According to The Waiter, eighty percent of customers are nice people just looking for something to eat. The remaining twenty percent, however, ... read full description
reviews
Feb 04, 2011
Lindsey
rated it: 
Don't get me wrong- this book seemed like it would be right up my alley. I like cynicism, I like bitchy people... and if you're funny I'll listen to you complain all day and night. The Waiter was just whiny. Half the time he was trying to link a boring story into some grander theme (like wanting to be a firefighter when you're a kid- WTF?) and the other half of the time he was wistfully talking about how writing this book was going to save him from his woeful life of being a waiter.
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6 comments
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(10 people liked it)
Aug 18, 2008
Joshua
rated it: 
The buzz surrounding this book likens it as a front of the house version of Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential . While superfically, they both concern themselves with working in a restaurant, that is where the similarities end. While Bourdain uses his mystery-noir style writing to tell a gripping tale of working as a chef, "The Waiter" is a competant writer at best. Bourdain's work is scathing and the mesmerizing. This author is a waiter trying to be a writer. I know this book us
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Apr 03, 2011
Thomas
rated it: 
My family and I eat out at least two times a week, so reading Waiter Rant was definitely an interesting experience. I'm almost convinced that if I tip under 15% that my waiter is going to hate me for the rest of their lives. Hm.
Anyway, Waiter Rant was filled with meaningful anecdotes - some of them were emotionally driven and powerful, others were more on the cynical and disturbing side. The book managed to hold my interest, and the writing was good but not superb. Recommended for pe More...
Anyway, Waiter Rant was filled with meaningful anecdotes - some of them were emotionally driven and powerful, others were more on the cynical and disturbing side. The book managed to hold my interest, and the writing was good but not superb. Recommended for pe More...
4 comments
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(4 people liked it)
Oct 26, 2009
Petra X
rated it:
Too much waffle. Where it wasn't waffling on in the body of the book or in the appendices that padded it out, about how you should behave as a customer in a restaurant it was a good, if light read, more brunch than dinner. But, EXCUSE ME - I'm the one paying, you don't tell me how to behave, or that I can't request a table change when you seat me by the toilets or complain the food is undercooked, or tell me how much I should tip, you should be giving me good service because that is your job.
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2 comments
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(7 people liked it)
Oct 14, 2008
Kristin
rated it: 
A painfully funny look at the other side of the restaurant industry. There have been plenty of books about life in the back of the house and now an account of what your waiter really thinks of you.
2 comments
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(4 people liked it)
Jan 14, 2009
Aaron
rated it: 
Having been a waiter for a while, I knew that I wanted to read this one when I heard about it. The anonymous author first caught the bug of pseudo-fame with his blog of the same name. Basically, the book (and the blog, too) share the waiter's experiences of becoming a server and his history in the field over the course of 10 years. Each chapter is a short essay focusing on different aspects of the job from the unique interaction between the servers and the kitchen staff to the challenges of havi
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Jul 16, 2011
Lavinia
rated it:
I read the Waiter's blog a few summers ago, I think he was just about to publish this book, I was hooked for a couple of weeks and then everything went into oblivion. Meanwhile, he kept writing his blog, he stopped waiting tables (I think! I need to catch up with his entries) and wrote another book.
I'm a sucker for dining out, restaurant business, cooking and food & wine basically. I've never tried waiting, though I would have liked to, but one thing's for sure: I rant about waiters, More...
I'm a sucker for dining out, restaurant business, cooking and food & wine basically. I've never tried waiting, though I would have liked to, but one thing's for sure: I rant about waiters, More...
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Oct 11, 2008
Katie
rated it:
I had a couple of problems with this book...
1. The Waiter isn't a particularly good writer.
2. He could at times be a little condescending, which kind of pisses me off.
So in regards to numero uno...this wasn't necessarily a deal-breaker. I don't think Waiter thinks he's writing epic literature here, so his less than stellar writing didn't ruin my life or anything. It read like a blog - I suppose because it is a blog - so really, just like with any blog, I was hoping More...
