Do you stack your plates at a restaurant for your server?

[The Albatross]

Typically, no, as a former restaurant server I hated when customers did this because it' djust get everything disgusting and messy taking it away. 90% of the time it was worse for me. I also had a system for taking plates away, and plates that were stacked by the diner would be riskier for me then plates that I know I stacked myself. Most times when a server drops a plate and it smashed, you can best bet it's because someone stacked a plate poorly and it slid off.

Sometimes, yes, but it's typically just to indicate to an inattentive server that "I'm done with this... you should take it away..." Doesn't happen often, but at the big chains a lot of servers are clueless about letting dirty plates pile up. It's probably my biggest pet peeve, and sometimes I'll have to make room on my table when a server isn't being attentive to clean up.

 

[SiK SiNr1]

I do and fuck her ungrateful ass.... I mostly do it to get them out of my face though. I don't like waiters/waitresses hanging over the table with their shit all in my shit. So I stack shit up so they can just grab and go.

 

[Deleted member 33533]

Interesting, yeah I never did because I figured the waiters had a system for how they cleaned up the table. Guess that was right.

Besides, I'm tipping them for service so I never really felt the need to help them clear the table.

 

[Deleted member 4372]

Honestly has never occured to me to do this.

 

[TheMan]

often, but not always. I haven't been a server for almost a decade. I used to be more conscientious about being more helpful during and right after my stint, but as I've gotten older I've regressed to the mean, so to speak.

 

[BlueTsunami]

Hell is paved with good intentions ;_;

 

[One Eyed Willy]

Yes, always. My wife hav2 kids who make a mess so every time we're done eating at a restaurant we will stack plates and put silverware and napkins on the top play and then wipe down the entire table to make things easier for the busser. We'll do the same at fast food places, except throw away all our trash.

 

[Deleted member 11157]

Yes, but only if it'll require the person to reach far into the table to get their plate/trash.

ETA- like it's written in the OP, most people are bad at stacking. Don't put napkins and shit in between the plates, dont put plates with food under other plates with food, etc.

 

[TesservcT]

Sometimes. I mainly try to get my utensils all the way on the plate.

 

[Tygre]

The concept that anybody does this at a restaurant with table service is insane to me. This must be one of those weird American things like clapping when a plane lands and cheering in a cinema.

Some of you people seriously go out to a restaurant and stack your dirty dishes when you're done? Mindblowing.

 

[Surface of Me]

The concept that anybody does this at a restaurant with table service is insane to me. This must be one of those weird American things like clapping when a plane lands and cheering in a cinema.

Some of you people seriously go out to a restaurant and stack your dirty dishes when you're done? Mindblowing.

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Why not? It's perceived as making someone's day a bit easier with practically zero effort.

 

[zychi]

No.

It makes the server/bus boy's job harder.


I think everyone in the world should have to work 6 month as a server and 6 months in retail before graduating high school. It will teach empathy and make the world a better place

 

[RecRoulette]

No.

It makes the server/bus boy's job harder.


I think everyone in the world should have to work 6 month as a server and 6 months in retail before graduating high school. It will teach empathy and make the world a better place

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Ah fuck really? I thought it was helping out.

 

[shaneo632]

Not every time but a lot of the time.

A lot of LOL-worthy responses on both sides here.

 

[DRock]

If it's just two of us and we are at a tiny ass table with little surface room, then fuck yes I'm stacking when we are done. If there's plenty of room on the table then no, we don't stack.

 

[PatMan]

The concept that anybody does this at a restaurant with table service is insane to me. This must be one of those weird American things like clapping when a plane lands and cheering in a cinema.

Some of you people seriously go out to a restaurant and stack your dirty dishes when you're done? Mindblowing.

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Boy, you must not get out much if the idea of stacking plates to help the server is mind blowing.

 

[Kayo Police]

No it actually makes their job harder, also it's not my job to stack my plates, I paid to eat, not clean.

 

[Deleted member 11157]

No it actually makes their job harder, also it's not my job to stack my plates, I paid to eat, not clean.

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But it's not cleaning though. And talking over a non-cluttered table is more enjoyable.

 

[SABO.]

I do it.

Silverware and any rubbish goes on the top plate.

And talking over a non-cluttered table is more enjoyable.

