The other night my wife and I met three other couples for dinner at a nice restaurant. The food was great, but the service ended on a sour note.
Our server got lazy. His attitude toward the end of our experience reminded me that sometimes people don’t do what is requested – or even expected – simply because they don’t want to make the little
extra effort to take care of their customers. Let me share what happened.At the end of the evening, the server asked if we would like to split the check four ways. That’s how I typically do it – just divide the check by four. However, one of my friends had a special request. He said, “I ordered some expensive drinks and an extra appetizer, so I’m sure my portion was more than the others. Would you mind splitting up the check based on what we ordered?”
The server thought about it and said, “I would, but I can’t remember who ordered what.” Then he added, “By the way, for parties of eight or more there’s an automatic 18% gratuity added.”Now, I didn’t mind how the check was split, but I did mind how he responded to my friend’s request. He remembered well enough to make sure that the right person received the right salads, appetizers, main courses, and drinks. How could he suddenly claim amnesia?My wife knew right away what was going through my mind, and I knew what was going through hers. She was praying that I wouldn’t say anything, and I didn’t.But here I am today, still thinking about what happened. It was obvious to me that the server was too lazy to take a few extra minutes to split up the check. It was a slow Monday night, so time wasn’t an issue. He just chose not to do it.Related:
The Difference Between “Surprise and Delight” and Just “Delight”Honoring an inconvenient request is one thing, and probably not expected. But doing something small that takes little or no extra effort should not be a big deal – especially when you’re depending upon a nice gratuity for the effort. But, even that shouldn’t matter.
One of the nicest expressions of appreciation to a customer is giving them a little extra time. Sometimes it’s time on the phone to explain something. Sometimes it’s spending a few minutes building rapport and a better relationship. And sometimes it’s just doing a little math to split up a check.The point is, don’t be lazy. Don’t take the easy way out. You don’t necessarily have to
go the extra mile, but consider going the extra inch. It’s almost always noticed and appreciated.
