thewomanandthebell:

It’s summer time and many restaurants will start being open later. But here are some things you can do to Not Be A Jerk:

• If you’re travelling from a ways to the restaurant, CHECK THE TIME IT CLOSES. for the love of god, do not pull the “but we drove all this way” card with the host when they tell you the restaurant is closing so you can’t be sat. You need to plan for traffic or anything else. Your lack of planning is not the restaurant’s fault.
  
• Some places, like mine, have a “grace period” which means even if it closes at say - 8 pm - you can still be sat anywhere from 10 to 15 minutes after 8. This does not go for every place, so as above, CHECK THE TIME IT CLOSES!
• Coming in 5 minutes before a restaurant closes is never a good idea, ever. Not only do you come off as non-caring to the staff, you also are probably going to be there for an hour or so and that’s going to throw off the kitchen. In a place like mine, I can start closing but dessert slips will always throw me off and take time away from closing tasks.
• TIP 20% (at least)
• Understand that your meal is going to be in a series of meals ordered by other guests. This means you must wait. Most restaurant ticket times are 10 for lunch and 15 for dinner. If you order something that takes extra time to cook, your server will let you know. Do not get an attitude with the staff about the wait for your meal if you know it is going to take that extra time. 
• Does that mean that you aren’t allowed to question for an ETA on your meal if it is taking time and no one has given you a reason why? Of course you can do that. But please do not be rude about it.
• Have a great summer and ENJOY!