Waiter Rant.

I just finished reading this really great book titled Waiter Rant. The book is the brain-child of 'The Waiter' an anonymous guy who started up a blog in 2004 chronicling life as a waiter. The blog became (and still is) wildly popular and even won the Bloggie Award for "Best Writing in a Weblog" in 2006.

My sister is the one that first came across this book, and tracked it down online. It sounded intriguing and so while we waited for the book to slowly make it's way across the globe to our front doorstep I looked up the blog and I can see why it is so popular. The book like the blog is insightful and witty, once I started reading I couldn't put it down. It tells of the highs and lows of working as a waiter.

The thing that struck me most after reading this book is how cruel, rude and inconsiderate diners can be - well, 20% of diners anyway, according to The Waiter who terms this 20% as "socially maladjusted psychopaths". What's more is that this book has changed my outlook on dining out - every time I dine out now I can't help but think of the waiters and what might be going through their minds. I then try everything in my power not to annoy them. If the book has taught me anything, waiters are powerful individuals. While some diners may treat them like scum, what they fail to realise is that they can and will enact revenge in creative ways that you would never think to imagine. I'm not talking about the cliche "spitting in the food" scenarios, although The Waiter informs us that this does in fact on occasion happen - I'm referring more to an intellectual warfare of sorts.

Now, whenever I go out (regardless of whether the place is fine dining or not) I have always tried my best to be polite to waiters and not make their lives difficult. However, I once had the misfortune of being in the company of an individual who acted entitled and treated the waiters like they weren't human beings. It is by far one of the most embarassing situations I have ever had to endure. I feel like sending this rude person a copy of the book. But then the other part of me is comforted by The Waiter's musings and the fact that somewhere, someday a waiter will teach this person a lesson and bring them crashing back down to earth.

All in all, great read. I highly recommend it. If you can't get your hands on a copy of the book, then check out the blog here.