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Yeah this too.

 

[PorkandBeans]

If I have an appetizer dish or soup bowl or something on the side I'll stack it but I don't do it for the whole table. That's too much work for something that apparently isn't even appreciated anyway.

 

[Curufinwe]

The concept that anybody does this at a restaurant with table service is insane to me. This must be one of those weird American things

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What makes you think this is something only Americans do?

Only if the plates are clean and stack well. If not I leave them side by side.

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That's how my wife and I do it. On more than once occasion the server has thanked us for making their lives easier. There is always some downtime after finishing a meal before the server comes to take away the plates, so it's not putting us out in any way to move them around slightly while we talk. And as people pointed out in the comments, sometimes there are too many plates for the available table space so you will run out of room if you don't do some stacking.

 

[TheMink]

Worked in food service, can confirm this a huge pet peeve of mine.

 

[wizard]

I only stack if they have been there awhile or if its a small table. The whole its not my job to clean is what those disgusting trash monsters at theatres say.

 

[-Pyromaniac-]

Yeah I try to do it to my plates.

 

[low-G]

I worked as a bus boy and a dishwasher for YEARS. This article is entirely wrong. It was a massive help when people stacked plates for me.

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I feel like it's a fake story created to prompt discussion, outrage and get ad hits.

But yeah I generally do it out of an impulse for organization and to get more space.

 

[JustAnotherMike]

Never really needed to stack anything unless it was to make room because the table was transitioning from one course to the next. Even at that point the waiter(s) just take them as they hand out the next course or when they check up on the table.

The only time I've seen stacks is on DBZ.

 

[Felt]

If I have to stack plates, that means the server isn't clearing my table quickly enough.

That "I'm not done yet death glare" is a perceived thing, I'd say. Who would get seriously upset that a server was coming to help?

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children

 

[Brass Body Dave]

Nope, that's their job

 

[justjustni]

first i cant put library books back myself and now this. this is madness. this is treachery.

 

[Jazzman]

Only when we go out for wings and nachos, as I will usually stack the plastic wing containers to make more room as we go (remove the paper liner and put those all together as well, so the container doesn't get dirty). We have had the same server for the last 6-7 years, and he has always been super grateful for the help.

Going tonight, and I will stack the hell out of them to spite all you non stackers.

 

[Walter White Walker]

I have at times but not always. When I go to a sit down restaurant it's almost always been parties of two to four. I try to leave the table in a relatively neat space with napkins and cutlery on the plates and the plates stacked if it makes sense.
At fast food joints I always clear the table and dump everything left over in the garbage and leave the tray on top of the garbage can where they have a space dedicated to them.

 

[BabyShams]

I get the point of offering simple kindnesses, it takes almost nothing from you but at the same point I'm not only paying for service which is calculated into the cost of the food, but then I'm expected to tip for a service as well because restaurant owners can;t pay their employees a decent wage.

If I'm both paying for and tipping for a service I'm not going to do that service.

 

[Deleted member 9479]

I do. I also tend to wipe down the table. Mainly because I have little kids that make a huge mess and I feel bad about the server having to clean it all up.

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Same. Under the table too. Thankfully that's been less an issue for us last few years but man for those first two or three....

 

[Deleted member 15326]

No because it makes things worse for them

 

[Whitemex]

Sometimes. And I use the napkin on the empty plate as a sign that I'm done. I guess I won't be doing either now

 

[atomsk eater]

I typically don't stack things because I assume I probably won't do it to that server's liking and just create more work when they have to readjust the pile. I'll scoot everything I'm done with into the same area but try to leave it unstacked.

 

[Wood Man]

I move empty/unwanted plates towards the end of the table. I stack sometimes.

 

[The Adder]

I stack my stuff when my server is enroute because I'm not a philistine and know that you match like with like.

 

[sca]

My girlfriend does it, but she separates the utensils from the plates and such

 

[super moustique]

I do it but not all the time and I only stack the same plates.

Also, my plates are all clean when I'm done :D

 

[Deleted member 19844]

We don't do it because my wife was a server once and she explained that the majority of the time it makes the server's job harder.

I understand doing it to clear space if needed, but not for any other reason.

 

[MrRob]

Only if I need room on the table for something.

