.e. where you actually have lunch or dinner, (which means normally at least two courses) the number of servers is function of the level of the place, it is more or less "coded". The range goes from "bad" or "slow" service which is 1 server every 25 people to "excellent" or "fast/responsive" which is 1 server every 8 people. You won't find 1/25 if not in really cheap places, nor 1/8 if not in really expensive ones, average is 1/12 to 1/16. Leaving the table free after having eaten is exclusively cultural, no waiter will ever dare to tell you to free the table or bring you the bill if not asked for, with the rare exception of long time customers with which there is confidence, in which case the waiter may ask this as a personal favour, on the other hand any long time customer will notice that the place is full and leave the table free as soon as possible. Good restaurants (and capable waiters) can understand from a number of signals if you are in just for a quick meal or if you are in for a meal at leisure and serve you accordingly.

GordonS 10y ago

Totally agree with this; customers in different countries have different expectations. Personally, when I've eaten in the US I've found the waiting staff to be annoying - I just want to be left alone to eat, not pestered with fake smiles and boring pleasantries because they want a tip.

concerned_user 10y ago

That actually might explain the problem. I live in EU, at my local cafe place which is quite large ~40 tables I usually see 2 cooks, 1 barista and 3 servers even when its 90% full in the evening (1-2 servers in the morning or during day when its 50% full). Yes, wait times are quite long, usually takes good 20 minutes and you only interact with a server 3 times at most, when you make an order, they bring you food and when they bring you receipt. I can see that to provide the level of service described, frequent checking in on tables etc you would need probably 5-6 servers so the costs would go up significantly. Regarding customs, yes I definitely prefer servers to get me my food and get out of the way, and it is considered normal. I mainly go out to eat to spend time with friends/colleagues and no to eat, so I guess in Europe cafe is mostly seen as a place to have a chat rather than eat. I never saw waiters actually try and turn tables even when the place is full and there are some tables where people finished eating, paid for the food and just sit there chatting for a good hour. Yes it is considered rude to do that when place is full but it is more of cultural thing.

jaclaz 10y ago
Italy here. Speaking of restaurants (not "cafe's") i.e. where you actually have lunch or dinner, (which means normally at least two courses) the number of servers is function of the level of the place, it is more or less "coded". The range goes from "bad" or "slow" service which is 1 server every 25 people to "excellent" or "fast/responsive" which is 1 server every 8 people. You won't find 1/25 if not in really cheap places, nor 1/8 if not in really expensive ones, average is 1/12 to 1/16. Leaving the table free after having eaten is exclusively cultural, no waiter will ever dare to tell you to free the table or bring you the bill if not asked for, with the rare exception of long time customers with which there is confidence, in which case the waiter may ask this as a personal favour, on the other hand any long time customer will notice that the place is full and leave the table free as soon as possible. Good restaurants (and capable waiters) can understand from a number of signals if you are in just for a quick meal or if you are in for a meal at leisure and serve you accordingly.