Some people have absolutely no class or courtesy!

Note: I will refrain from mentioning anyone's race or gender to protect the guilty.

I was at the local Shoney's for brunch today. At the table next to us, were five adults and one baby in a booster seat. When they left, the table looked like it had been hit by a hurricane. There was food, etc., strewn all over the table and the floor under the table. The baby liked to throw food so there was also food and balled up napkins on the floor under the table on the other side of the walkway. The ketchup bottle was laying on the floor.

How much of a gratuity did they leave to compensate the wait staff for the extra work needed to clean the area and turn the table around for the next customer? A whole $3! Assuming they all got the buffet, or at least the per-person check averaged to the price of the buffet, it would have been a $40 tab.

I was offended! I guess I shouldn't have been surprised. Based on what I've read on some restaurant blogs, that kind of behavior is not uncommon with that type of people. However, I haven't actually seen it with my own eyes until today. I left an addition $5 on top of the gratuity that I would have normally left.

Before leaving, I was waiting for the rest of my party to come out of the restroom. There was a large group (over 6 people, maybe 8 or more) waiting for a table. I couldn't hear very well but I think the manager went to them and told them that they would not be able to seat them in a reasonable amount of time. The restaurant was very busy, being lunchtime on a Saturday. Well, they didn't like that. They started talking loudly and heatedly and simultaneously at the manager. I decided to wait outside in case any violence broke out. Fortunately, as far as I know, it was just a loud verbal altercation.

If it were a party of 8, I don't see why they couldn't eventually seat them. It would take a while before enough tables were vacated that they could put them together in a contiguous block. As I said, I couldn't hear very well so I don't know the details.