![]() If you become a regular and get to know more about the chef, consider bringing him or her a small gift relevant to his or her interests. In most places, a discreet $20 in the hand for a parting handshake will go miles. If the service sucks and you feel 20% is too much, why the hell do you want to eat there in the first place? Last, if you have an outstanding experience, tip the maître d’ or host/ hostess. C’mon, you wouldn’t be that easily bought, and neither will they. Tipping 40% once every few weeks won’t make you an MFC. While undertipping is a no-no, the value of overtipping is overestimated. When you start to get asked, “Are you in the industry?” your service will take a quantum leap, and you might eventually get labeled “super soigné” (pronounced “swan-yay”), or VIP, in the restaurant booking system. Doing work on a notepad during your meal, especially if you’re at a fancier place, also raises eyebrows. He or she may think you’re a fellow server (which earns bonus points) or a reviewer (ditto). Ask your server smart questions about the food. Say that you admire the work of cooks and would love to see what they’re able to accomplish in their kitchen. If you’ve built rapport, politely ask your server if you can get a quick tour of the kitchen or a peek behind the scenes after dinner. Don’t interrupt the chef, but go ahead and ask smart questions about the preparation of your dishes if a cook starts the conversation. ![]() #Evernote alternatives tim ferriss free#This might also take the form of a “chef’s window/table/bar,” so feel free to ask for it. For dinners, ask if you can be seated at or near “the pass,” where the final plating is done before dishes go to tables. Also, IMPORTANT: leave a cash tip for your bartender, even if you transfer the bill to a table. If the restaurant isn’t slammed, and after you’ve had a bunch of dishes, ask the bartender if you can thank the GM (general manager), chef, or owner, indicating that you don’t want to interrupt them if they’re too busy. The bartender is your best friend and is beloved by all staff (can you say after-hours “shift drinks”?). A cook actually came out to say hello because he thought it was so unusual.” - For your first two or three visits, sit at the bar, if possible. I first did this at the Slanted Door in San Francisco. Chefs want to show off their popular dishes but often have an item on the menu they’re really proud of, and really want people to try. In his words: “Ask your server to ask the chef two questions: first, ‘What does everyone order?’ and second, ‘What does almost no one order that you think everyone should?’ Then order both. He’s now founder of and still follows advice he received long ago. Will Schwalbe, while editor in chief of Hyperion Books, edited many of the biggest names in chefdom. Do you have a four top toward the back?” - Order two dishes at your first visit. ![]() If they ask “Table for two?” or “Table for four?” you can respond with “Yep. Becoming a lunch regular is a good investment and one of the shortcuts to MFC. ![]() If possible, go for both lunch and dinner two or three nights in a row. For you to become an MFC, restaurants have to first remember your name, so help ’em out. For the money-making days (Friday to Sunday), they stick to the majority- pleasing safe bets. That’s when restaurants cater to the food- ies and experiment with their menus. Pick and choose as you like: THE TO-DO LIST: If you’re going to eat out, you might as well do it right. Below are tips from chefs and restaurant managers in NYC, as well as lessons I learned during my own research. Rest assured, there are shortcuts to reaching this coveted status. That’s why this is called “How to Become a VIP” and not “How to Be Treated Like a VIP.” In fact, I dislike the term VIP altogether and suggest a more accurate replacement: most-favored customer (MFC). ![]() But how? Unless you’re a celebrity, and sometimes even then, you’ll need to earn it. There is always one person who rolls up to the hottest joint in town and immediately gets a table, a handshake from the maître d’, and the fastest service. ![]()
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