302684 Thu Oct 27 15:52:33 -0700 2005 22 29 Not About Food 0 1696322 A pet peeve of mine is when my dining companion's clean plate is cleared from the table while I'm still eating. I'm not talking guerrilla warfare busing (salad and bread plate removed while fork is halfway to my mouth), althought that also annoys me as does rapid fire courses (but that is a different thread). I am not completely unforgiving. In more casual places and at informal lunch and at breakfast it doesn't bother me as much. I'm not exactly sure what my criteria is for when this becomes unacceptable .... maybe a table cloth and cloth napkin or a per person price. But am I the only one? I know it is a very remote possibility and completely out of character(hee hee), but is there a chance that I'm just being way too uptight? And I'm not a slow eater! Also, what can I do to stave off this occurence? Thu Oct 27 15:52:33 -0700 2005 0 Lizard 1 1696325 I also prefer it when all the plates all cleared only when the last diner is finished eating - and I think that is how it is "supposed" to be done, at least in "fine dining" locales. And, I guess the reason it is annoying is that it seems to suggest either that the diners still eating are too slow, or that the restaurant/waiter is in a rush to get the table out of the joint. Don't know how to stave it off - once that plate is whisked away, it's hard to get back! Thu Oct 27 16:42:10 -0700 2005 1696322 0 MMRuth 2 1696339 the old school was (or still is?) plates should be cleared simultaneously not one by one. Thu Oct 27 19:17:22 -0700 2005 1696325 0 byrd 1 1696326 This has come up before. There are several issues involved. First, I agree about not clearing the plates. It makes the "slower" person feel rushed. Secondly, I was taught that ideally, the "faster" person should pace themselves and try not to finish much before their companion. Sometimes this is possible, sometimes it is more difficult. An argument in the other direction is that folks do not like to look at dirty dishes. Well, if everyone followed the guidelines in my second point, that would not be an issue. That being said, I tend to be a "fast" eater and think it should also be the responsibility of the "slow" eater to pay attention and try to at least eat a fork-full occasionally if they notice that they are behind. Everyone needs to work in concert to make sure there are no huge gaps. Just my two cents. Thu Oct 27 16:49:01 -0700 2005 1696322 0 LizR 2 1696335 I don't think we all have to pace our eating to remain even! I have to say, I don't love sitting with an empty plate in front of me. I prefer it to being rushed, certainly, but I most appreciate it when the servers notice and ask me if they should take the plate away. That said, I'm usually the 'slow one', so perhaps I don't have enough experience. Thu Oct 27 18:27:15 -0700 2005 1696326 0 pitu 3 1696342 My husband eats really fast...so he actually stops halfway thru his meal (puts his fork down) to let me "catch up", or tries to leave something on his plate so the waiter won't take it :-) Kind of sad that we have to play games to get the wait staff to do it right, huh? Thu Oct 27 21:48:44 -0700 2005 1696335 0 Aimee 4 1696344 exactly! Just wait until everyone is done, please! Thu Oct 27 21:58:36 -0700 2005 1696342 0 Lizard 5 1696369 But then you get clientele who say in a peeved voice "can you take my plate and do you have dessert menu?" I once asked a woman if she wouldn't like to wait for her mother to finish first. It really is difficult when we all have different expectations. Fri Oct 28 14:31:19 -0700 2005 1696344 0 LizK 6 1696371 Absolutely. I've worked in several restaurants and I've had managers differ wildly on their opinions re: when to remove plates. It's not easy for servers to predict what their boss or the folks at their table will be offended by! Fri Oct 28 18:01:54 -0700 2005 1696369 0 KB 3 1696386 I'm not necessarily suggesting some kind of rigidness, just an awareness of what the others at the table are doing. Especially at high-end places, I think that the meal is much more enjoyable if everyone pays some attention to the pace. I would think that this might make it easier for the kitchen as well, especially with a testing menu. Also, if I find myself way behind everyone else, it is usually a pretty good indication that I have been talking too much and should shut up! Sun Oct 30 17:38:40 -0800 2005 1696335 0 LizR 1 1696346 This practice drives me crazy as well. It should not happen in "better" places, and seldom does, in my experience, but I'm convinced that in many restaurants the waiters are encouraged to clean plates as quickly as possible in the belief that this represents good and attentive service. I imagine that the reasoning goes that people don't like to look at empty, dirty plates, so efficient service consists of clearing empty plates as soon as they are noticed, with no thought whatever given to the diners who are still eating. I don't think that you can do much about it unless you specifically ask the waiter, waitress or busboy early in the meal to leave the plates until everyone is done eating. I would expect them to honor your request, even if they think you're a mite strange. (I usually