For anyone who has ever felt the frustration of waiting to be seated at a restaurant with open tables, this former NYC service worker has a message for you.
In a TikTok with almost 3,000 views, content creator Samantha Williams (@thesamanthawilliams) breaks down why restaurants don’t always seat waiting customers at open tables.
“So you walk into a restaurant and you see a few or a bunch of empty tables. And yet the host tells you that there’s a wait. Feels a little ridiculous right?” Williams begins.
She shares that she’s worked in NYC restaurants for more than a decade from chain eateries to three Michelin star restaurants. “So I kind of know what’s going on,” she assures.
The reason for the wait
Williams explains seating is more a matter of staff’s capacity, not the physically capacity of the restaurant:
“Most restaurants don’t seat every table the moment it becomes available. It’s not about the physical space. It’s about what the kitchen and the staff can handle right now,” she reasons.
An over-seated restaurant or section negatively affects the dining experience of the customers.
“If the host seats too many tables at once, especially in a particular section, that server gets slammed. They’re probably putting in a bunch or orders at once. Then the kitchen gets overwhelmed and probably backed up. Then you end up waiting longer for drinks, food, everything, and so does everyone else. It’s a domino effect.”
As the video ends, Williams encourages viewers to understand that hosts and restaurant workers are aiming to give them a grade A dining experience, not turn them away.
“So when you hear ‘it’ll be 20 minutes,’ and you see that half the room is empty, I promise no one is trying to punish you or turn you away. It’s about protecting your experience and the staff’s capacity and their sanity.”
Users weigh in
In the comments, users react to Williams’ inside look at restaurant seating practices.
“I hope this reaches everyone and their mom,” one user wrote.
“This only needs to be explained to people who have never worked a service job. Yeah I can seat you, [but] no one’s going to serve you. Yes your salad will take 45 minutes, there are 10 people who called first,” a second user remarked.
“I wish somebody would have told me this 30 years ago. I would have enjoyed eating out more often,” came another viewer’s response.
Samantha responded, “YES. The moment you’ve worked a service job, it all makes sense. Until then…that’s why I make these videos.”
“Being a chef for 25 years, that makes perfect sense. Thank you for pointing that out,” a fourth person weighed in.
@thesamanthawilliams Empty tables ≠ available tables #restaurant #restaurants #hospitality #customerservice #foh #boh #fyp
♬ original sound – Samantha Williams
As Williams mentioned, the seating at restaurants is a delicate balance between protecting diner experience and the capacity of restaurant employees. This may mean a wait time for customers even though a restaurant has “open” tables.
In a Reddit thread on the subject, users give more explanation on the process.
“Restaurants pace their dining service. It’s called ‘blocking.’ You create 15 minute blocks to ensure seamless service with both the FOH [Front of House] and BOH [Back of House]. Shoving a bunch of diners into a space all at once creates a bottleneck and can bring a restaurant down to its knees,” one user wrote.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Samantha Williams via email for more information.
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