Tomorrow morning we leave for Munich, and hopefully sunnier weather. It's been cold and a bit drizzly here, though not as much as in Stockholm. We're hoping Bavaria will bring us warmth, kraut, and good cheer.
An excellent thing we've noticed about Europe is the differences one experiences in going out to eat. In America, the drill goes something like this:
1. Get seated
2. Drink orders
3. "Would you like to hear our specials today?? Want to try the special Jack Daniels BBQ glazed honey baby back ribs appetizer sampler???"
4. Order.
5. Get food/immediate drink refill
6. Two minutes later: "Can I get you guys anything? Everything tasting OK?? YOU GUYS READY FOR SOME DESSERT??". Repeat this several times.
7. More drink refills, even if you're not done.
8. Get the check before you're done eating.
9. Pay and leave.
Here, it's more like:
1. Sit where you want.
2. Waiter comes eventually. You order.
3. Food comes. Eat it.
4. Make eye contact with waiter in order to get check/additional taste treats.
5. Pay and leave. Tip is included in total! Score!
Of course I'm making sweeping generalizations, but that's what I'm good at and it's my blog so DEAL.
'til bavaria,
lauren
3 comments:
I find the waiter/waitress question "How's everything tasting?" perfectly bothersome. I never say "This is to salty, otherwise devoid of flavor..." even when it's what I'm really thinking.
Some people really like it when the waiter inquires about anything.
My mother-in-law never passes the opportunity to send something back, have the temperature adjusted, or clean up something, or get fresh flowers. Or see the lunch menu, or the children's menu, or the senior menu. It's always something.
This is perfectly acceptable in some parts of Europe. Despite having service industries that don't pander to the American ideal of it.
Honestly, it's nice to have a drink properly refilled on time, but you can't necessarily expect that in Europe either. It can be refreshing to not have someone hounding you, but if you just take it in stride and be even keel about it, you can still get anything to happen.
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