when you are served by human, it just brings certain je ne sais quoi.

i’m baffled both by the angle of attack and choice of an image (is this retweet of musk?)

linky

  • iThinkImDumb [any]@hexbear.net
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    1
    ·
    9 days ago

    Without the item moving component, most consider it functionally a different role, at least in my experience, where it wouldn’t be described as waiting tables.

    I mean waiter and table-busser are two distinct jobs at most restaurants. There’s overlap in what they do, but still, there is a lot more to being a waiter than moving stuff around. There’s more to it for table-bussers too, but just “moving stuff” is closer to their job description than it is for waiters.

    • MizuTama [he/him, any]@hexbear.net
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      1
      ·
      9 days ago

      Hmm, most people I know haven’t really made a distinction when they’ve worked them, though I have heard the term before. (Same one as bus boy no?) And that seems to be what the pick above is depicting.

      • iThinkImDumb [any]@hexbear.net
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        2
        ·
        9 days ago

        Maybe it’s a regional thing, but I don’t think so. I’ve known a number of people who worked in restaurants, and the waiters and bussers were always separate jobs, very clearly different in their roles. A lot of times someone who was a bussers for a while first would end up becoming a waiter.

        Yes, “bus boy” is another term for it, phased out for obvious reasons but I think even back in the good old chuddy prewoke days, they were called bussers too.

        But no, the OP image is definitely a waiter since she’s taking an order, a busser would not do that. The waiter takes the order and brings the food (among other things) but a busser cleans the tables afterwards and brings all the used dishes to dishwashers. They set up the place and like has been said, move stuff that needs moving and clean up things that need to be cleaned up. The busser usually has no contact with the patrons/customers. They will more often be seen pushing carts with dishes, both clean and dirty, but the waiters do not deal with that kind of thing.

        It also matters what kind of establishment it is. If it’s a little cafe, you’re more likely to have the waiter doing the table cleanup, but I would guess that’s only because there isn’t enough volume to need a busser. The OP pic is of a kind of place that doesn’t exist much anymore unless its as a kind of nostalgia gimmick. It’s a fast food place where a person brings the food out to your car instead of going through a drivethrough.

        • MizuTama [he/him, any]@hexbear.net
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          1
          ·
          9 days ago

          Ah I knew the nostalgia reference but didn’t realize at those locales they’re separate roles. It’s possible the places my friends have worked at are just trashy 🤷🏾‍♂️. But most places I’ve been to I’ve definitely seen my waiter cleaning the tables and stuff, even if they have a lot of staff. I’d say decent odds I do spot bussers as some just disappear into the back, but I definitely see wait staff scrambling around cleaning too and doing all those things between orders.

          But I also don’t do much eating out that isn’t trashy chains, and just about every diner I’ve been to has more of a skeleton crew than some haunted ghost ships so I definitely can see that influencing my perception.