Waitress in England: Where I Work

An eclectic little bistro café down the street from my house is now where I spend at least 3 days/nights a week working. It's named Number 4 after its address, which is 4 Southbourne Grove.

In the mornings, it's mostly drink orders, mostly coffees. Because I'm not a very big coffee fan, before I started working here I had not the slightest idea what espressos, lattes, or cappuccinos even were. Now I'm a frothing, pouring, mixing genius, although I can't seem to keep a steady hand and bring drinks to the table without a little dribbling.

On Friday and Saturday nights Number 4 turns into a dark candlelit wine bistro, with rotating live music. Last Friday, a great Latin jazz duo called A Bossa Imensa entertained customers with sultry and smooth classics sung in Brazilian.

The walls are decorated with paintings and photography from local artists. And quirky touches like rosebud lights, antiqued mirrors, protruding metal ceilings, shell ashtrays in the garden, and an old piano along the wall give the café that little something extra special.

Having plenty of waitress experience, I find the job just the same here in England, as it is in the States. I had the notion that Europeans don't tip (I remember numerous times when foreigners left nothing while dining out in America), but, fortunately, most English DO leave a tip at dinner.

I get paid minimum wage, which is about £5.80 per hour. And my nightly tips (while still being paid hourly) range from £20 to £40. This job and the pay isn't at all what I got my college degree for, but at the moment it's exactly what I want.

So far, I've only had one instance where the cultural barrier came into play. During my first day of work a little girl came up to me while I folded silverware and asked me for a serviette. And I had no idea what that was. As I walked to the back to ask the owner, leaving the little girl waiting, I caught the girl's mother eying me curiously. Turns out a serviette is just another word for napkin, and I had had one in my hand the whole time. Ha!













♡ - Kristen