1. The Waiter isn't a particularly good writer.
2. He could at times be a little condescending, which kind of pisses me off.
So in regards to numero uno...this wasn't necessarily a deal-breaker. I don't think Waiter thinks he's writing epic literature here, so his less than stellar writing didn't ruin my life or anything. It read like a blog - I suppose because it is a blog - so really, just like with any blog, I was hoping More...
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(4 people liked it)
Nov 16, 2008
Sunda
rated it:
The guy's a pretty good writer & I enjoyed the book. It did contain some of the same stories he's blogged about, and some new ones, too.
It is slightly irritating in as much as the author (ironically) seems to feel entitled to a 20% tip and a public who understands the restaurant business; interesting, considering his 'ranting' is often targeted at the entitled attitudes of others. I get that people can be, and are, jerks, and that this is often amplified when they deal with those i More...
It is slightly irritating in as much as the author (ironically) seems to feel entitled to a 20% tip and a public who understands the restaurant business; interesting, considering his 'ranting' is often targeted at the entitled attitudes of others. I get that people can be, and are, jerks, and that this is often amplified when they deal with those i More...
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(1 person liked it)
Mar 17, 2009
I loved the blog, but if I read one more memoir about how somebody became a writer I'm gonna scream. If only there were some way to find out about people in other professions who actually are those professions, and not just a writer pretending to be that profession or somebody who's disappointment with said profession leads them to become a writer. I guess I need to read more ethnography and less memoirs, will I ever learn?
Feb 02, 2009
Mazola1
rated it:
Waiter Rant is a quick and breezy read. If you eat out fairly often, it won't tell you anything you don't already know or suspect about the restaurant trade, but it will probably confirm some of your most cynical suspicions. It's a little heavy on stories about how customers can be such self absorbed, insensitive and demanding shits. The Rant drips with resentment. But then, the author proudly brands himself a "cynical waiter," so what else would you expect?
The Waiter is a More...
The Waiter is a More...
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Jan 29, 2012
Dominique
rated it:
So, yeah, this book rocked my world. I couldn't put it down. I was a fan of The Waiter from his blog, but frankly, this was so much better than what he wrote on that site. I have never worked in a restaurant as I think it's clear to everyone, including myself, that my patience with jackassery is limited and I'd have to deal with it a lot in the food industry.
I loved how he made the mundane, the usual, the day to day, all come clear. I loved that even though I've never been in a restaur More...
I loved how he made the mundane, the usual, the day to day, all come clear. I loved that even though I've never been in a restaur More...
Jan 15, 2012
Ryan
rated it:
A random find resulting from my habit of wandering the aisles at the library and letting things catch my eye. An upscale restaurant in New York with celebrity clientele is far removed from my kitchen experiences in podunk towns but I've read dishwasher's accounts in zines quite a bit and I wondered what a waiter might say.
The service industry is its own special place, perched on the edge of hell (customers), and the writer establishes that waiters are in their own category. There are More...
The service industry is its own special place, perched on the edge of hell (customers), and the writer establishes that waiters are in their own category. There are More...
Dec 14, 2011
***Dave
rated it:
(Original review http://hill-kleerup.org/blog/2008/08/12/...)
Another blog-to-book deal, “The Waiter” mixes autobiographical angst with an unflattering look at what life is like behind the order pad at a nice New York restaurant.
Overall: Good
Writing: Fair
Re-Readability: Good
Info: Faboo
I’m a long-time read of the Waiter Rant blog, so when The Waiter (he remains, by choice, anonymous, for obvious reasons) announced the book deal, I was right there pre-or More...
Another blog-to-book deal, “The Waiter” mixes autobiographical angst with an unflattering look at what life is like behind the order pad at a nice New York restaurant.
Overall: Good
Writing: Fair
Re-Readability: Good
Info: Faboo
I’m a long-time read of the Waiter Rant blog, so when The Waiter (he remains, by choice, anonymous, for obvious reasons) announced the book deal, I was right there pre-or More...
