Service please!
June 22, 2006 at 5:48 One of the adjustments we faced in moving to Brussels has been the nature of our restaurant service. The typical American restaurant experience focuses on speed and customer service, not just food. An American server will introduce themselves, smile a lot, make small talk, describe the specials, answer questions and take your drink order within 5 minutes of you taking a seat.
His or her job is to anticipate your needs, refilling your drink glass regularly or topping your coffee mug, and checking back with at regular intervals to let you know the status of your order, or if it has already been delivered, to ascertain that everything is satisfactory and to clear empty plates from the table.
A good American server is friendly, personable, and strikes just the right balance between being available to the customer but not intrusive. Serving in the U.S. is an art form and the national chain restaurants provide their staff with extensive training not just in how to complete their tasks but how to set a proper tone with the customer and anticipate his or her needs. Local restaurants develop their own personalities. Dependent mostly on tips for their income, a smart server works hard to make your meal as enjoyable as possible and to connect with the diner.
In Belgium, dining out is an entirely different experience. Belgians, who are always in a hurry when they’re in the car, are in no rush when they enter a restaurant. Your server will wander over to deliver menus whenever it’s convenient, will tell you about the daily specials only if asked, will not offer refills on your drinks unless summoned to the table and will charge for every drop of coffee or cola that splashes into your mug (no bottomless cups or glasses here). You won’t be interrupted, engaged in conversation or rushed to complete your meal, but the down side of this is that receiving and settling the check can take quite a lot of time.
I’ve read that Belgian wait staff keep their distance as a way to convey respect to the customer. Maybe so. Maybe not. Cynic that I am, think the real issue is that in America servers work for tips and here they do not. I think servers here see themselves as people who carry orders to the kitchen and food from the kitchen. End of story.
Until we went to England, the only taste we’ve had of American style service in Europe was at a Chinese restaurant in Zaventem where the proprietor waited on us herself and did so with great warmth and graciousness.
When we visited the U.K. recently, we once again tasted service with a smile. At restaurants and pubs, coffee and tea houses, our servers were friendly, thorough, and eager to top our glasses and offer extra gravy. Dining was a pleasure, whether we visited American-bred restaurants like TGIF in Bath or family-owned cafés in the Cotswolds, the staff was eager to please, happy to adjust the menu, solicitous to our children.
The whole experience left a sweet taste in our mouths. Belgium may be renowned for its cuisine, but the dining experiences we had in the UK make us eager to grab a ferry back over.
Copyright 2006 Veronica McCabe Deschambault. All rights reserved.
June 22, 2006
Reader Comments (13)
I think I'm happiest with a hybrid--American-style attentiveness up until right before the check is presented, and then European laid-backness in terms of not pushing me to leave before I've finished my dessert.
It is nice to linger at the table when you're out with a group of friends and not feel pressured to vacate a table--ever. But many times we don't go out to eat because we simply don't have 2 hours to spend in the restaurant.
We've found the service here in Monterey very inconsistent. It's either fabulous or horrible. Which is puzzling as it is a tourist town and there are lots of wealthy folks here who you'd think would insist on fine service. It tends to be the more reasonably priced joints that have the best service.
My perception is that Belgium is stubborn in a (mostly) good sorta of way. It endures, it follows its own traditions even as it swims in immigrants and expats. It is a place, where everyone seems intent on minding their own business, but few seem interested in running a business. : )
The consistently slow service, though, ultimately became a big deterrent. Two to three hours for a lunch was a given. This could be tolerable on a slow day with an interesting lunch companion, but it's unacceptable on a normal day. And it's insufferable if you're dining with kids.
I've reached a point where I think twice before eating out in Belgium. Our kids hate most Belgian restaurants they've been to. I've spoken with a number of Belgians and found that most of them with kids also avoid eating out.
Whatever the motivation for the pace and attitude of restaurant service in Belgium, the lost is ultimately the restaurants'. I find it yet another example of the almost nihilistic attitude towards business in Belgium. There do appear to be so many guarantees and protections for a typical small business that actually making an effort to make money seems to be more than most business owners are willing to do.
I loved getting your view on the different styles of restaurant service. So much depends on our culture and what we're used to. I hate having the table cluttered with dirty dishes and always want them removed promptly.I can see, however, where having your dish swept away from the table after your last bite would make you feel rushed and less than welcome. And your point on "genuineness" vs. "fake smiles" is taken as well.
Thanks for stopping by and sharing your views.