To-go boxes*

I have no problem with boxing up food. I love it when other servers do it for me. I always remind people it is their lunch tomorrow, so they don’t regret having so much left over. However, there are frustrations with boxing food.

One of the most annoying things a server will encounter is when their guests leave the boxes of food the server has personally boxed up. I always box the food up for my guests myself. It takes time away from other tables, but guests usually really appreciate it. It can really be frustrating when guests who request the boxes leave them for us to clean up anyway. This not only took time, but it takes up a lot more space in the trash can for to-go boxes rather than just dumping the food in it. It is understandable that people would mistakenly forget to grab the food, but it is still frustrating.

We usually keep the boxes on a shelf for about 15 minutes in case the guests come back for their boxes. When guests come back 30 minutes later asking for their boxes, it can be a bit annoying. We can’t hold everyone’s food for the night in case they remember having left their box on the table.

Another annoying thing with to-go boxes is the issue of soup and salad. When a customer orders the unlimited soup and salad, this does not mean s/he can take a bunch of it home. The customer gets unlimited amounts of whatever s/he can eat while dining in the restaurant. When guests ask me to give them refills and then boxes of salad, to-go bowls of soup and bags of bread, I have to tell them no. If everyone did this, we would not profit from the deal. Occasionally, I let guests have a bowl of soup to go if they haven’t eaten much, if they want it for what is left in their current bowl, or if they have some breadsticks left on the table, but usually my answer is, “I’m sorry we can’t do that.” A lot of guests have a major problem with this.

Many guests don’t seem like they need a box. If someone has three bites left of his or her meal, I personally don’t think s/he needs a box. I’d rather guests finish their meal with only that much left. I once had a lady ask me for a box for three pieces of calamari. I thought she was joking, but she wasn’t. Boxes are for larger portions of food you cannot finish, they are to take home, and they are not for unlimited soups and salads.