Personal Narrative: An American Restaurant

It’s five o’clock sharp when I walk into the restaurant, embracing the warmth of the heaters and the mix of chatter overpowering the sounds of the grill and coffee machine. The warm lighting from the light fixtures hanging above every table sets the tone for large gatherings and romantic date nights in contrast to the mix of Spanish and indie pop music that plays together in harmony. Customers gather around the counters, trying to put in the last orders to the cashiers, as the workers starts to shift the restaurant from counter to table service. I am a waitress at Soho Park, an American restaurant known for its burgers and fries. Located two blocks away from Broadway on the corner of Prince and Lafayette Street, it is a prime location for …show more content…
Every night there is always two waitresses on the floor, besides Fridays and Saturdays when there are three waitresses. I work Fridays and Sundays, and due to the consistent schedules, I gotten to know the girls who work that night. Along with Lindsey, a new waitress, Virginia, works Friday nights and on Sundays I work alongside with Codie, who also trained me on my first day as a waitress. At the beginning of the shift there’s really nothing to do. The restaurant is still shifting towards table service and customers who already paid for their meals usually occupy most of the tables. There would be a few people with menus, but other than that, there’s not much work that needs to be done. This was a striking contrast to my first day as a server. My job is very weather-dependent. Due to half of the restaurant being an outdoor garden area, the amount of tables mostly depends on the weather and temperature. When I first started in late September, all of the tables were packed and customers kept coming and going. I barely remembered the full menu, much less the brands of alcohol the full bar we had served, and the overwhelming amount of tables I had kept me on my toes the entire six-hour shift. The entire time, I was debating if I was even cut out to be a …show more content…
“My first day, I had approached a customer quite nervously. The woman was alone and she was ordering a couple of drinks and a meal. Whilst I was taking her order, she saw how anxious I was and asked if I was new. She told me how being a waitress is not fun at times, I 'm going to have experiences in which I do not get tipped enough on some days, and how I might feel really overwhelmed. Though she explained some negative situations I may encounter, she continued by telling me to keep moving forward, to have a positive outlook on my performance because it will for sure may take me a long way after all. It gave me motivation from that day pushed me to move forward to not give up, not just in this job, but anything in