Biggest Restaurant No-Nos, Part 2

Former waiter irked by Bruce Buschel's New York Times list

(NEWSER) - Along with the rest of the world—or at least, frequenters of the New York Times website—Lauren Bans read restaurateur Bruce Buschel’s recent “100 Things Restaurant Staffers Should Never Do.” And the former waiter is pretty annoyed. “No minimum wage job should ever require a list of 100 Don’ts,” she writes on DoubleX —and 80% of the rules are “either flat-out insulting or so absurdly obvious they’re insulting.” More»

Owner lays down the law with these rules for staff

(NEWSER) - The seafood restaurant Bruce Buschel is building will have excellent service—or else. Some staff members, he acknowledges, "will no doubt protest some or most of what follows," but he's the boss, and he presents 50 rules in his New York Times blog. A tasting menu:

• "Do not take an empty plate from one guest while others are still eating the same course. Wait, wait, wait."
• Make sure the table is level and the wine glasses clean before anyone sits down or orders a drink.

Leftovers are frowned upon at Wafu

(NEWSER) - Don’t even think about asking for a doggie bag at Australian restaurant Wafu. The chef not only charges diners who don’t finish their meal 30% more than diners who do, but she also asks them not to return. “Finishing your meal requires that everything is eaten except lemon slices, gari (sushi ginger), and wasabi,” reads an explanation on the restaurant door. More»

Start by looking her in the eye

(NEWSER) - Dining out anytime soon? True/Slant blogger (and former waitress) Susannah Breslin has a little advice on how to treat your server. Check out the full list here . A sampling:

• Eye contact: Too many people treat servers like they’re invisible. Don't be one of them. “Look your server in the eye. The goal of dining out is great service. Treating your server like a human being is one way to get it.”
• Tip: At nice spots, it’s 20%, so deal with it. “If I just spent several hours running around … and basically acting like your personal slave for the evening, I’d like to be reimbursed for it.”

From onion blossoms to overhyped chefs, these things need to go away

(NEWSER) - Asked to name the decade's worst dining trends, chefs and other food experts couldn't shut up. There were too many (including "mache, water sommeliers, organ-meat entrees, unisex bathrooms, bacon tattoos on chefs, over-flaunted kitchen burns, chefs tables") for Christopher Borrelli to list them all, but he hits the top 10 in the Chicago Tribune:

• Fried onion blossoms: Too sweaty, too greasy, too little onion, and too much fried stuff.
• The $40 entree: When your neighborhood bistro has hit these heights, it's time to say enough is enough.