do not say anything but sometimes I glare at the waiter in silence. So far as I can tell, this approach has never accomplished anything positive.) Thu Oct 27 23:08:34 -0700 2005 1696322 0 MDekay 2 1696350 Boy are you wrong, at least in fairly mid-to-high end places. It is common knowledge and common practice that no plates are to be cleared until everyone is done. The only wrench in the works is when either one person is VERY slow or if there is no way to know if everyone is done. Experienced diners know that you signal that you are done by putting your knife and fork together at 4o'clock. Unfortunately, not everyone does that. Fri Oct 28 03:08:35 -0700 2005 1696346 0 srr 3 1696362 It sure would be nice if everyone (diners and waitstaff alike) would learn the "knife and fork at 4 o'clock" signal. It would have the added benefit of eliminating the near-ubiquitous and intensely annoying "You still workin' on that?" Fri Oct 28 13:37:40 -0700 2005 1696350 0 FlyFish 4 1696363 ...near-ubiquitous and intensely annoying "You still workin' on that?" Ouch. Nails on a chalkboard. I really detest that phrase. You can almost see the gum-snapping as the question is asked. Fri Oct 28 13:39:45 -0700 2005 1696362 0 Linda W. 5 1696367 Where I work that phrase "you still working on that" is outlawed, although you often get customers who use the phrase. The same thing happens with the plate clearing. We are instructed not to clear plates until everyone is done. However, we also clear plates if people push them to the side so that they can lean on the table or stack them. Fri Oct 28 14:28:24 -0700 2005 1696363 0 LizK 6 1696375 And don't forget the customers who (like in the story another poster mentioned) prefer and expect their plates cleared as soon as they're finished. I hate when I'm dining and the server or busser clears plates too early, but I can remember tons of times when customers have asked (often none too politely) for their plates to be removed. Sat Oct 29 12:06:07 -0700 2005 1696367 0 nc213 2 1696356 I recall with horror a battle in the restaurant of the Marriot Courtyard in Page AZ in 1996. My father and I were celebrating my AZ sister's birthday. Waitress came to clear my father's plate when he was done, he instructed her to wait until we were all done. She came again when I was done, and we reiterated the instruction. She got tired of waiting for my sister to finish (we were not abusing the time; it seems the waitress wanted to get to her break, but that is speculation), and so she tried to take the unifinished meal from my sister. My sister held onto her plate. There was a tug of war. My sister won, as it were. The waitress did not get a tip, and management was told why. Fri Oct 28 10:26:51 -0700 2005 1696346 0 Karl S. 1 1696347 Major pet peeve of mine. Especially on business lunches and dinners. If out socially, occasionally I will remark to the offending waiter or captain "too bad you/they took my plate, I was just about to order another dish. But, too late now" I just find it offensive to have the wait staff interrupt the conversation flow. I can agree that having an empty (or partially empty) plate in front of me may not look appealing, but once the wait staff pulls away a plate or silverware, it throws off the rhythm of the meal. Thu Oct 27 23:58:23 -0700 2005 1696322 0 eve 1 1696351 Proper service is to wait for all to finish before clearing. That said, many servers are trained to do improper service, and should not necessarily be faulted personally. It's a management issue primarily. The way to manage this is to tell your waiter, upon seating or ordering, that courses should not be cleared until all are finished. That has always worked for me. Fri Oct 28 05:04:13 -0700 2005 1696322 0 Karl S 1 1696361 You are definitely not the only person this bothers, although you might be surprised how many people are unaware that no plates should be bussed until everyone at the table is finished eating. More than a few years ago my fiance (now wife) and I were vacationing in France. I decided to splurge, so we stayed at a fancy Relais & Chateau. She was very nervous about not making a fool of herself in the dining room, using the proper fork and so on. Coming from a family of 7 siblings, she ate much faster than I did. When she finished her main course, she put her knife and fork in the 10-2 position to indicate she had finished eating. The waiter and the busboy were at the table several times, pouring wine, water, offering bread etc. Nobody so much as touched her empty plate. So she leaned over to me and quietly (but firmly -- after all this IS a fancy place) asked when the stupid waiter was going to clear her plate. I had to explain to her that it wouldn't be cleared until I was finished eating. By the way, we've been married for a long time now and she still eats faster than I do. Fri Oct 28 13:36:56 -0700 2005 1696322 0 PeteEats 2 1696370 Isn't the 10-2 position an indication that the person is still eating, rather than utensils together at the 4-6 position? Fri Oct 28 14:56:45 -0700 2005 1696361 0 MMRuth 3 1696372 Yes Fri Oct 28 18:30:35 -0700 2005 1696370 0 srr 3 1696376 Yeh, I messed up. She had them at 4-6. Sat Oct 29 13:14:46 -0700 2005 1696370 0 PeteEats