10+ Waiters Who Have Stories to Tell About Unusual Customers

Everyone who has worked as a waiter has a bunch of stories about good, bad, or just unusual customers. And some cases are so astonishing that you want to say, “You must be kidding!” But all these stories are pure truth.

• There was a lady in my section who was by herself. She was just waiting. This lady was absolutely gorgeous and dressed to kill. I ended up talking to her a bit since she was obviously bored. She was smart and seemed like she had a good sense of humor. It turned out she was there to meet some guy on a blind date. I was like, “OMG, what kind of a man would leave a woman like this waiting?!” The guy eventually rolled in looking like a crunchy bro and acting as if he was just too cute. Apparently, the woman confronted him about his being late because he actually got on top of the table and asked everyone in the restaurant if they thought she should forgive him or not. Everyone ignored the guy. Then they talked for a bit and then the guy went to the bathroom. I went up to the table and said, “You don’t need to pay for your drinks or anything. If you want to leave, you can just leave.” She said thanks, but she ended up going ahead with the date. They left my section and went somewhere else. Honestly, I wanted her to ditch the guy so bad. © imk / Reddit
• I waited on a couple who were clearly on a first date, and the lady was clearly not impressed by the guy she was on the date with. The date was over quick enough and the guy paid, leaving me a 5% tip. The next day, the lady came into the restaurant, walked up to me, said, “that was the worst first date I’ve ever been on, and I was mortified when he stiffed you on the tip” and then handed me $20. © Vomiting_Winter / Reddit
• Parsley woman. She would order a glass of milk and a large soup bowl full of parsley, and eat it. No salad dressing or anything, just straight parsley. © balljoint / Reddit

“This is the tip my friend got as a waiter.”

• We had a woman who sent a grilled chicken salad back because it was cold. So, we cooked some new chicken and made sure to send it back while still warm. She sent it back again. The entire salad wasn’t hot enough for her. We microwaved her salad. She ate it. I don’t know, man. © Honestnt / Reddit
• I was cooking one afternoon, and a waitress came in with an order of a fried egg sandwich with holds. As I proceeded to make it, I checked the order for the special hold, and it was written in bold caps, “Hold mayonnaise! Customer is deathly allergic!” I realize this is an impossible order.
  So I go out and explain the problem of cooking a meal that was made with oil and egg but was deathly allergic to those things. He said that he always made this claim because he hated mayo on sandwiches, but this was the first time a cook or waitress ever caught it. He sent a 20 buck with a note saying, “Thanks for watching out for me!” © William Chambers / Quora

“First time in five years of waitressing that I’ve been moved to tears of joy.”

“Little girl came in with her family last week and I complimented her Cinderella necklace she had on. Tonight they came back, and she had a gift for me. I’ve been going through a rough time lately and this lit up my life.”

• My former school classmate came to our restaurant with her husband and looked at me condescendingly when she saw me behind the bar. They examined the menu for a long time choosing something cheaper. And later she posted 300 selfies, saying that they celebrated their anniversary at our restaurant. So, I just laughed at all this. People are so full of prejudice.
• A man ordered tea. And we just got new teapots that were very heavy. I brought him tea, leaned over to the table to put a cup, and spilled it all right on his pants. And he was on the phone at the time. I got really scared, quickly gave him some napkins, and hid behind the bar. I stayed there because I thought he’d kill me. And then about 10 minutes later, he came up to the counter. I thought he’d yell at me, but he just laughed and said, “Miss, you should be more careful.” After that, he even ordered a piece of cake and left me a big tip.
• I worked in a fancy restaurant for a few months. A family came in who looked like decent people. They sent their older kid to the children’s room, and a toddler stayed with them.
  They ordered quite a lot of food, so I hoped for a good tip. But instead, they decided to change their toddler’s diaper right on the table. The smell was terrible, some guests even left. And after that, they left the dirty diaper right on the table.

“This waiter and his tower of used cups.”

• I had a couple that told me to wait before I pre-bussed their table, so the man could lick every plate clean first. They had multiple appetizers and entrées between them, and he licked every single one clean before I was allowed to take it. They weren’t in a private booth or anything. The other guests could see this happening. © cannotaccessorize / Reddit
• I work in a fancy restaurant. We have different customers, but my main rule is to never show that I’m flabbergasted. Once a man came in, studied the menu for a long time, and then said, “I want a steak without the steak.” And the steak’s sides are only mushrooms, sauce, and salad. I was shocked, but didn’t show my surprise, wrote everything down and repeated, “Steak without the steak.”
  We did what he asked for, and I brought him his food. The man was happy. It turned out that he was a raw vegan, and it was the first time that he was served without anyone looking at him like he was crazy. He paid the full price of the dish, even though we offered him a discount, thanked me and left me an enormous tip.

“I hope you find someone who will look at you the way my girlfriend looks at the waiter who brought us steak.”

• A couple had dinner at our restaurant. The man left me a good tip and then went to the toilet. After that, the woman called me and demanded to return the tip to her. I just decided to wait for the man to come back, handed him the money and explained what happened.
  The woman got dark red and judging by her glance, was ready to kill me. The man was confused but didn’t take the money back. When they were leaving, the woman muttered, “Spend this money on plastic surgery.”
• I had these 2 people that were there on a first date. After the appetizers, this poor man got diarrhea and was going back and forth to the bathroom all night. There were only a few other people in the restaurant at the time so it was noticeable and they were chuckling every time he got up. I honestly felt so bad for the guy. © RAM_592 / Reddit
• A guy asked me to bring him onions. Onions! So, I brought them to him. Then he asked me for a plate, knife, ketchup, and paper tissues. The customer is always right, so I just brought those to him and stepped aside watching curiously.
  He cut the onions, poured ketchup over them, then added tissues to that, and then said, “Please take this to my wife at that table and thank her for the 5 years of our marriage.” And then he ran away from the café.

In fairness, it’s worth mentioning that not only customers can be weird. Sometimes, cafes and restaurants themselves can do things that are hard to believe.