Oct 29, 2011
Ensiform
rated it:
Based on the blog by the longtime L.A. waiter, this is a series of pieces highlighting some of the trials and tribulations restaurant workers face, from feuds in the back to bad tippers to wanna-be foodies who think they know how the food gets to their table to arrogant yuppies who don’t care that their fellow diner just had a heart attack, they want that window table! Dublanica also muses about the personal lives of his co-workers, dishes about managers who don’t put forth effort, reveals some
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Feb 28, 2011
Peep (Pop! Pop!)
rated it:
I picked this audiobook up because I saw that it was nominated for an Audie. I tend to like the audiobooks that were nominated for awards so I thought, "what they hey!", and it sounded interesting. The audiobook itself was good. The guy who read it made it enjoyable. Wasn't my favorite, but still good listening.
The subject content of the book was a whole different story. I thought it was OK for the most of the book. But then the author just kept annoying me. I noticed how he More...
The subject content of the book was a whole different story. I thought it was OK for the most of the book. But then the author just kept annoying me. I noticed how he More...
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Aug 30, 2010
Siobhan
rated it:
Somehow I missed the label saying that this book was in “Instant New York Times Bestseller” when I picked it up at Borders over the weekend. The author, Steve Dublanica, had been writing a blog about being a waiter for years before the book was published, so I guess he had quite a following. I still haven’t looked up the blog, which shares its name with the book, but I intend to do so.
This is a quick read that tells the restaurant story from a different side than Anthony Boudin’s Kit More...
This is a quick read that tells the restaurant story from a different side than Anthony Boudin’s Kit More...
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Mar 21, 2010
Penelope
rated it:
I thought this book would be fun to read because I have been a waiter/server for almost 11 years. My "waiter time" is now 20 years in the past, I did enjoy this book very much. As a server, it is true, there are certain people you [customers:] don't want to make angry because...a person just never knows what is going to happen to their food behind the kitchen doors. I personally never saw any of my co-workers spit in a customers food/beverage...as Waiter Rant states there are many thi
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Dec 18, 2009
Maria
rated it:
My guess is that those who have been a server will rate this high and those who haven't, won't. The reason, like every other life experience, is that it's hard to fully understand or appreciate an issue or experience, unless you've walked in the shoes. Being a server, like being an athlete, fireman, teacher, someone with an eating disorder, etc....whatever you want to pick, is a secret club. Those who've been there, "get it", and those who haven't been there, couldn't possibly "
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(1 person liked it)
Dec 08, 2009
Jonny99
rated it:
If you are a fan of the blog this book is an extension of, or work in the food service industry, or just enjoy watching an amateur take a crack at writing you might find this exercise in naval-gazing interesting; otherwise just skip it. The author was known at publishing only as “The Waiter” but has recently unmasked himself. I didn’t bother to google his real name.
My chief complaint is presumably the editor didn’t insist the writing quality be brought up to non-blog writing stand More...
My chief complaint is presumably the editor didn’t insist the writing quality be brought up to non-blog writing stand More...
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Oct 20, 2009
Matt
rated it:
Here's some fun reading if you're on a trip. Blog adaptations have almost become their own genre these days, and the high points of this book detail the ins and outs of life in the front of the house in a fashion reminiscent of Bourdain's seminal Kitchen Confidential. Other extended passages read a bit like journal entries from the struggling writer Dublanica becomes over the course of the book, and while it gets a little tiresome I can understand why this stuff is in there. It's somewhat jarrin
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Oct 05, 2009
Jeni
rated it:
I had to put off reading this because it came out in hardback. I hate hardback. This is the reason I have yet to read Jen Lancaster's latest. I just refuse to pay extra for a big, bulky book that is hard to read in bed. So, I have to wait. If I could just get my boyfriend on board with buying me a Kindle . . .
Ahem.
I have read Waiter Rant for years. I love blogs gone book, but I am always wary that it's just going to be the same stuff I've already read. Lucky for me, Wait More...
