No single topic addressed in this blog is more fundamental to being a successful server than budgeting. This is the cause of a majority of issues servers have and the primary reason so many servers leave the business. Nothing can make a shift harder than needing to make money. Anxiety, stress, frustration, and most other […]
The Rules: Rules 1-10
If I were not a server, I think I would make a good scientist. My approach to serving is very similar to scientists testing new theories. I form hypothesis and experiment to see if it can be proves true or false. Everything I write about here has been tested on thousands of guests and over […]
Five Simple Tricks
Sometimes you catch a coworker doing something so brilliant that it makes you wonder why you had not thought of it first. Even after 15 years, I still see things that would have saved me hours of time if I knew them sooner. Being willing to adopt better practices and form new habits is the […]
I Make A Mean Cherry Limeade
If my tombstone was written by coworkers, guests, or bartenders it would read, “Here lies Dave, he made a mean cherry limeade.â€Â I have declared this to every table I have served in the last three years. When you order a cherry limeade at my restaurant, the chit prints up at the bar with simply […]
Five Great Food Stories
Who doesn’t les love a great story? Even before written language, humans cheap nfl jerseys shared stories to remember their great moments. When we are children, our The parents read us stories and as adults we read them to our children. When we are with the people we have known the longest we tell stories […]
Using Words That Sell
In nearly every training manual, at nearly every restaurant, there is a section on using adjectives to sell. This is often the extent of the sales training in them. They encourage you to use words like “awesome†and “incredible†to sell the food to guests. The authors of the manuals picture an army of servers […]
The Most Important Phrase You Are Not Using
The space between reality and urban legend has spawned the story of the single greatest marketing idea ever. This phrase was so powerful that it nearly doubled the sale of the product it was written for. Two simple words that did not even need advertised. Two words that added to the label caused sales to […]
By Way Of Introduction
If you are taking the time to read this blog, a word of introduction may be in order. I took my first job waiting tables in 1995. In the years since I have worked for 13 different ????! restaurant companies selling nearly every type of food in nearly every type of setting. I have been […]
About The Author
David Hayden was born and raised in Kansas City, Missouri. He took his first serving job in 1996. Since that time, he has worked for over a dozen different restaurant companies. He has held both hourly and salaried positions at independent and corporate restaurants. He has waited on over 100,000 guests and trained hundreds of servers. He has been named "Best Server in Kansas City" the last three years by the local weekly paper.