Before anyone feeds me...
A smile and a friendly greeting -- along with the food served -- go a long way at restaurants. Credit: istock
What I want before I even look at my chopped salad, grilled calamari or pad Thai:
A smile. A friendly greeting. And if there’s no table available, an idea of how long the wait will be. Not long ago, at a Fort Salonga Italian spot, a waitress waved our party off, telling us to stand by an open door while she checked to see when a table would be vacated. We stood there five chilly minutes, finally deciding to give up. We were on our way out when an older woman — quite possibly the owner — walked in, sized up the situation and, noting that a table was about to become available, urged us to stay. We did — simply because she cared.
Eating out isn’t just about eating. And the hospitality industry has that name for a reason.