Ahem.
I have read Waiter Rant for years. I love blogs gone book, but I am always wary that it's just going to be the same stuff I've already read. Lucky for me, Wait More...
Sep 02, 2009
Allison
rated it:
Entertaining, but mostly for the wrong reasons, including but not limited to: the narrative voice (a little too preciously enamored of its own cleverness); the heavy influence of Kitchen Confidential, especially the author's attempt to cultivate the burnt-marshmallow-with-a-heart-of-gold persona (charred and crispy on the outside, squishy and tender on the inside--Bourdain does it better); his Humbert Humbert-reminiscent ruminations on young girls blossoming into women; his keen insights into wo
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Feb 05, 2009
emi
rated it:
I'd never heard of the website waiterrant.net before I picked up this book by Steve Dublanica. The cover touted it as an "instant NY Times bestseller" and also there was a big blurb from Anthony Bourdain, and him I do know. As soon as I started reading this book, I knew I would hate it. This unfunny author writes as if he is hilarious, like a jolly king who has a whole sycophantic court on hand to boost his ego, exactly the way Anthony Bourdain sounds on TV as a matter of fact.
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Jul 11, 2011
Diana (Random Pabulum)
rated it:
Would you want this guy to wait on you?
I don't think I would, either. Waiter Rant: Thanks for the Tip - Confessions of a Cynical Waiter is written by Steve Dublanica, who had worked in the restaurant industry for years. He created a blog which received much publicity and followers. To check it out: Waiter Rant
For someone that is interested in the restaurant industry and the front of the house lifestyle, this is a decent voyeuristic series of vignettes that More...
I don't think I would, either. Waiter Rant: Thanks for the Tip - Confessions of a Cynical Waiter is written by Steve Dublanica, who had worked in the restaurant industry for years. He created a blog which received much publicity and followers. To check it out: Waiter Rant
For someone that is interested in the restaurant industry and the front of the house lifestyle, this is a decent voyeuristic series of vignettes that More...
Jun 15, 2011
Kari
rated it:
I'm so torn about this book. On the one hand, I completely understand where The Waiter is coming from. I worked in a low-level position in a concert hall for two years, and I had my fair share of encounters with yuppies and rich drunks who think that flowers spring from the ground they walk on. I got a measurable amount of joy out of reading how he dealt with those people, and I could sympathize with him over his worst days. The way he writes is familiar, it's like hearing a friend complain abou
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Jan 08, 2011
Tiffany
rated it:
Entertaining enough. Sometimes I think the author gets a little too unnecessarily cheeky, but I suppose that's the whole point of this book. Probably like most other readers that live in the NYC metro area -- I spent some time online trying to figure out just where The Bistro is located.
Although -- one of the best quotes ever to describe why reading is so amazing:
"Reading literature [can] teach you about the 'Universal Human Experience.' Maybe you'll never hunt anot More...
Although -- one of the best quotes ever to describe why reading is so amazing:
"Reading literature [can] teach you about the 'Universal Human Experience.' Maybe you'll never hunt anot More...
Apr 06, 2009
Charlotte
rated it:
Only marginally interesting and occasionally annoying, this is the waiter/front-of-house version of "Kitchen Confidential," only with worse writing and less juicy gossip. Apparently the author has a successful (and formerly anonymous) blog about the trials and tribulations of being a waiter at an upscale New York restaurant. Alas, his insider stories don't translate all that well to book length. There are a few interesting tidbits, particularly the details about the personalities who a
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(2 people liked it)
Jan 18, 2011
Lauren
rated it:
Reading this book was like indulging in potato chips and dip: I'm enjoying it as I'm doing it, but am left with little of substance afterwards, and feel kind of bad. The book wasn't dishy enough to be scandalous (which would have been a much more fun read!) but had no real story to compel the reader to take a vested interest in the author or what he has to say. I ended up torn between feeling bad for the guy because he seems so lonely, and disliking him for his whining while failing completel
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