 

[III-V]

sometimes I do. I worked in service industry for 8 years, and know when it is appropriate/appreciated and when it is unnecessary.

 

[Etrian Oddity]

FoH gonna complain either way ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[DarthSpider]

Yes I do. That article in the original post is nonsense, and nobody stacks plates the way the waitress described in the article. At least, the vast majority don't. You already need to be a fairly conscientious person to stack in the first place, and most of those people surely have the sense to stack plates in a way that makes things easier for the servers, busboys, and dishwashers.

While we're at it, I also block and face items in supermarkets when I can. I don't go out of my way to do it, but if I see something within reach that will take only a couple of seconds and make someone else's job easier, then I'm happy to do it.

I also think people who take up space in busy cafes, chatting away long after they've finished their drinks, while there are lots of other people waiting to sit, are inconsiderate. They certainly have the right to stay and chat as long as the store doesn't have rules against it, but in my opinion it's kind of an asshole thing to do.

 

[dallow_bg]

I stack very cleanly. No big pieces of food, or trash, or silverware between anything.

 

[Deleted member 19844]

Yes I do. That article in the original post is nonsense, and nobody stacks plates the way the waitress described in the article. At least, the vast majority don't. You already need to be a fairly conscientious person to stack in the first place, and most of those people surely have the sense to stack plates in a way that makes things easier for the servers, busboys, and dishwashers.

While we're at it, I also block and face items in supermarkets when I can. I don't go out of my way to do it, but if I see something within reach that will take only a couple of seconds and make someone else's job easier, then I'm happy to do it.

I also think people who take up space in busy cafes, chatting away long after they've finished their drinks, while there are lots of other people waiting to sit, are inconsiderate. They certainly have the right to stay and chat as long as the store doesn't have rules against it, but in my opinion it's kind of an asshole thing to do.

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My wife had the same feedback as in the OP for me because from her time as a server she knows that you can't really predict or know what their system is. So I guess I don't understand why you would go out of your way to do something that several people in the profession have said isn't helpful?Unless you need space or something

 

[DarthSpider]

My wife had the same feedback as in the OP for me because from her time as a server she knows that you can't really predict or know what their system is. So I guess I don't understand why you would go out of your way to do something that several people in the profession have said isn't helpful?Unless you need space or something

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Well, as others have said in the thread, there are helpful and unhelpful ways. You can easily look around and see how the waitstaff collect the plates or see if busboys come out and put everything in those big plastic bins. It's simple observation that requires very little effort. If you stack according to how you want to stack without any regard to how the staff might want things stacked, even though it's observable, then yeah, it might hinder more than it helps.

I've also been in the profession and the vast, vast majority of people who have stacked plates for me have been a Godsend.

 

[Deleted member 19844]

Well, as others have said in the thread, there are helpful and unhelpful ways. You can easily look around and see how the waitstaff collect the plates or see if busboys come out and put everything in those big plastic bins. It's simple observation that requires very little effort. If you stack according to how you want to stack without any regard to how the staff might want things stacked, even though it's observable, then yeah, it might hinder more than it helps.

I've also been in the profession and the vast, vast majority of people who have stacked plates for me have been a Godsend.

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That's fair. Maybe we can agree (and I'm not saying you said otherwise), that since there's mixed feedback, it's not really *inconsiderate* for someone to not stack their plates. At the same time, if done conscientiously, it's not detrimental and often can help.

 

[NotVeryFriendly]

I find the complaints in the article odd. I've seen very few people lacking common sense to the degree that a pile of plates would be stacked as described in the article in the original post (and would clearly cause additional bother when stacked in such a manner). I find a few of the assertions it makes very bizarre, such as the suggestion that it screams 'looking for help' or that it looks 'impatient'.

I would always assist in the clearing of dirty plates on the table so that the waiter, when free, can clear the table in a quicker and easier manner rather than having to go around to everybody individually and potentially make a number of trips. Yes it's their job, but they're still people and empathy doesn't go astray; I wouldn't want somebody making my job tougher so I don't see why I should be so inconsiderate as to make it more difficult for others.

Having worked as a waiter in a hotel for a number of months, I absolutely appreciated when people took the time to make clearing the table much quicker and more efficient. It wasn't 'frowned upon' at all, and I can honestly say I never once encountered the situation the original article describes.