When I worked in a restaurant, I had to face different customers from different countries. Indeed, they are very different in their behaviors. I shall just illustrate on some groups of people here.
Japanese: Usually, I can classify Japanese customers into two types. One type is family gathering; the other type is business related dining. For the first group of people, usually, the male dominates the whole process; women just follow and eat what has been ordered. For the second group of people, they are more formal and they follow the hierarchy strictly during the dining. Sometimes, when the important guest arrives, the juniors even queue up nicely and bow to the guest. They treat their senior staff or guests like god which is rarely seen in any other cultures. Generally, they are polite and the tables are very clean after eating. However, they do not give tips to the service.
Indonesian: Usually, they are very rich people who always in restaurants. They like to enjoy good service so that some of them even tip the staff before they order the food. They are very generous especially for those who always come to our restaurant.
Westerners: They are generally very generous, too. However, they like to enjoy the environment more than the food itself. They like to order a lot of drink and always response to the services provided courteously which is very heartwarming to the service staffs.
Religious Groups: For customers with certain religions, they have restrictions on certain types of food. Some of them are very particular about this. So the staffs have to be very careful when serving them.
Some people may think that serving food in restaurant is easy. But I would say, if you want to provide good service to your customers, it is not so easy, especially when you work in a place like Singapore, where it is very international. Spending some time to understand your customers, your life will be a lot easier and, sometimes, it is rewarding as well.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
Hey Liu Ning, I can understand how you feel working in a restaurant. I have been a waiter before and i have come across many international customers. Each and every customer has a different need and taste.
I have came across the exact same type of behavior with certain customers especially the Japanese. You got it spot on with the behavior of the Japanese. In a country like Singapore where we meet people from all walks of life and countries, we have to be prepared to serve all this people no matter what it takes as Singapore's reputation as a service hub lies in our hands.
Hello!
I can totally understand how you feel. I have never worked in a restaurant. But i admit that I am sometimes a nasty customer too. :P
I guess it is really a challenge to communicate and serve the Japanese.... In a country like Singapore, where we are trying to promote better service attract more tourists from all over the world, even when we meet nasty customers, we still have to serve them with a smile. Remember: ' The customer is always right!'
:P
Hi Liu Ning, you've certainly had the opportunity to meet many people from different countries, and what better time to observe cultures than at meal times when everyone is relaxing and enjoying themselves. The Japanese definitely have a strong sense of honour and respect for those of a higher rank. Also being a largely patriarchal society, the man is the head of the household.
In contrast, Westerners tend to believe more in equality of the person and behave as such. Take the Americans for example. It is not unheard of to have children call their parents by their first name whereas in Asian countries, you almost never see that happening as it is considered disrespectful. Well, to each his own I say!
hi liuning!
Interesting post with interesting observations about the different nationalities :)
In addition to the part about the Japanese behaviour, I too have a short story. I have a Swedish female friend who is working for an international company that is based in the states, but has a branch in singapore. She was sent to Japan for a meeting once with all the "bigshots" of the Japanese branch. So when she was there, the Japanese secretary had to show them to the lift after the meeting ended. She kept bowing at them and started to walk backwards while bowing, showing them the way to the lift. So... she bowed all the way from the meeting room to the lift, while walking backwards. My friend was really amused and she attempted to stop her midway. However, the japanese girl just shook her head looking at the ground and continued her task.
:)
When my swedish friend told me this story, she expressed that she thought it was very demeaning for the girl to have done that. She felt that she has as much right as anyone to walk beside the guests, all the same showing the same amount of respect. However, as she said so, she understands that that has always been in the Japanese culture. I cannot imagine her having to work in that company :)
Post a Comment