What does the Head Server do?

[goofyforlife]

not to make anyone jealous....

but Eric, our head server on the wonder, in December 04,

got our whole table chocolate souffles....

We had a couple on their honeymoon at our table. They ate at Palo the first night and didn't realize what they had missed. I asked Eric if there was any way to get them one.... and he was nice enough to get some for the whole table....

 

[clten]

I've had all types of head servers on DCL, the good, the bad and the missing. My feeling is that if I am supposed to tip them, it should be for reasons I am aware of. (Not this setting up things beforehand, working long hours stuff - that should be DCL's responsibility.) The least I expect is for them to stop by every night to say hello and check on things. How can they give you good service if they never take the time to talk to you?

I don't travel with children and most of the time you see head servers interacting with children. (I've been told on many occasions that the crew caters to the children because it is the easiest way to win over the parents.) If they want to work the room for the families that's fine but if they don't do anything for me, they don't get a tip. I always take good care of the server and assistant server. To me the tip for the head server is optional.

 

[yogibigdog]

We had a mix up with our seating. We had two cabins and somehow our reservations were not linked. This resulted in us having different tables. We were upset to say the least but the head server assured us it would be fixed. The just told us to arrive early for the first dinner. We did and they were able to correct our seat assignment for the rest of the cruise.

 

[windermerejudy]

Challada---we had Cheetan last week and he was the best HS we have ever had. He came to our table every single night and visited and again to ask if the food was ok. He evenscooped our labsters ourt of their shells when our servers were MIA which they often were. I do have to say we had empty drinks the entirity of dinner, slow to bring over menus when we sat down.....He was around trying to figure out what was going on and if he could help. I do have to give a disclaimer however -----we have never had a HS before this that we thought wasn't a conceted lazy money grabber. I have always wondered why I was tipping them but definitely felt it was worth it this time. You know it is so funny how people have cometo expect tips for everything. If you are delivering a service that is expected to be delivered like getting your waiters rear ends in gear when they are not doing a sufficient job should I be responsible for that? I loved whoever said we do not tip the cooks. Tips are supposed to be for someone who goes above and beyond their normal duties. If you are a doctor or nurse and you take care of your patients you arenot tipped. If you are a lawyer and you prepare documents for your client you are not tipped. hen why is it come to be that we have created an environment where waiters, baggage checkers, taxi drivers ...are tipped when they are simply performing the job you have already payed for.

On the flip side I am sure if there was not an incentive (like in the Bahamas) your service would be nonexistent because they were getting their pay whether you were pleased or not.

 

[Pacha]

You know it is so funny how people have cometo expect tips for everything. If you are delivering a service that is expected to be delivered like getting your waiters rear ends in gear when they are not doing a sufficient job should I be responsible for that? I loved whoever said we do not tip the cooks. Tips are supposed to be for someone who goes above and beyond their normal duties. If you are a doctor or nurse and you take care of your patients you arenot tipped. If you are a lawyer and you prepare documents for your client you are not tipped. hen why is it come to be that we have created an environment where waiters, baggage checkers, taxi drivers ...are tipped when they are simply performing the job you have already payed for.

It is so the companies these employees work for can pay them little to nothing and expect the consumer to foot the rest of the bill. My wife and I both work at the same restaurant here in Nebraska. The servers make $2.13/hour while us cooks make between $9 -$11 per hour. So for the servers to make a descent rate, you the customer has to pay the extra while the stock holders get richer. And if DR.'s and lawyers only got paid $2.13/hour they would expect a tip too.

Pacha

 

[beanbag1]

Maclean rocks! We just had him on the Magic and he did wonderful things for us. We HATED our table and thought we'd be eating room service every night (that's how bad it was) We spoke to Maclean and by the 2nd day we had a new, wonderful table with a great wait team (Louis and Erika) It totally changed the trip for us.

 

[Meskamooska]

Hi All,

My family and I are getting ready for our first Disney Cruise on 7/2 here in California and we are very excited about it. I appreciate all that I have learned and continue to learn from all of you who are much more seasoned than we are.

That being said, I do want to clear up a misconception that has morphed into fact. Tipping was not originally intended as a reward for services rendered but rather as an incentive for services anticipated. In fact, the word tip is actually an acronym that stands for To Insure Promptness T.I.P.. If my junior high French class instructor was right the custom started in France way back when.

Yes, it does indeed seem that nowadays everyone has their hand out and their fingers are prying into your pocketbook. And yes, paying these crew positions what is truly a pittance and expecting them to rely on tips to make a living is one of the many ways that the Cruise industry and other service type industries keep their bottom lines in the black and not the red (or so they will tell you.)

Again, speaking as a novice in the cruise game but as a very experienced service type provider (I have a children's party company) I can tell you that the families that I have worked for in the past that decided to tip me are certainly held high in my esteem, but so are those that do not. It is very nice to find out in a concrete way that what you do has been truly appreciated.

Do I slack off on my level of service should a family rebook me and just pay my fee without adding a tip at the end of the event? Absolutely not! Do I get a little bit more excited when a family that has used me before and tipped well (sometimes extremely well) calls to book me again? You bet! Hey, I'm human and I like stuff just as much as the next guy, but I do what I do because I love it. That is truly what I think separates the good from the great service providers.

People that have been in the industry for years and consistently provide above stellar service really must love what they do or they just couldn't do it no matter what you paid them. Working with and for the public is beyond hard, it can be very rewarding but it will also really test your mettle.

At this point for our family, we intend to tip our service staff as soon as we arrive and will then add to the tip at the conclusion of our trip as the experience merits it. We will also be sure to tell our service providers of our intent. After all, using a tip as an incentive does you no good if the recepient does not know that there may be a pot of gold or greebacks at the end of the journey.

Just my .02 cents worth.

Take care all and have a great day!

Tisza

 

[lbgraves]

We had a wonderful HS on our first Magic cruise. Nadege was always nearby and spoke to the children every night asking them about their day, which characters they had seen, and giving them trading cards (which they no longer have on the ship.) On our last cruise McLean was our dining room manager but I can't even think of the HS's name. He certainly did not impress us. There were problems on the floor with the server next to our station & most of the time we saw the HS he was diffusing confrontations between that server & others in the same area...including ours. He didn't appear to be managing his team very well.

 

[Aisling]

At this point for our family, we intend to tip our service staff as soon as we arrive and will then add to the tip at the conclusion of our trip as the experience merits it.

I think I like this idea.

 

[KaitlinsMom]

We tip our room steward at the beginning, and let him/her know that we will also take care of them in the end - Has worked out really well - Our room always looks fantastic and the service provided "excellant"

Karen

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

We tip our room steward at the beginning, and let him/her know that we will also take care of them in the end - Has worked out really well - Our room always looks fantastic and the service provided "excellant"

We tip the stateroom host/hostess at the end, as is customary. This has worked out really well. Our room always looks fantastic and the service provided "excellent."