From Corporate to Country

Hi friends!

It serves me right that after talking all this crap about working for corporate restaurants, I would come to miss it. In the grand scheme of things, working for family-owned restaurants is much more fun and relaxed. But I've come to realize that I, Princess Michelle, am a corporate snob.

I worked at two different family-owned bar/restaurants here in Streator last weekend. Adapting to the way they run things was a bit of a challenge for me, coming from the world of chain restaurants. It's basic waitressing--writing down the order, handing it to the cook, and running the food when they ding the bell. It sounds simple, but it's like going back to grade school after finishing college. I wouldn't know what the heck to do with fractions and decimals now.

For starters, the cooks have to rely on my handwriting to get my orders right as there are no computers and printers in a good ol' country kitchen. That's scary. I'm used to scribbling and hoping that I understand the order by the time I get to the computer to ring it in.

I ask someone if they need a refill and they hand me their glass; I'm the snob that makes it harder for myself and says "Oh, no, I'll bring you a new glass of iced tea." Not saying names, (Kathy Giraldo!) but my old managers would swat me if I refilled the glass the guest already drank out of.

The other waitresses ask me why I constantly have a tray in my hand, while they're juggling plates of food up their arms. A tray is like a server's purse; you never let it out of your sight. I guess the time has come to part with the tray.

While I love how laid back the country scene is, I miss some of the perfection about corporate restaurants. (That's a bit of an exaggeration, but you know what I mean.) You type your order in the computer under the right table number, it goes back to the kitchen,  it prints your check. No questions or worries; your food will be up in about fifteen minutes.

One of the places I worked at this weekend (not Teke's, I love Teke's!) didn't even have table numbers. No one else could run your food because they didn't know where it was going. Somehow, the high school girls running the kitchen lost one of my tickets and didn't make a table's order. (Downside to blogging in Streator: someone reading this blog will know these girls and they will want to "kick my ass.") On the plus side, this wasn't nearly as big a deal as it would have been at a chain restaurant. The customers here are so nice, they didn't care that it took an hour for their food and still tipped well.

I guess I have to relearn waitressing the more simple way, and that means learning as I go. It sounds much less painful than taking tests and watching videos on how to do it the corporate way.


Thanks for reading!
Love,
      Princess M

Short-lived Retirement

Good thing I didn't say never, right?

So, my fun little time in Orlando came to an end and I'm back in Streator, hoping to really get my career going as a writer and reconnecting with family and friends. The only problem is that I have no idea how I'm going to make money as a writer or what kind of writer I want to be. Until I figure that out, I have to get all the jobs I can find that my four-year college degree has nothing to do with. But I'm not bitter about it. :-)

Upon quitting the restaurant in Orlando, I said I would pump gasoline for minimum wage before I wait another table. It's so hard to resist, though, when serving is something that comes easy to me and is such good money. I was offered two serving/bartending jobs within the first week of moving back home. Poor, bored, and quite thankful that people wanted to help me get a job, I jumped on both opportunities. Taking another job as a waitress doesn't make me feel as awful as I thought, since I had said I'd never go back. I'm actually looking forward to it. I'll be working for some good friends, who I am so thankful to for helping me out. Being a waitress at a bar and a golf course in Streator, Illinois is going to be so very different than serving for big corporate restaurants.

Things I'm looking forward to in a family-owned business vs. the corporate restaurant:

• wearing jean shorts and a t-shirt as a uniform
• not studying for menu tests (seriously have taken more menu tests than college tests)
• wearing NAIL POLISH of any bright and obnoxious color
• not writing my name on a freaking napkin at each table
• not wearing tall black socks
• no long, goofy apron
• knowing the majority of the people I wait on
• I'm guessing that the rate of guests who speak Portuguese will be much lower, or nonexistent

and last but not least, taking shots with guests. Hell. Yes.