Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-06-21
ABOUT WALTERS AND TIPS
The Fees Raise IS Per Week Wares
to 500 and S26 in Good Restaurant.

| that the waiter earns a very small amount ~
money in comparison with the wages Of the
skilled mechanic or the ordinary clerk. This
is true in relation to the men employed in the
cheap restaurants and in the coffee and cake
saloons, but il really has no foundation :,
| fact SO far the walters EMPLOYED in .bo
| second and third class hotels and restaurants
| are concerned. A little observation will cop.
vince any one who is in the habit of freopo,,-
| ing restaurants that the walters earn eonsia.
erably more money than the average dry poods
| clerk, that his place is far more agreeable than
| that nlied oy many men who hold the mselyes
| OF vast Importance, and that he has freorentIv
more money at his command than the ems
| toner who bosses him about with "A high ana
iordlv air and then pays him for the privilege
| by generously feeling him.
| water in the restaurant Of nm r,,or,
Motel on Sunday night had five tables under
ms eye. He was exceedingly attentive and
| liberal in his ''yessirs." At one table SAT- n
/ gentleman and his wife, at another were three
young men and the other three were taken up
1 with three gentlemen with Young ladies The
| waiter knew his business and was susve ard
| apologetlc when anything went wrong or he
1 suspected that he was not on hand at the mo-
| ment he was wanted. He had the prosperous
| faculty of convincing each one of those whom
| he was waiting upon that he was the object of
his special care. The result was that from the
hve tables he reaped just an even dollar in
| TIPS. This money was earned by him in less
THAN an hour As fast rs these customers left
| the tables other customers took their places
The waiter was asked how much he earned in
week, and he replied that his wages were So
| and meals.
Then he was asked how much he earned each
| week, counting in tips. He politely intimated
| that he couldn't figure very close on the
| amount until he knew what he would receive
| on the present occasion.
| He received % cents on the ''present occa-
sion, which not only aided him in his figuring
| but loosened his tongue
well, you see, sir, it's like this he said
II have good many steady customers who
seem to like the way | serve them and who
always sit at my tables. If nothing inter
feres with their coming here punctually earn
more than when l have to depend upon
strangers. My regular customers have reeu-
lar system of paving. If one of them comes in
alone my tip is 10 CENTS if he brings a gentle
man with him, it is Is cents; il he is accompa-
MED by lady, 1t is 90 or Is cents. 1t always
happens that when there is a lady with the
| gentleman the tip is larger. | have tried to
| inquire this out and all | can make of it is that
the gentleman always appreciates attention
more when he has a girl with him than when he
| Is alone. Good walters understa nd this and are
consequently very fond of the ladies' Ii is
always sort OF speculation to serve a chance
| customer. If it happens that he is a stranger
IN town and comes from some place I'D the
river where tips are unknown he is pretty sure
TO be an improbable customer to the waiter
You can't tell anything about the character of
man from his appearance. providing his an
pearance is at all ordinary, but an old waiter
can tell pretty nearly whether tip is likely
from the order he gets. If man comes in
who looks as though he had undergone a long
Journey and was very hungry, and who asks
Tor cup of coffee and a plate OF bread Won
can bet your life there is no tip coming If. on
the other hand, he reads the bill OF fare in a
famlshed and thirsty manner and orders a
good square meal, and shows desire to feel
at home, there is pretty certain to be some
thing In store for the waiter. Well, sir to get
down to your question, think can safely say
that earn $50 a week"
isn't that rather low estimator"
NOT for the summer, sir. OF course earn
I nucn more during the winter months when
there are good many theater parties and
nearly all the liberal people are in town."
How long do you work?'
1.-The time Of service varies, but on an aver
age guess don't work longer than ten hours
a day, although. when there comes an unex
pected rush, 1 usually work as long as INV ser
vices are required
In French restaurant down town the walters
are paid no stipulated wages but they receive
per cent OF the total amount of their checks.
Inc result OF this system is that the restaurant
is literally supplied with walters, who show
an unusual interest in the comfort of the Gus
TONERS. A sale to them, whether il is accom-
panied by a tip or not. yields profit and
many aman is induced by their Establishments
to spend more money for a meal than he in
tended to. The patrons of this restaurant are
pretty steady, and all of them have their
favorlte waiter. An old customer is never
mistaken for common prey, and he is permit
ted to reach his favorite seat without having a
chalr banged out for his accommodation or a
waiter standing over it bowling obsequiously.
One OF the old, favorite walters said that his
net sales average about ESQ a day and that his
tips amount to about 81 more. This is good
pay, but the hours in this restaurant are long
and the work hard, for the kitchen is down a
steep flight of stairs and the dumb waiter is
never used, except for salads and occasionally
for dessert.
Time was when the Frenchman was the
waiter par excellence, but the possibility of
earning q good living by waiting is rapidly
changing this, and there are now in MANY good
restaurants Irish and American walters who
are certainly as good as need be. They are, in
many respects, better adapted for service in
this country than Frenchmen, for they are
more familiar with the tastes and habits of
Americans,
Many an American has been driven away
from French restaurant because the French
waiter on duty there finds it difficult to under
stand that there are persons who can dine verv
well and enjoy their dinner much better with.
out wine than with it. A French waiter is apt
to be too fond of offciously thrusting the wine
list IN the FACE OF customers, and if it is once re-
]ected ne has no hesitancy in presenting it a
A party OF young persons were made very
uncomfortable In well-known French res
taurant few nights ago by the waiter posi-
lively refusing to understand that they did not
desire vine. He insisted upon keeping the wine
list IN an awkwardly conspicuous position. and
when 1t was finally made clear to him by a
few sharp words that the party needed no sug-
geshons from him concerning the extent of
their order he grew lax in his attentions.
When at the close of the meal one of the party
rpnnpSfad Axvis v,to h. 4 Z.
eyebrows haughtily and said Nuts" in an
extremely offensive tone. Even this waiter
got tip, not because he deserved it, but in
Difference to the prevailing custom. A waiter
OF any other nationality would probably not
have been 80 persistent. for he would have
understood that here and there a person NAV
be found who objects to wine on temperance
or physical principles, but who is nevertheless
partial to good dinner, and perfectly willing
to pay freely for good service.
do you want wine sir?' asked a French
waiter of a red-headed man in q restaurant a
few days ago.
mol" was the reply.
TRY drop Of claret, sir" insisted the
waiter.
The red-headed gentleman was alone. and he
quickly corked the waiter up tighter than any
wine was ever corked by burst of language
that was as fiery as the gentleman's hair. There
Is one restaurant in town where dinner with
out wine costs more than a dinner with it. The
apparent reason of this is that the proprietor
desires only wine-drinking customers and
adopts this method of keeping the other kind
away.